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Merritt, your Sex IQ is 144 As you were taking the test, we measured how your sexual knowledge stacks up in the 8 areas that contribute to your Sex IQ: fertility, gender and sexual orientation, female sexual anatomy, male sexual anatomy, sexually transmitted diseases, safer sex practices, sex techniques, and communication. You got 44 out of 45 questions correct. Your IQ score was generated by comparing that number to the average score of others who took the test. Wonder which questions you got wrong? Then read on to find out! Tickle's Sex IQ test measured your knowledge in 8 critical areas of Sex Intelligence: fertility, sexual orientation, female sexual anatomy, male sexual anatomy, sexually transmitted diseases, safer sex practices, sex techniques, and communication. Here's how you scored, and interesting information about each of those areas. You've scored 44 out of 45. Fertility This area of expertise deals with questions of becoming pregnant, preventing pregnancy, and issues that directly affect whether or not a woman becomes or doesn't become pregnant. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the fertility questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Fertility 6. Given perfect use, which of the following is the least effective method of birth control? Condom Depo-Provera Diaphragm The pill Of the four contraceptive methods listed here — condom, depo-provera, diaphragm, and the pill — a diaphragm is the least effective method of birth control. Sixteen out of 100 women who use the diaphragm will become pregnant during the first year of typical use. Six will become pregnant with perfect use. The effectiveness of the diaphragm can be compromised by having an improper fit, inserting it incorrectly, or removing it sooner than 6-8 hours after having sex — all of which can cause leakage of semen into the uterus. Some benefits of diaphragm use include: low expense, can be inserted hours before having sex, does not affect hormones, and side effects are rare. Condoms are slightly more effective than a diaphragm but less effective than depo-provera or the pill. Of 100 couples who use condoms, about 14 will become pregnant during the first year of typical use. Two will become pregnant with perfect use. The effectiveness of a condom can be compromised through improper use (see "How to use a condom"). Condoms have the added benefit of protecting you from sexually transmitted diseases as well as being a contraceptive. Polyurethane condoms are available for those people who are allergic to latex. Both the pill and depo-provera are representative of the hormonal methods of contraception which are highly effective at preventing pregnancy. With perfect use, both methods are almost 100% effective against pregnancy. Because the pill requires the woman to remember to take a pill every day to keep her contraceptive "guard" up, with typical use, the pill is less effective than other methods, such as depo-provera, which don't require daily management. Depo-provera is administered by an injection every 12 weeks. 7. Which of the following is not potentially dangerous to a man's fertility? Riding a bike a lot Spending a lot of time in the hot tub Masturbating twice a day Smoking a lot Masturbation does not have a negative effect on a man's fertility. Sperm is produced in the testicles continuously at a rate of approximately 200 million sperm per day. While millions of sperm are released with each ejaculation, millions more are being produced. In some cases where a man already has a low sperm count, he may wish to limit masturbation during his partner's fertile window (around ovulation). However, a man with normal fertility will not become less fertile due to masturbation. However, there are some lifestyle-related causes for temporary infertility in males. The following are some factors which may contribute to male infertility. Bicycling. The pressure from a bike seat during extended riding can damage blood vessels, nerves, and the scrotum. These injuries can lead to erectile difficulties and infertility. To reduce the risk of injury while riding a bike: take frequent rests, wear padded bike shorts, and use a padded bike seat at the proper angle. Drugs. Heavily smoking marijuana or doing cocaine can dramatically reduce a man's sperm count. Emotional stress. Stress can interfere with the hormone that produces sperm. Overheating testicles. When the testicles get too hot, sperm development can be impaired. Spending a lot of time in a hot tub or sauna can decrease a man's fertility. Smoking. A man who smokes is more likely to produce weaker sperm that die sooner and can't swim as well. 13. If a man and woman have no fertility problems and are under 30, they have a ___ chance of getting pregnant each menstrual cycle. 75% 50% 25% 10% For women under 30, it's estimated that the chance of becoming pregnant in any one cycle is 20-30%, given that the male does not have low fertility. A woman's fertility diminishes with age, beginning in her late twenties — the first dip in fertility usually comes at around age 27. Infertility is not solely a women's problem, infertility affects men and women equally. If you are actively trying to get pregnant for a year, it is advisable to see a doctor about infertility treatment. If the woman is over 35, seek treatment after six months of trying. 20. A woman: Creates one egg per month Creates several eggs each month Is born with all of the eggs she will ever have A woman is born with all of the eggs she will ever have. When a girl reaches puberty and her menstrual cycle begins, her eggs begin to be matured and released, generally at a rate of one per cycle. This cycle continues until a woman reaches menopause and stops releasing eggs. Males produce sperm on a different cycle. Instead of being born with sperm, males don't have sperm cells until puberty and then they produce them continually until death. 