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The Healthy Compulsive Project: Help for OCPD, Workaholics, Obsessives, & Type A PersonalityThe Healthy Compulsive Project: Help for OCPD, Workaholics, Obsessives, & Type A Personality
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compulsive personality blog

The Healthy Compulsive Project: Taking the Reins of the Driven Personality

May 31, 2018 Posted by Gary Trosclair 12 Comments

Contents

  • Why A Compulsive Personality Blog?
    • A Style with Extremes: The Compulsive Personality Spectrum
    • Taking the Reins of Passion and Energy
    • The Larger Project: Individuation

Why A Compulsive Personality Blog?

I love having a project. And ones that suit my nature such as a compulsive personality blog are especially gratifying. The Healthy Compulsive Project, a blog for people with obsessive and perfectionist personality traits, and those that live with them, is just that sort of venture.

I love to write and I love to think about personality, what motivates us and what fulfills us. I love to focus on a challenge and bring it to completion, as perfectly as possible. I love being committed to something that I’m creating or repairing. And I love to work, whether it’s helping clients, crafting a clear and engaging lecture, cutting down invasive vines, or balancing my checkbook.

All of the traits that I’ve just described about myself could be described as compulsive.  They all rise from inner urges that are hard to resist. These passions all spring from within me and I feel compelled to act on them.

compulsively Driven

I’m Driven.

And that could be a problem if I’m not driving consciously, if I’m not taking the reins.

A Style with Extremes: The Compulsive Personality Spectrum

Anyone who has compulsive tendencies can become a victim of these urges. They can become rigid, judgmental, over-controlling, reactive, rushed, impatient, miserly and workaholic in order to meet their goals. They can become mean and destructive in the name of righteousness. They can also become anxious, burnt-out, and depressed.

The compulsive personality style can lead to extremes: really productive and caring, or really neurotic and callous. The American Psychiatric Association calls the negative end of this spectrum Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder (OCPD).   They have no name for the positive end. It takes conscious effort to take the reins of compulsive energy and guide it to the healthy end of the spectrum. That’s The Healthy Compulsive Project.

A healthy compulsive is one whose energy, passion and talents for achievement are used consciously in the service of love and purpose. An unhealthy compulsive is one whose energy, passion and talents for achievement have been hijacked by fear and its henchman, anger. Both are driven: one by meaning, the other by dread.

In this blog I’ll be exploring the inner workings and outer manifestations of the compulsive personality, or, as I prefer to call it, the Driven personality. I’ll be writing about what it takes to be a healthy compulsive, which is neither easy nor simple.

Taking the Reins of Passion and Energy

But just so that you have a rough idea what I mean by this I’ll give you a bare bones preview. My study of research literature, personal experience, and clinical experience have led me to conclude that there are a few basic steps we need to take to take the wheel of this energetic disposition:

  • Acknowledge that you have a compulsive personality style and take pride in it. The people who don’t acknowledge it, and so don’t see the dangers in it, are usually the ones who go off the the deep end.
  • Slow down enough to look inside and remember what your deepest passions are. Where do they really want to go? Have you been trying to buy peace (I’ll retire someday) or self-regard (I really am a decent person after all) with over-working?
  • Discover what part of your has taken over the reins: Insecurities? A need to be respected? A need to prove yourself? A deep need to create something of value?
  • Take back the reins by honoring the original intention of your drives, and don’t get caught in a blind and rigid execution of them. Given the realities of your life how can you find peace, self-regard, or a sense of accomplishment?
  • Don’t allow your tendencies to work, perfect, control, plan, and judge crowd out your other desires such as enjoying and nurturing relationships, taking time for leisure and play, and savoring what’s good in the present moment.
  • Allow a balanced personality to emerge.

I’ll be going into greater depth with these in future posts.

The Larger Project: Individuation

The way I see it, together these constitute a larger Project that everyone has the potential to engage in, compulsive or not: cultivating our unique gifts in a way that benefits us and the world around us.  Carl Jung called this Individuation.

Much of the good that’s accomplished in the world is accomplished by people who have compulsive tendencies. They get the job done. And much of the bad is wrought by people whose intense willpower gets hijacked by fear. Even if they do get the job done, they achieve it with lots of collateral damage.

The fate of our world is determined not by the people with the best ideas, but by the people with the most determination. Most of these people are Driven—often to their own detriment and the detriment of others–by judgement, punishment, and unrealistic expectations. Many who end up in leadership positions are compulsive, and many of them are unhappy, unhealthy, unbalanced, and, worst of all, unconscious. We need their energy, but we should also be asking how we can help them drive better.

