reading

Fiddling with paperclips is a basic human impulse. There is something about these handy bits of metal that compels us to pick them up and bend them out of shape. We all do it. You don’t believe me? Just check the bin beside your desk. You might be surprised by the number of misshapen paperclips inside it, but you shouldn’t be. Like so much of what we do in life, we bend paperclips without really thinking.

At my clinic in Zurich, I usually sit opposite my patients at my desk. And as on every well-organised desk, there’s a stash of paperclips in a little pot. Mine seems to be especially inviting as I realised that in the course of a session, a patient would always dip into the pot, pick up a paperclip, start to fiddle with it and – as if it were the most normal thing in the world – begin bending it out of shape. When the consultation was over, they would leave the paperclip on my desk or drop it in the bin on the way out. At some point, I decided to gather them up and save them.

After that it was a short leap to this book. I had the paperclips photographed by Zoltan Gabor and I used the images to develop a psychological test. It’s designed so that anyone can use it. The test provides you with a profile that matches your personality – or describes the type of person you’d like to be – and it can even reveal unconscious character traits. It’s not a test that should be taken too seriously, but my many guinea pigs’ results have shown that it comes astonishingly close to the mark. If you want to learn more about yourself, this test is for you. What you have here is therefore a book of photographs, an introduction to psychology and a personality test all in one.

For the results of the test to be as unbiased and accurate as possible, I recommend not reading the descriptions of the different paperclips in advance. The results of the test won’t decode your character once and for all – it can reflect your real personality or perhaps an idealised version of yourself; it may be a little too positive or too negative. Most importantly, I hope the test will prompt an interest in psychology and will help you to reflect on yourself, your quirks and personality traits. Afterwards, if you read the descriptions for all sixty paperclips, you’ll be at least halfway to a psychology degree and you’ll know a great deal more about people.

You can download the test sheet online at www.thepapercliptest.com or you can view the sheet here. And one final thing to add: the names of the paperclips (see Paperclip Index here) relate to them as works of art and not to you, the test-subject. Now turn here to get started.

You possess healthy amounts of ambition and drive. You are forward-looking and believe in progress, but to this end you are neither fanatical nor narrow-minded. You are committed to the common good and avoid competition with others; however, you still like to be among the key players. You are happiest when you are leading the way or promoting innovation, whether as a supplier of ideas, encouragement or sponsorship. Always open to new perspectives and suggestions, you are intellectually curious. You listen to opposing arguments without prejudice and are generous in your acceptance of different opinions, but you pursue your convictions with determination.

1. The Go-getter

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You take things slowly, yet you always get there bang on time. Even before you do, your presence is tangible, because others anticipate your arrival, often impatiently. You succeed in getting what you want without overruling those around you or blocking their way. While others race blindly for the finish, you profit from taking your time and noticing what they miss. Your motto is the ‘slower the better’, and you are mindful that the higher you climb, the further you have to fall.

2. The Creep

Contents

Introduction

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