31. How long after intercourse can a sperm stay alive inside a woman's body? 24 hours 48 hours 5 days 10 days A sperm can stay alive inside a woman's body for about 5 days after intercourse when a woman is at the most fertile phase of her menstrual cycle. The length of time a sperm can survive inside a woman after ejaculation depends on where a woman is in her cycle. If a woman is near ovulation, the sperm can live up to 5 days. However, outside of a woman's fertility window (around ovulation), the sperm will only live for a couple of hours. 33. If the man withdraws before he ejaculates, the woman will not get pregnant. True False A man will secrete a small amount of fluid when he becomes aroused, called pre-ejaculate or pre-cum, which contains small amounts of sperm. If the man withdraws before he ejaculates as a method of birth control, the woman can still get pregnant because the sperm contained in his pre-ejaculate can fertilize her egg. Withdrawal is an unreliable form of behavioral contraception Why fertility is important to Sex IQ Because intercourse between a man and a woman can produce new life, having penis-vagina sex comes with the weighty responsibility of birth control. Methods of birth control range from abstinence to contraceptive devices or medications. Whichever method you choose, you are ultimately responsible for understanding your body's reproductive functions and making responsible choices. If you are gay or lesbian, you will have less of an issue with pregnancy prevention in your everyday sex life. However, knowledge of fertility can both be (1) useful in understanding the way your body works and (2) critical if you decide that you want to have a baby. After she turns 40, a woman's chances of becoming pregnant in any given month are lowered to 5%. As a woman ages, her fertility will decline, most notably in her mid-thirties and again after she reaches 40. However, there are many factors that contribute to a couple's chance of conception and fertility is largely influenced by genetics. Gender & sexual orientation This area of expertise deals with questions about sexual attraction and honoring differences in sexuality among people. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the gender and sexual orientation questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Gender & sexual orientation 8. If a person has sex with someone of their same sex, it means they are homosexual. True False If a person has sex with someone of their same sex, in and of itself, this encounter does not make him or her homosexual. Many people experiment with having sex with their same sex and discover later in life that they are straight or bisexual. Many discover later in life that they are homosexual. You may find that you fall somewhere along the continuum of straight and homosexual. Or, you may find that your sexual orientation shifts over the years for any number of reasons — or for no reason at all. The truth is, the only person who can identify your sexual orientation is you. 14. Bisexuals are usually straight people going through a "gay phase." True False Many times bisexuals are thought of as going through a phase — both by straight and gay people alike! However, the truth for some is that they are perfectly happy in a relationship with either gender. Or, a bisexual may find that his or her sexual orientation shifts more toward heterosexual or more toward homosexual over the course of their lifetime. If a person identifies themselves as bisexual and then, a few years later, identifies as straight, this is not inherently a contradiction — neither orientation is "truer" than the other. The way a person identifies his or her sexual orientation at any point in their life is probably directly reflective of their experience at the time. 17. If a man has fantasies about having sex with other men he is homosexual. True False Much the same way that if a person has sex with someone of their same sex, in and of itself, this encounter does not make him or her homosexual, if a person fantasizes about sex with someone of their same sex, in and of itself, this fantasy does not make him or her homosexual. Many people fantasize about having sex with someone of their same sex, whether or not they actually enjoy having homosexual sex in reality. It's perfectly healthy to fantasize — it allows you to experience things in your mind that you may or may not want to act on. 21. A drag king is: A woman who cross-dresses A man who cross-dresses A man who wears a uniform A drag queen's date A drag king is a biological woman who dresses in masculine clothing for performance. A drag king, or male impersonator, will also affect a masculine manner and generally try to "pass" as a man. When a woman passes as a man, it means that most people cannot tell that s/he was born a biological woman. 34. Most people consider themselves bisexual. True False If bisexuality is defined by whether or not a person (1) identifies their sexual orientation as bisexual, or (2) has romantic relationships with persons of both sexes, then it is not true that most people are bisexual. While many people do have some amount of attraction to both sexes, most people don't act on it or identify themselves as bisexual for any number of reasons. 