I just took a personality test for my Psych class. It was spot-on, so I shared a couple of the trait descriptions on Facebook. But apparently, in the Extroversion section (although quite sparse in that section actually), I showed up on the Authoritative scale:

You have found that others will often do what you want them to do, without significantly pushing back. You’ve also discovered that many people will accept harsher criticism from you than they would take from anyone else.

Just the way this was phrased, “You have found . . . ” and “You have also discovered . . .” has me laughing to tears. Because it’s very true, and that’s exactly what happened.

Fortunately for me and everyone else, I’ve mellowed over the years and I scored much higher in Reserved, Discreet, and Private than in Authoritative. (But, just to be fair to my intellect and understanding, those who listen to my criticism and take it to heart always find themselves the better for it. Just ask Jeremy.)