Personality and Experience reflected in Austin

Excerpted from a class blog post by ATXEquation student Anne Taylor

Recently in class we recapped the connections between the explored the 3 different personality types we have been studying, outlined in Bijoy Goswami's book The Human Fabric and the ATXEquation Experience Model.

The three types are the maven, the relater, and the evangelist. We reminded ourselves that the maven is knowledge driven. The relator wants to make connections. The relater wants the acceptance of others. They want to be in a community and the relator wants to have peace and harmony. The evangelist takes action. They persuade, multitask, and are the front leaders. We then asked ourselves what "type" is Austin?

We debated and at first many of us agreed that Austin would be a primarily evangelist city. In Austin, we get things done and make things happen. We make ACL, one of the largest music festivals in the country happen successfully every year. We then said that Austin could be the relater because we constantly network and we have so many different communities from music to non-profits that help define the city. We decided that the maven doesn’t seem like Austin although we took into consideration UT and St. Edwards are knowledge driven which is a key component of a maven. One student pointed out that, “Austin gives the idea that a lot is going on but we don’t see it happening”. Another said that “You need to have your niche or community or else you can feel isolated in Austin”.

After that discussion we moved on to recap the ATXEquation Experience Model: Locate, Engage, Wow. Why is this formula so important? This comes up in businesses and communities to measure positive and memorable experience. Without all three components it might not be a good experience. You have to locate yourself in order to engage. Engaging is the personalization in an experience and the work that is done. The wow factor is what you leave from your experience and can sometimes include memorabilia. We had 3 different creators of experiences come talk to our class, including Michael Barnes from the Austin American Statesman, Craig Nadel from Groovelabs, and the Creative Director from Alamo Draft house. What did these 3 guys have in common? They are passionate about what they do.

Finally, we discussed the reading we have done and how it connects to what we have learned in class. Richard Florida's “Who’s Your City?” compares cities and tells us that where you choose to live could be one of the most important decisions of your life. The Human Fabric relates to experience by seeking out different experiences by personal needs.

The class continues to be an interesting exploration into Austin, it's core "type" and how it's experiences create it's true personality ...