38. Which of the following people is not transgendered? A drag queen A "butch" gay man A female cross dresser A transsexual A person who is transgendered is one that crosses gender boundaries — a man or woman that adopts the attributes of the opposite sex. A drag queen is a biological man who dresses in feminine clothing for performance; therefore, a drag queen is transgendered. A female cross dresser is a biological woman who dresses in male clothing and tries to "pass" as a man; therefore, a female cross dresser is transgendered. A transsexual is a person who experiences a mismatch between the sex they were born with and the sex they identify with and may seek a sex change operation; therefore, a transsexual is transgendered. A "butch" gay man, on the other hand, is a masculine man who happens to be attracted to and/or have sex with other men. Since a butch gay man does not cross gender boundaries in his physical appearance or attributes, he is not considered transgendered. Why gender & sexual orientation are important to Sex IQ At some point in your life, it is likely that you will meet someone who has a different sexual orientation than you. Or, you may come to discover subtle nuances about your own sexual orientation. Many people conceive of sexual orientation as a polar dichotomy - either gay or straight. However, sexuality is rarely as cut and dried as that. Some people discover that their sexual orientation lies somewhere between these two extremes. And, on the other hand, some are certain that their sexuality is wholly gay or straight. In any case, sexual orientation is a gradation of sexual attractions that an individual discovers for him or herself. Up until 1973, the American Psychiatric Association included homosexuality in their official manual of mental disorders. At this historical moment, the board of the APA recognized that a significant portion of gay and lesbian people were satisfied with their sexuality and not in need of therapy due to their homosexuality. Female sexual anatomy This area of expertise deals with questions about female anatomy, and how it functions during sex, or when aroused. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the female sexual anatomy questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Female sexual anatomy 2. How long does the average female orgasm last? Less than 5 seconds 5-10 seconds 10-20 seconds 20-30 seconds More than 30 seconds The average female orgasm lasts between 5-10 seconds, while the average male orgasm lasts from 3-5 seconds. Both sexes experience contractions at a rate of 0.8 seconds, especially in the genitals and rectal sphincter muscles. 15. When a woman has an orgasm, she experiences contractions of her: Vagina Uterus Anus All of the above When a woman orgasms, she experiences a series of multiple rhythmic muscle contractions. The first few contractions will be closer together, then start to taper off in intensity and frequency as the orgasm diminishes. These contractions occur in the uterus, vagina, and often the muscles of the anal sphincter. In addition, she may feel muscle contractions throughout her body as well as increased pulse and breath rate. An intense female orgasm can have in excess of twelve contractions. 22. The clitoris is formed out of the same sort of tissue as the: Nipples Shaft of a penis Head of a penis Vagina The clitoris is formed out of the same sort of tissue as the head of the penis. It may surprise you to find out that male and female sex organs are identical until a fetus is 3 months old. After that point, the cells that become the scrotum in the boy become the vulva in the girl and the cells that become the head of the penis in a boy become the clitoris in the girl. 27. Where is the clitoris located? Inside the vagina Between the inner labia Outside the labia The clitoris, usually a woman's most sexually sensitive spot, is located between a woman's inner labia. When looking at a woman's exterior genitals, you will see that she has two "lips" of fatty tissue, called the labia majora or outer labia. If you gently pull the outer labia open, you will see a smaller pair of lips that are not covered with hair, called the labia minora or inner labia. At the top of the inner labia, you will find that the labia meet to form a little fold of skin called the clitoral hood. If you pull the hood back, you will expose the glans (the tip) of the clitoris. Women vary widely in the type of stimulation that they prefer on their clitoris, so you should definitely experiment (on yourself) or ask (your partner) to find out what works best in your case. 35. Is it possible for a woman to ejaculate? Yes No It is possible for some women to ejaculate. Sometimes, when a woman is sexually stimulated — particularly on her G-spot, she will ejaculate an amount of fluid that is very similar to the fluid produced by the male prostate. While some people who are unaware of a woman's ability to ejaculate may think that it is urine, female ejaculate is definitely not urine. The ejaculate is produced primarily by a woman's skene's glands. It can be quite messy when a woman ejaculates; an easy solution is to visit your local drugstore and buy a package of super absorbent pads for your bed (about 18" x 24"), originally intended for incontinence. 