Interpretation and text by Elena Cartotto
APTITUDE ARCHETYPES
Understanding your own archetype can be of great help in identifying your ambitions and learning to use the talents you possess, making order in the chaos of the stimuli that you receive from the outside world and that are often confusing: it is very easy, for example, especially for insecure or particularly empathetic people, to internalize other people’s expectations.
There have always been individuals who can exactly figure out, already at an early age, what they want to be in life, what their natural talents are and what kind of studies or career they want to pursue. Often, astrologically, these people are marked by a stellium of sign ...
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PROMETHEUS OR THE CREATOR
In mythology, one of the most prominent figures among the Titans, who were even antecedent to the Olympic gods we all know, was Prometheus, whose name, deriving from ancient Greek, means ‘the forethinker’. Prometheus was therefore a forerunner: he stole fire from the gods to give it to mankind and lead them to civilization. Plato even recognises a divine role in him: it was Prometheus who moulded man from clay, into which life was then breathed. Due to his role as a creator, Prometheus will be considered the inventor of writing, medicine, architecture, the inspirer of metalworking. He will become a symbol of human creative freedom and of the knowledge that derives from it beyond any attempt at ideological or religious coercion, precisely because Prometheus did not hesitate to fight against the gods in order to help the human being he himself had shaped.
Anyone who is astrologically marked by the archetype of Prometheus has the same spark within them, which is why they are often smart people. Their mental attitude is highly intuitive with a remarkable predisposition for analogical thinking. They hardly proceed by schemes, categorisations, standardised procedures: they get to foresee the unfolding of events before anyone else, thanks to a sort of flair, sometimes truly brilliant, which allows them to seize the connections between facts, causes, possibilities that can elude the regular logical path. They are able to find connections and references even between things that are apparently very distant from each other.
Like Prometheus, they have a tendency to instinctively reject the vision imposed on them by others about certain topics because they feel the need to always see things from original points of view, even if this can mean contradicting the majority. They don’t do that because they are contrarians, but because they feel the urge to get out of all that is known, already seen and accepted in terms of knowledge and practice, in order to go on unexplored paths that allow to redefine existing ideas and goals in a different way and to find new ones.
They can be particularly sensitive towards mankind or even be capable, while remaining detached, of embodying collective values in their own way of existing and working, but, above all, they are naturally inclined to understand before anyone else where the wind is blowing: they are one step ahead in terms of tastes and desires, often managing to be the first to propose totally new things that can easily become trendy.
Such an individual can certainly reflect and amplify common feelings, but this won’t imply a real need for contact with the other, from whom, in some cases, they may even want to escape.
The primary impulse of the individual who is marked by the archetype of Prometheus is to generate and create human, cultural and economic value independently, with the desire to give shape to their ideas and intuitions. If they cannot create, the Promethean personality will still try to transform and change what tradition offers.
They frequently feel driven by an inspiration they cannot explain and that, in part, results from the cultural heritage that belong to them and that they receive in terms of values, conceptual and operational tools, experiences passed on, readings.
They are individuals whose energy is hardly stable. They can frequently have ups and downs that also depend on their mood. However, there is always something exceeding in them: an excess of ideas, personality, enthusiasm, stubbornness, anger. In some cases, there is a real energy surplus that can be very useful to those who, in addition to creativity, have a histrionic personality that wants to find fulfilment and success in the spotlight, whatever this may be: on stage in a theatre, or in media politics.
They tend to be people who love working independently and who consider the expression of their vocation to be more important than the financial gain it can guarantee. More than other profiles, they are therefore able to handle the uncertainty and sense of precariousness that can result from choosing a certain type of path and career. This does not mean that they are unable to achieve financial success: on the contrary, if in their personality the archetype of the demiurge, the creator, is also significant, they can make a lot of money.
CAREER
Visionary and multi-aptitude entrepreneurs often present this archetype, which is also significant in the personalities of some famous entertainers, poets, writers, screenwriters, authors in the vast world of media, that is, people who always work creatively.
Among them we also have advertisers, copywriters, stylists, designers and even some scientists whose intuitions overturn existing paradigms.
Heads of State, leaders of companies or political movements often have this archetype in a significant position due to their role as trailblazers, their ability to take risks, because they are able to indicate the paths to follow and the programmes to fulfil by embodying collective needs.
