The Life Impulse Triangle

Three drives compete for your energy. You can only truly embody two. Which two are yours?

Position Yourself

Drag the dot to where you naturally gravitate. Your position reveals your archetype.

The Scholar The Advisor The Operator 🧠 UNDERSTAND ⚡ DO 👑 BE
🧠
33%
⚡
33%
👑
33%

Your Archetype

The Generalist

Balanced but unfocused

Your Strengths

  • • Adaptable to many situations

Your Struggle

Without a clear primary/secondary impulse, you may feel pulled in too many directions.

Best-Fit Roles

Generalist PM

The Three Life Impulses

⚡

Captain DO

The drive to accomplish. Ship things. Make impact. Execute.

  • • Values: Velocity, completion, tangible results
  • • Energy from: Crossing items off, seeing output
  • • Fear: Stagnation, "all talk no action"
👑

King BE

The drive to influence. Status, relationships, being someone.

  • • Values: Recognition, network, social capital
  • • Energy from: Being respected, influencing others
  • • Fear: Irrelevance, being overlooked
🧠

Professor UNDERSTAND

The drive to comprehend. Knowledge, insight, deep learning.

  • • Values: Truth, clarity, expertise
  • • Energy from: "Aha!" moments, mastery
  • • Fear: Superficiality, being wrong

The Six Archetypes (Pick Any Two)

🎓 The Scholar

DO + UNDERSTAND

Builds deep expertise AND ships things. The indie hacker who masters their domain.

"I need to really understand this before I build it, and then I need to build it."

🔧 The Operator

DO + BE

Gets things done AND builds relationships. The executive who executes through people.

"I achieve impact by mobilizing others. Results and reputation reinforce each other."

🎯 The Advisor

BE + UNDERSTAND

Knows deeply AND influences. The trusted expert who shapes decisions without doing the work.

"I understand enough to guide others who actually do. My value is wisdom, not output."

⚡ The Pure Executor

DO (dominant)

All action. Ships relentlessly. May sacrifice depth or relationships for velocity.

"Just tell me what to build and get out of my way."

👑 The Pure Influencer

BE (dominant)

All presence. Builds networks and reputation. May lack depth or personal output.

"Who you know and who knows you matters more than what you personally produce."

🧠 The Pure Philosopher

UNDERSTAND (dominant)

All insight. Pursues truth for its own sake. May struggle with action or visibility.

"I need to understand completely before I could possibly act or speak."

When Role Doesn't Match Impulse

⚠️ The Burnout Pattern

When your job demands an impulse that drains you:

  • Scholar forced to BE: "You're a scholar forced to be a politician, and the constant performance drains you."
  • Advisor forced to DO: Deep thinker stuck in execution mode, no time to reflect.
  • Operator forced to UNDERSTAND: Action-oriented person trapped in analysis paralysis.

✓ The Alignment Sweet Spot

When your role lets you lean into your natural two:

  • Scholar as Staff Engineer: Deep technical expertise + meaningful output.
  • Operator as COO: Execution through relationships and influence.
  • Advisor as Board Member: Wisdom and status, no execution burden.

Based on "To Do, To Be, and/or To Understand" from Adventure Capital