39. All women have a "hymen layer" that is stretched or broken the first time they have intercourse. Yes No Not every woman is born with an intact hymen, and still others may stretch or break their hymen through active sports, riding a horse or a bicycle, using a tampon, or any number of other non-sexual activities. The myth that you can tell whether or not a woman is a virgin by whether or not her hymen is intact is false. That being said, the hymen layer is a stretch of skin, generally with small holes throughout, that covers the vaginal opening. If a woman's hymen layer is still intact when she has intercourse for the first time, it may be painful and cause bleeding as it is stretched. This is perfectly normal and is not a cause for alarm. However, if sex is painful for other reasons, you may try increased artificial lubrication and/or seeing a doctor. Why female sexual anatomy is important to Sex IQ Whether you are a woman or a man who has sex with women, knowledge of female sexual anatomy is a must-have in your sex life. The sexual anatomy of a woman is not only a mystery to some men, some women are also in the dark when it comes to knowing their own genitals. As a woman, knowing how to give yourself sexual pleasure can help you communicate your individual preferences to your partner. As a person who makes love to women, learning about her sexual anatomy can give you a head start in succeeding to give her pleasure — just the way she likes it. During orgasm, a woman's clitoris is retracted - drawn back and in. As a woman becomes excited, her clitoral shaft hardens and increases, however, during the plateau stage, the clitoris begins to retract and by the time she is experiencing an orgasm, the clitoris is fully retracted. After orgasm, the clitoris descends back to its normal state. Male sexual anatomy This area of expertise deals with questions about the male anatomy, and how it functions during sex, or when aroused. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the male sexual anatomy questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Male sexual anatomy 3. Which is the most common penis size, when erect? 3 to 5 inches 5 to 7 inches 7 to 9 inches 9 out of 10 men have a penis that measures between 5 and 7 inches when erect. Many men worry that their penis does not measure up, but in reality, size is not what matters. People prefer different sizes or even thicknesses and some people just don't care about size at all. Since you can't really change the size of your penis without surgery, the best option is generally to love and accept what you have and focus on finding out what truly gives you and your partner sexual pleasure. You will probably find that you get little complaint with that approach — no matter what size you are! 5. When a man gets cold, his testicles: Rise toward his torso Lower away from his torso Remain where they are When a man gets cold — whether swimming in cold water, or being out in cold weather — his testicles will rise toward his torso. This is because proper sperm production takes place in the testicles at 4 to 5 degrees below a man's core body temperature. Too cold or too hot and the production of sperm will be compromised. The cremaster muscle functions to pull the testicles closer to the man's body to warm up in the cold or relax to lower the testicles away from the man's body heat in warm environments. 23. A dry orgasm is: A female orgasm A male orgasm through masturbation A male orgasm without ejaculation A low intensity orgasm A dry orgasm is a male orgasm that occurs without an ejaculation. While the majority of men do ejaculate when they have an orgasm, sometimes the ejaculate is absent in the case of pre-pubescent boys and men with prostate disease, spinal cord or nerve injuries. Much more common is a reduced quantity of ejaculate as a man ages or if he has ejaculated multiple times within a short period of time. 29. Typically, how much semen does a man release when he ejaculates? About one teaspoon About one tablespoon About an eighth of a cup About a quarter cup Typically, a man will release about one teaspoon of semen when he ejaculates, although quantity varies from man to man. Just as quantity varies between men, so does color, texture, taste, smell, and the velocity with which it shoots out of the body when coming. These qualities of semen are largely influenced by genetics; however, some say that what a man eats can have an effect on his flavor. 40. How much of a man's ejaculate is made up of sperm cells? 90% 60% 30% 10% While with each ejaculation a man releases millions of sperm, only about 10% of a man's ejaculate is comprised of sperm cells. The other 90% of the fluid is referred to as seminal plasma and contains about thirty different substances which vary in amount and quantity by man. Part of the seminal plasma produced by the seminal vesicles provides nourishment for the sperm in the form of sugars. Part of it is produced by the prostate gland to protect the sperm from the acidic environment of the vagina and uterus. And yet another portion is produced by the Cowper's gland to provide lubrication in the man's urethra to speed the sperm along the path. 43. Which of the following will not increase the amount of semen that a man ejaculates? Drinking more fluids Waiting longer between ejaculations Increasing ejaculatory control All of the above The quantity a man ejaculates will not be increased by drinking more fluids. However, he can increase the amount through waiting longer between ejaculations and increasing his ejaculatory control — both will act to build up the volume before he orgasms. Waiting longer between ejaculations increases the volume by allowing his body to produce more sperm and seminal fluid; the longer he waits to ejaculate, the more fluid he will have. To increase his ejaculatory control, a man needs to practice bringing himself almost to the point of orgasm and then backing off. Because his body readies itself to come each time it nears orgasm, by reaching the point just before orgasm and backing off a few times, his body will have built up more fluid when he finally does allow himself to orgasm. Why male sexual anatomy is important to Sex IQ Whether you are a man or a woman who has sex with men, knowledge of male sexual anatomy is a must-have in your sex life. Contrary to common belief, not all men have the same preferences for the way they like to be touched sexually. As a man, knowing how to give yourself sexual pleasure can help you communicate your individual preferences to your partner. As a person who makes love to men, learning about his sexual anatomy can give you a head start in succeeding to give him pleasure — just the way he likes it. There is a "point of no return" just before a man orgasms when it is not possible for a man to stop himself from ejaculating. While a man can learn to control his ejaculation timing, once he is within seconds of coming, there is absolutely nothing he can do to stop the ejaculation. This is known as the moment of ejaculatory inevitability. Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) This area of expertise deals with questions about sexually transmitted diseases, how to prevent them, and interesting stats about them. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the STD questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. STDs 9. Which of the following sexually transmitted diseases is currently at an all time low? Chlamydia Gonorrhea Herpes Syphilis The reported rate of syphilis in the United States is at the lowest level since reporting began in 1941. Since the introduction of penicillin and the efforts of the government to combat sexually transmitted diseases, syphilis has come near to being eliminated. If syphilis is treated, the progression of the disease is preventable and it can be cured with basic medical care. If the disease goes untreated, it can lead to genital ulcers, cardiovascular and neurological diseases, and blindness. 16. If you are HIV-positive, it means you have AIDS. True False If a person is HIV-positive, it does not mean that they have AIDS. AIDS stands for "acquired immunodeficiency syndrome" and is a separate diagnosis that is reached after the body has been weakened to the point that it has difficulty fighting off certain "opportunistic infections." There are medical treatments that can slow down the weakening of the body's immune system due to infection of HIV. 24. Forty percent of Chlamydia cases are reported amongst persons aged: 15-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 0ver 35 Forty percent of Chlamydia cases are reported amongst persons aged 15-19. Chlamydia is especially dangerous to women. If left untreated, a woman can develop PID (pelvic inflammatory disease) which can render her infertile. In addition, a woman who has an untreated case of Chlamydia is 3 to 5 times more likely to contract HIV. Chlamydia can be easily cured with antibiotics once a diagnosis has been made. This argues for getting regular testing for STDs if you are sexually active — the sooner you know whether you have a case of Chlamydia, the better. 26. If a mosquito bites a person who is HIV-positive and then bites you right afterwards, is it possible for you to get HIV? True False No, you cannot get HIV from being bitten by a mosquito. After a mosquito sucks blood from one person, they generally travel to a resting spot to digest the blood. Even if they did bite another person immediately, there would not be enough blood on their mouthparts to infect the second person and they do not inject the previous person's blood into the second person. Instead, they inject their own saliva to lubricate their feeding. Other diseases, such as malaria, can be transmitted through certain mosquito's saliva, but this is not the case with HIV. 30. A Hepatitis infection causes inflammation of the: Urethra Gastro-intestinal tract Liver Ovaries/testicles A Hepatitis infection causes inflammation of the liver. Of the five major types of Hepatitis, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C can be transmitted through sexual activity where there is an exchange of blood, saliva, semen or vaginal secretions. Symptoms appear gradually over time and eventually cause chronic liver problems. Hepatitis A (which you can get through eating contaminated foods) and Hepatitis B (which can be sexually transmitted) can be prevented by getting vaccinated. Currently, there are no vaccines for Hepatitis C or E, but Hepatitis D is effectively prevented by getting vaccinated for Hepatitis B, given that there is not an existing Hepatitis B infection. 41. Which of the following STDs is not curable, even if caught in the early stages? Chlamydia Gonorrhea Herpes Syphilis Safer sex practices This area of expertise deals with questions about minimizing your risk of disease when having sex. You answered 5 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the safer sex questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Safer sex practices 10. Which is the best place to keep condoms with you while you are on-the-go? Glove compartment of your car In a small box In your wallet Thrown into your bag loose Of these options, the best place to store condoms when you are on the go is in a small box. Condoms are best when kept in a cool, dry place. The more exposed they are to the elements (air, heat, light), the more likely they are to break. Always store your condoms someplace that will keep them away from any sharp objects and keep them from being rubbed against. The problem with keeping condoms in your wallet or loose in the bottom of your bag is that they are very likely to get abraded or punctured by too much friction or sharp objects, such as pens or keys. Keeping condoms in the glove compartment puts them at risk for overheating as well as being punctured by whatever else you shove into the glove box. No matter where you keep your condoms, be sure to replace them when