BIG FIVE AREA
EXTROVERSION 20%
AGREEABLENESS 15%
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS 15%
EMOTIONAL STABILITY 10%
OPEN-MINDEDNESS 40%
EXTROVERSION 20%
AGREEABLENESS 15%
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS 15%
EMOTIONAL STABILITY 10%
OPEN-MINDEDNESS 40%
THE DAIMON OR THE GUIDE
The term "daimon", which we basically translate as "demon", has a long history that starts from ancient times with thinkers such as Socrates and Plato, up to the modern theories of the psychoanalyst James Hillman, the well-known author of “The Soul’s Code”. The daimon, a mediator between heaven and earth, between god and men, presents itself from the beginning as an inner guide capable of suggesting morally correct behaviours and, later, in its psychological and historical evolution, becomes a travel companion, who is often ignored, but who knows our true vocation and is able to pave the way for us to recognise the meaning of life. According to Jung as well, the "daimon" acquires a profound archetypical meaning, because it leads us not to hell, as the word would suggest, but to our true self, to our special talent.
The daimon is a sort of autonomous psychic entity that knows us and sends us provocative messages and premonitions, sometimes ambiguous, to lead us to the authentic realization of the Self. That is probably why this profile appears frequently, together with the creative one, in successful people, because this profile makes them look inward and deep, and be capable of going beyond the surface of things and of the social image that people tend to wear to conform to their time. They are able to stir up the authentic passion that has lived in man since the dawn of time and to boost their expressive freedom.
The purpose of the "daimon" individual is not to please at all costs or to sell something. In their most introspective form, they are capable of listening, tend to be sensitive, but they may not necessarily show it, perceptive, able to absorb, like a sponge, the moods and feelings of others.
They tend to follow their own inner flow, like a sailor sailing unknown seas, to reflect on their own and other people’s emotions in order to decode them and better understand their interlocutors. They are so intuitive and so good at understanding people and their implicit requests that they can give the impression of being able to read minds. Actually, they have a natural inclination to especially focus on non-verbal language, on tones, on those variables that are often overlooked and that are present in human speeches and behaviours as soon as relationships are established.
In their social expression, they are curious, quick-witted and inquiring. They are attracted to expectations, unexpressed needs, criteria, values, influences that determine the life of individuals within a community and they can even get involved to change them if they think they are wrong. This makes them open to exchange and dialogue, even harsh if necessary.
Since, however, the archetype can manifest itself in its entirety, the daimon also presents a "demonic" side that must be intended as a manipulative attitude; this attitude, as happens to communicators, but for different reasons, can escape the control of inexperienced people: the anxiety of digging to find all the hidden motivations and the desire to exercise mental power over the individuals and, in certain cases, over the masses, can lead them to develop a kind of psychic narcissism they are not always aware of. In order to do that, they can use all the tools of the daimon archetype, devoting them to the magnification of their own Ego: strong charisma, psychological acumen, perceptiveness, histrionics, the ability to deal with other people's emotions, problems, secrets. The demon is the tempter par excellence, it is the one who observes without being observed, who spies on us from within to steal what is most precious in us, our soul. Such individuals either set us free or trap us, but they always leave their mark.
CAREER
This profile can often be found in psychologists, sociologists, psychotherapists, experts in human resources and in tests of various kinds, the well-known “head-hunters” who act as a link between companies and the market and carry out complex processes of staff recruitment for high-level positions.
Today, people with such skills work in holistic disciplines whose purpose is to restore mind-body harmony, since they know how to combine the ability to heal through innovative techniques with that of tuning in very well to the unconscious psyche. Likewise, the wide world of esoterism with its psychics, occultists and new age experts includes many individuals who fit this profile, as well as tarot readers and astrologers.
Teachers and trainers, although they are basically communicators, often possess skills, at least partially, that belong to the archetype of the daimon.
The “daimon” characters, chatting about this and that, and keeping a low profile, have the ability to seize all the relational and power dynamics within micro and macro structures: offices, operational or planning units, companies, ministries, institutions. They sense where the balance has been disrupted and know how to provide correct suggestions to appropriately restore it. In its more community-oriented side, the daimon can act as the political animal that instinctively knows how to position itself as a guide on the great stage of mass leadership.
