It also helps to have external accountability and encouragement, such as someone you can text about your progress. The positive affirmation that you’re on the right track keeps you going. Finally, since you are likely to come up with many new fantastic ideas, give yourself permission to have an “exciting ideas” list where you can park them while you work on current projects.

Committed Cholerics: “Roar!”

Cholerics command attention with fast, strong reactions that last for a long time. When they put their mind to something — it will happen, like it or not. Confident and determined, when a project comes under their purview, they’ll drive it to conclusion even if that means leaving tread marks on other people.

What this means for your work

Cholerics have the issue of being too good at driving things forward. Between being given a hefty workload because of your strong execution skills and taking charge even when you’re not officially the leader, you can end up overburdened with work. This can lead to anger, dismissiveness and potentially burnout. It can also lead to those around you feeling overwhelmed by your relentless pursuit of getting things done at a pace they might not be able to match.

Tips to manage your time better

Even if you could move ahead on projects better and faster than anyone else, it doesn’t mean that you should. To feel more calm and collected, you actually need to give up control so that others can take on more of the weight of projects, especially at work.

If you learn to have patience with those who may work differently, and learn to trust them, you can act as a tremendous partner to help the overall team achieve more. Also, you can learn from the other temperaments the value of taking life slower at times. You don’t need to spend all weekend training for a marathon and remodeling your kitchen. It’s O.K. to have days in which you enjoy connecting with the people around you in an unrushed manner or even go so far as to take a nap.

Scrupulous Melancholics: “Sigh.”

Melancholics take a long, long time to decide how they will proceed on a project or goal. But once they do, that reaction endures. They will work tirelessly to bring the perfection they have envisioned into reality. They have a strong aversion for settling, and will work day and night once they’ve started something new.

What this means for your work

Between where you sit and the start of a project lies a chasm of thought and research. As a melancholic, you tend to want to constantly research, learn more and feel confident that you’ve made precisely the right decision before you begin.