they reach their expiration date. 11. If you are going to have sex in a hot tub with a latex condom, which lubricant should you use? Saliva Massage oil Water-based lubricant Silicone-based lubricant Based on the information given in this question, a silicone-based lubricant is the best choice. You probably would not want to choose a water-based lube or saliva because the water in the hot tub will dilute and disperse it, leaving the condom and the area to be penetrated effectively "dry." Of course, everything will be "wet" because of the water, but this is not the same as being lubricated. Lubrication is slippery, water is not. After eliminating water-based lube and saliva from the choices, you are left with massage oil and silicone-based lubricants, both of which will not come off in the water. Since a latex condom is being used, massage oil — or any oil-based lube — is a bad choice because the oil will cause the latex to break down and provide insufficient protection against pregnancy and STDs. The remaining option is a silicone-based lubricant, which are better than water-based lubes at staying wet and not getting sticky as well as holding up in water. You can find silicone-based lubricants for sale at erotic boutiques, sex toy shops, or online shops that ship products in plain brown boxes. 18. What should you avoid doing just before performing oral sex on a new partner? Take a shower Use the restroom Brush and floss your teeth Wash your hands Brushing or flossing your teeth irritates your gums, sometimes causing small amounts of bleeding, which puts you at increased risk for contracting several types of sexually transmitted diseases while performing oral sex, especially fellatio. While your chances of getting an STD from unprotected oral sex is lower than it is from having unprotected penis-vagina sex, it is better to be safe than sorry. You can use barriers for both cunnilingus (try a dental dam or saran wrap) and fellatio (use an unlubricated condom), which will also significantly reduce your risk level. 36. Which lubricant will destroy a latex condom? Saliva Massage oil Water-based lubricant Silicone-based lubricant Never, ever use an oil-based lubricant with a latex barrier, such as a condom or glove. Oil-based lubricants include massage oil, petroleum jelly (Vaseline), mineral oil, baby oil, and most lotions. If you use one of these or other oil-based products with a latex barrier, the interaction between oil and latex will cause the latex to start breaking down. This significantly weakens the barrier, making leakages more likely. Leakages of bodily fluids — even very small leakages — pose a risk for contracting many different sexually transmitted diseases. Make sure your barrier method is as effective as you intend it to be by using a water-based or silicone-based lubricant with latex. 42. Nonoxynol-9, found in some condoms, is effective as an STD preventative. True False Be careful if the condom you are using to protect yourself against STDs is coated with Nonoxynol-9. Not only does Nonoxynol-9 not prevent STDs, it can make it easier for some diseases to be transmitted. This is because Nonoxynol-9 can cause small tears in fragile mucous membranes (such as in the vagina or anus) that act as doorways to diseases. Some persons may not experience this level of sensitivity to Nonoxynol-9, but it is common enough to raise concern. On the other hand, Nonoxynol-9 performs well as a contraceptive and if your main concern is to prevent pregnancy, a condom with a coating of Nonoxynol-9 may be the best choice for you. 45. If you don't know the HIV status of your sexual partner(s), which is usually less risky? Using condoms carefully and consistently with multiple partners Not using a condom or other barrier with a single partner Sex techniques This area of expertise deals with questions about having and giving better sex. You answered 6 out of 6 questions correctly. Here are each of the sex techniques questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Sex techniques 4. The G-spot is a sexually sensitive area: Inside a vagina Outside a vagina On the underside of a penis Anywhere on the body The G-spot is a sexually sensitive area inside a vagina. You can find a woman's G-spot by inserting your finger into her vagina about 2 inches, with your finger pointing up toward her abdomen. You will probably feel a small area of spongy tissue — this is the G-spot! To stimulate the G-spot, curl your finger and extend it repeatedly, making a kind of "come hither" gesture with your finger. Ask her how it feels and if she wants the stimulation to change or stop. Some women don't like G-spot stimulation, while others find it absolutely orgasmic. It is also true that some women will ejaculate when their G-spot is stimulated. 19. You can do pelvic muscle exercises to increase your sexual pleasure. True False This is true! If you aren't already toning your puboccocceygeus (PC) muscle, there's no time like the present. Strengthening your PC muscles is easy and it makes you more aware of your genitals, makes orgasms stronger, and gives men more control over when they ejaculate. It's easy to find and practice using your PC muscle: Next time you urinate, try stopping the stream of urine before your bladder is empty. The muscle you used to do this is your PC muscle. You can exercise this muscle by clenching and releasing it quickly (just as you did when urinating) 30-100 times. After you have practiced for awhile, you can try holding the muscle for longer periods of time. You can exercise your PC muscle at any time — no one will know what you are doing. Over time, and with practice and patience, your PC muscle will get stronger. 