Personal, provocative, and practical information from real people with real-life stories to tell.

Meet Ken A Crisis of Self Life-Purpose: To promote individuality, self-responsibility and personal accountability. Sage /Eccentrik/ Philosopher Profile boss: Philosopher

Ken travels the country today working on government projects as a Senior Weapons Systems Analyst. He's a smart guy and has made it to the top of his profession without an engineering degree. But he wasn't smart enough to figure out serious internal difficulties last year, until an eye-opening experience with an online personality test. Ken grew up in Colorado the 4th of 5 children. Dad was a PhD chemistry professor. Mom was a nutritionist. He paints a picture of skiing, travel and adventure that would be the envy of any boy growing up. "Academics was my father's livelihood, but mountain climbing and camping were his life." His father's position took him to various parts of the country for speaking engagements during the summer.

At each location, the family would explore the natural wonders of the area. By the time he was 18, Ken had been to each of the 48 contiguous United States. Perhaps it was this lure of adventure that gave him his mischievous side. Perhaps he was born with it. Regardless, Ken was also the family prankster, deliberately irritating his older brother to see what kind of a reaction he could get and frightening his skittish sister at every turn.

But more than anything, Ken was intelligent. The family enrolled him in a special gifted and talented program, where he learned in an unstructured environment from grades 4 through 9. High School forced him into a structure he didn't like, but a special block program in college allowed him to focus on one subject at a time. Uncertainty about the future forced him into changing majors four times, from pre-med to psychology to philosophy and finally ending up with a degree in fine arts.

Still unsure of the future, Ken spent the next couple of years living in the mountains, bumming around the ski slopes and working as a cowboy on a ranch. Love captured him, and he moved to Denver, where he attempted to make a go of it in the world of art before settling into life as a carpenter. Seven years later, he was alone. The woman he loved had become a slave to alcohol and left him. Ken did what any self-respecting guy would do. He joined the Navy!

He had the intelligence and aptitude to get into the highly specialized field of weapons systems, the use of sophisticated radar for aiming and tracking missiles. "I did my homework and, after graduating first in my class, chose to work aboard a research and development ship. I spent my entire 10 years in the Navy working in research and development. It gave me a stable framework and a lot of freedom, and when I left, I was at the level of a senior weapons systems analyst with no degree in the field."

But Ken had drifted far from internal roots and suffered from what he calls a Crisis of Self. "The world was beating me down, and I began to have difficulties with my marriage and on-the-job." Working on government contracts, Ken found himself in a constant state of irritation over supervisors who, according to him, "didn't have a technical or managerial clue." He put on what he calls his "Eccentrik Coat" because "if people think you're nuts, they leave you alone." At home, he couldn't "connect" with his wife emotionally or spiritually, so Ken began a search for answers. Long a student of his own and others' motivations, he turned to the Internet for this new adventure.

"Being unhappy just isn't very fulfilling. There's no point to it. So I tried to get in touch with myself and realized how far off the path I'd drifted."

His first encounter with Ansir was in June of 1999. "I got excited about it, because it was more useful than Kiersey or MBTI. My friends got involved, and I got my wife to take the test." She tested a pure Sentinel, which helped explain the lack of connection he was feeling. He attempted a personal consultation with Seich but was rejected.

"That was a real eye-opener and the best thing that happened to me." "I've come to see that I'd been seeking answers outside myself and that, for my personality, answers come from within. Philosopher power comes from the realization that understanding and fulfillment cannot be received externally. I was always looking for external validation, and that put enormous pressure on a wife who is actually perfect for me. With that pressure removed, our relationship is better than ever. She doesn't need to be what I think I'm missing. She just needs to be herself."

"What Ansir has done for me is help me get back in touch with what I knew about myself but had lost touch with. It's given me a forum to listen to what other people are saying and to realize what my real motivations are—which is exactly what ANSIR's Life Purpose of a Philosopher is—to help people see themselves for who they really are and in so doing allowing them opportunities for themselves."

With his "Crisis of Self" abated, Ken is now upbeat about the future. He sees himself continuing to travel, but the adventure he envisions ahead involves people. He'd like to one day shift his purpose to something in sync with Ansir, perhaps as a consultant to corporations who would help employees find success and happiness.

How novel. How Philosopher. How Ken.

================

EXPERIENCE, ALONE, CHANGES US.

Each person comes to Ansir.com for self-important reasons. What were you seeking when you stumbled in? How have you applied your innate strengths and benefitted? Have you gained greater self-confidence, made a career change, confronted old fears and taken meaningful steps toward self-fulfillment?

If so, we would like to hear from you! E-mail us with a summary of your story. One day, someone will enter the ansir.com portal and benefit from your experience-gained wisdom.

Back to Ansir-In-Action