That’s one reason why I’m taking on this project: to create awareness of a condition which research tells us is not recognized by most people, and too often turns destructive in our culture. And to help people use their Driven nature in a more constructive way.

I’ll be exploring how the Driven personality operates, and how to get it running smoothly. I’ll be looking at it from very diverse perspectives: psychological research, Jungian psychology and spirituality, culture, film and literature reviews, and personal stories.

Please join me in this project. I’d love to hear from folks who are compulsive or Driven. How do you manage your energy? I’d also love to hear from folks who live with people who are compulsive or Driven. What’s it like on the other end?

___________________________

If you haven’t seen it yet, check out my new book on Amazon or Barnes and Noble. If you think it would be helpful to others, please leave a review.

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  • A WordPress Commenter
    · Reply

    February 24, 2018 at 9:41 PM

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  • Eric Siegel
    · Reply

    May 3, 2018 at 3:25 PM

    Thank you for taking this on. Your perspective on the positive aspects of psychological growth is a very healthy counterbalance, from which I have benefitted personally. I will share this among other driven folks I know.

  • Melody G
    · Reply

    July 15, 2018 at 4:20 PM

    interesting!
    I’ve recently read ‘The people you are’ by Rita Carter which suggests that we have different personalities or aspects of ourselves which tend to come into play in different situations. It’s really got me thinking.
    Do you think there can be some milder parts of us which can moderate some of the unhelpful aspects of drivenness, or can we contain our drivenness to just some parts of our day?

    • Gary Trosclair
      · Reply

      Author
      February 10, 2019 at 12:05 PM

      Sorry for the delay. Yes, definitely. With awareness of the different parts of ourselves we can moderate the less healthy aspects of the driven personality. Either childish or judgmental parts of the personality can be channeled or directed by the observing ego, or the “adult” part which can help us remember the original purpose of our drive. Like the charioteer in the icon of this site, we can use these energies more wisely. The danger is that if the charioteer is too controlling we lose touch with our natural energies and drives, which can be wise and fulfilling.

  • Al Lands
    · Reply

    March 15, 2019 at 12:39 PM

    Amazing!!! I’d love to see your updates on this.

  • Cornelia
    · Reply

    June 21, 2019 at 11:27 AM

    Thank you so much for these articles. My husband is OCPD and it has been a rough road. He can be a good person which is why I have stayed with him for 22 years but I’m wearing down. These articles are amazing.

    • Gary Trosclair
      · Reply

      Author
      June 21, 2019 at 11:35 AM

      Thanks for letting me know, Connie. Very glad to hear that they are helpful. Best of luck in your marriage.

  • Cornelia
    · Reply

    September 17, 2019 at 2:40 PM

    Just reporting that after 22 years, we are divorcing. For most of those years, I have been begging my spouse to get help. He was diagnosed with “Driven Personality” by professionals but can’t stand that I keep telling him he needs help. He has lost his relationship with 3 of 4 of his children. They want nothing to do with him. The 4th knows his father and keeps his distance but tries to have a relationship with him. He is starting to show more paranoia and turns the fault onto everyone else. My husband fits your explanation above to a tee. Unfortunately, he just can’t “acknowledge that you have a compulsive personality style and take pride in it. The people who don’t, and so don’t see the dangers in it, are usually the ones who go off the deep end.” Acknowledging is everything. Without that acknowledgment, relationships are doomed. I have really appreciated your blog.

    • Gary Trosclair
      · Reply

      Author
      October 4, 2019 at 6:34 PM

      Hi Connie. Sorry that it had to come to that for you and your husband. It’s quite sad, but sometimes it is the best solution. I am glad that you are taking care of yourself. I’m glad to know the blog has been helpful to you.

  • Tammy
    · Reply

    May 6, 2021 at 5:37 PM

    Idk if this is the type of comment you’re hoping for and I apologize if it isn’t but in reference to your book, do you have an audio version anywhere? I’d love to listen but as my days are packed (yes, I’m the “driven” one) it would be beneficial if I could access an audio version.
    Thank you.

    • Gary Trosclair
      · Reply

      Author
      May 6, 2021 at 5:45 PM

      Thanks for asking. So far there is no audio version of the book. I’ll pass on the request to my publisher!

      Gary

  • Tammy
    · Reply

    May 6, 2021 at 11:21 PM

    I hope to see (or hear ????) one soon! Thank you for your prompt response.

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