25. Which of the following doesn't supply its own lubricant? Mouth Vagina Anus They are all naturally lubricated The anus does not supply its own lubricant. In fact, the anus and rectum are absorbent and require lots of artificial lubrication when doing any sort of anal penetration. That means, anytime you penetrate the anus with a finger, a sex toy, or a penis, you need to use lots and lots of lube. The anus and rectum are very delicate and tears in the tissue are a common effect of using too little lubricant. Start off using more lubricant than you think you need, then apply more lubricant as time wears on and the lube begins to dry out and be absorbed. 32. Which of the following is considered "fisting?" Putting a hand completely inside a partner's: Anus Vagina Either Neither Fisting is when one person puts a hand completely inside a vagina (vaginal fisting) or anus (anal fisting) of another person. Fisting takes time, patience, and lots of trust. However, many people who have succeeded at receiving a whole hand vaginally or anally say that the experience is phenomenal. If you are interested in fisting, make sure you talk to your partner about it in advance of trying it and take it slow, checking in with your partner often to make sure you are both comfortable. 37. Which is not a phase in the progression of the Masters & Johnson sexual response cycle? Excitement Ascension Plateau Orgasm Resolution Ascension is not one of the four phases of the sexual response cycle as defined by Masters and Johnson. The four phases are: Excitement, when the body first becomes sexually aroused — the breath and heart rate quicken, blood flow increases causing erection and hardened nipples. Plateau, when the body is on the brink of orgasm — the clitoris and testicles withdraw, muscles tense up or may experience contractions. Orgasm, when the body releases the sexual energy that has built in the previous phases — the genitals undergo a series of rhythmic contractions, sexual tension releases forcefully. Resolution, when the body recovers from the sexual encounter and returns to the normal, non-aroused state — swelling reduces, heart rate and breath return to normal, a general feeling of relaxation occurs. Both men and women experience these four phases in sequence, although intensity and length of phases varies by person. In addition to the four phases, a man also experiences something known as the refractory period. The is the time after orgasm when he is unable to have another orgasm. The refractory period can be quite short, or it could last several hours. 44. If a man masturbates to orgasm an hour or two before having sex, will he be less likely to have a "pre-mature" ejaculation? Yes No It's true that if a man masturbates to orgasm an hour or two before having sex, he will be less likely to have a "pre-mature" ejaculation. Many men find that it takes longer for them to come when they've already come recently. However, if a man is not experiencing difficulties with pre-mature ejaculation, masturbating so near the time when he has sex may make it more difficult for him to reach orgasm. Why sex techniques are important to Sex IQ Learning how to make sex more fun and more pleasurable is a lifelong pursuit. As you get into the flow of your sex life, your tastes will likely change and evolve, even if only slightly, over time. Allowing yourself to go with your desires and follow your curiosities can lead you to some surprising and unexpected discoveries. Give yourself permission to find out what you like when it comes to sex. BDSM is shorthand for bondage and discipline (BD), domination and submission (DS), and sadomasochistic play (SM). Generally, BDSM scenes are negotiated in advance between responsible and consenting adults and safety is very seriously considered. BDSM activities commonly include one of three elements: Role play, Control play, or Pain play and can incorporate sex play (or not), depending on the relationship between participants. Communication This area of expertise deals with the ability to identify what you and your partner want, and how to communicate that during sex. You answered 3 out of 3 questions correctly. Here are each of the sex communication questions, followed by explanations of their correct answers. Communication 1. If you know the right techniques, you don't need to ask your partner if they're enjoying it. True False False. Since people enjoy a wide array of stimulation — some like soft, teasing touches while others like hard, aggressive grabs — you aren't likely to know what they really like without asking them to give you feedback. Sure, some feedback is in moans and other non-verbal signals, but when in doubt, ask. Polishing up on your techniques is a great thing to do, but realize that even your most practiced sexual trick will likely need to be modified to suit the lover you are with. 12. All women like cuddling after sex. True False False. Many women enjoy cuddling after sex, as do many men. Some women don't enjoy cuddling after sex. It is an individual preference. The best way to find out if a woman likes to cuddle after sex is to ask her. She may like to cuddle, she may not, or maybe she likes to cuddle some of the time but not all of the time. After you know where you each stand, you can try to come to an agreement that feels good to both of you. Because people have different needs, it is a mistake to make assumptions about them based on generalizations about things like gender. 28. All men like receiving oral sex. True False False. Most men enjoy receiving oral sex, but not all men do. If you are great at fellatio and love to give men oral sex, you may be surprised — or even disappointed — some day when you meet a man who does not appreciate your talents. If you go into a sexual encounter knowing that there isn't one thing that absolutely everyone likes, you will likely be more focused on finding out what the man (or woman) you are with likes. The more you focus on what they like, the more excited and sexually satisfied they are likely to be. a