Introspection, on the other hand, if prevailing, promotes two very rare qualities: discretion and confidentiality. Such people can therefore enter even those particular contexts where secrecy is essential, such as the wide world of government security.
Their sharp, inquiring mind, their fascination with all the nuances of the human psyche, even with the most frightening ones, make these individuals suitable for criminology, investigation and profiling activities.
BIG FIVE AREA
EXTROVERSION 10%
AGREEABLENESS 30%
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS 15%
EMOTIONAL STABILITY 20%
OPEN-MINDEDNESS 25%
ATLAS OR THE CHAMPION
Atlas, a second-generation Titan, according to the myth, was condemned by Zeus to hold up the whole celestial spheres on his shoulders: the king of the gods wanted to punish him because, during the Titanomachy, he had sided with Cronus and the Titans against the gods of Olympus. In the first book of the Odyssey, Atlas is, however, described with poetic inspiration as one of the pillars of the sky. He seems to be fond of astrology and have a special talent for it, so much so that he was the first to represent the world with a sphere and, for that reason, he became the one able to hold the whole sky upon himself.
Those people characterised by the Atlas archetype have generally a lot of energy, great stamina, quick thinking, focus, eagerness to win and, above all, are willing to give up a normal lifestyle to get the result they want: they can therefore be maniacally characterised by an iron discipline.
Some may have a remarkable predisposition for sports, whether this implies sprinting and speed or muscle strengthening: women, for example, may show a remarkable talent for dance and related disciplines like, for example, rhythmic gymnastics or figure skating. Others, on the other hand, will show obsessive rigor and indomitable self-sacrifice in purely intellectual activities that still require dedication and constant commitment.
Such individuals can be entrusted with tasks that involve movement, hard work, travelling, because they know how to bear and modulate physical and mental stress without being crushed by it and are also able, when required, to stick to very strict and binding schedules. They endure loneliness, they can do without benefits and fun, and, above all, they are endowed with a sort of “military” mindset.
Those who choose this type of career are often characterised by this profile which, in addition to physical predisposition for certain activities, efforts, constant and complex training, where psychomotor coordination is essential, often indicates an iron character, capable of imposing itself and, if required, of making decisions, giving orders, but also of accepting other people’s authority, thanks to strong self-control.
They are very disciplined and hardly ever exceed their sphere of competence: if they do that, they are ready to take full responsibility for their mistakes. They tend to respect the rules and values of the environment they belong to, and can focus with such stubbornness on the intended purpose that they sometimes forget about everything else. They have a sort of monastic spirit and are able to give themselves rules of life that help them to live fully, to set their own timetable in the best way possible, to set mid-term goals, to help others to develop customised methods that, if applied consistently, lead to excellent results in any field.
As in all profiles, this one too can have pitfalls: for example, excessive authoritarianism, intolerance to criticism and to the contradiction of their own principles, the risk that physical, intellectual, professional commitment in a generic sense may actually try to compensate for personal frustrations that can have, at times, the upper handover what is the role they play within society. Sometimes, the Atlas archetype demands too much of itself and this may be due to latent feelings of guilt aimed more at seeking expiatory suffering than at carrying out its task in the best possible way.
CAREER
Hostesses and stewards, airplane pilots, train drivers, people in the army, athletes, those who drive service cars or heavy vehicles, people who deal with logistics or who, as long as they are also skilled communicators, work as representatives or trainers in companies: today, several managerial training courses aim at increasing the skills of executives through sports practice and method seen as a possible key to interpreting professional life in its various stages. Gym owners and managers also belong here, as long as they also have an economic-financial profile.
Artists committed to achieving high-value performances (in singing, drama, literature, etc.) can be partially marked by this profile, which gives the individual ambition to excel and competitive drive in order to achieve performances of outstanding quality.
This profile can be highlighted in those people who have strong spiritual values and who are able to choose extreme lifestyles or an existence that can involve significant sacrifices when it comes to the comfortable aspects of life.
BIG FIVE AREA
EXTROVERSION 10%
AGREEABLENESS 15%
CONSCIENTIOUSNESS 30%
EMOTIONAL STABILITY 35%
OPEN-MINDEDNESS 10%
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