Merritt, you remembered 100% of the information in the Memory Test. But research shows there's a lot you can do to improve your memory. And if you do, it can help you function in more ways than you'd think. There are 6 main types of memory which help us interpret and store different types of information. You scored highest in spatial. That kind of memory allows you to remember things like the details of an object and how it relates to the space around it — like how furniture is arranged in a room. It also probably helps you picture where you last left your house keys, or recall the location of specific locations — even without a map. While this area of memory is your strongest, it's your overall memory power that allows you to recall all of the various kinds of information available to you. On this test, Tickle measured your skills in 6 types of memory which, when taken together, resulted in your overall memory score. Your Score The 6 Dimensions of Memory Understanding Your Memory Improving Your Memory Answer Key History Further Reading... The 6 Dimensions of Memory: How Did You Score? Visual memory, numeric memory, spatial memory, object-oriented memory, reading comprehension, and delayed-recall memory work in their own ways to help you store information. Most people are stronger in some forms of memory than in others. And that, in turn can tell you something about the way you personally tend to process information and turn it into long-term knowledge. Memory is more than just the romanticized idea of "making memories." It's how you remember specific information that helps you function in the world — whether on an emotional, or more practical scale. If you know how you best process information, you can improve your chances of retaining pertinent information, and retrieving that information when you need to. Bad at remembering numbers but it's important for your job? Maybe there are different ways you can think about numbers based on other memory skills. Always misplacing things around the house, which makes you chronically late? Understanding different memory tricks can probably help you beat that problem, too. So read on to see how you scored, where your memory is strongest, and how you can improve it. First, you need to understand the different forms of memory. Visual Memory Your Visual Memory allows you to remember visual clues and details, such as what someone looks like once you're no longer around them. When you see a word, picture, or symbol, you might find yourself forming a corresponding image in your mind; your Visual Memory is what allows you to recall that image once the object is no longer in sight. If you have a strong visual memory, this visual memorization technique can help you store and retrieve non-visual information, such as the meaning and spelling of vocabulary words. The following was one of the questions used to determine the effectiveness of your Visual Memory. As you looked at the first box, you were asked to take in the visual details of 10 objects. The next box you looked at asked you to recall which one of the four objects shown also appeared in the first box. The answer you picked on the actual test is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring visual memory, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Visual Memory dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 7.6. So, as you can see, your Visual Memory is keener than that of the majority of other test takers. This strength can come in handy in many situations, for example, when asked to describe the physical features of someone you just met or describing a scene of an event. Numeric Memory Numeric Memory allows you to recall series of numbers, such as phone numbers, numeric passwords, combinations, and various account numbers. This memory technique can be tough for some to master, because strings of numbers are somewhat abstract and don't naturally correspond with one another in the same ways that letters of a word or images do. Following is one of the test questions used to determine the strength of your Numeric Memory. This question shows you a mathematic equation that involves three relatively complicated sets of numbers. The answer asks that you remember the third and longest set of numbers in its exact sequence. Your answer is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring numeric memory, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Numeric Memory dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 8.0. So, as you can see, you're better than most at remembering strings of numbers and you likely memorize most of the important numbers in your life. You're able to recall phone numbers, birthdates, and addresses off the top of your head, sometimes to the astonishment of your friends. You probably don't have to write down regularly needed numbers since you've already committed them to memory. Despite your high score, you still might want to improve your numeric memory. Experts recommend using something called a mnemonic system, in which you associate numbers with easier-to-remember letters, words, or rhymes; this kind of clustering can help you recall specific numbers at a later point in time. Spatial Memory Your Spatial Memory allows you to recall the details of stationary objects that occupy physical space. Specifically, it relates to your ability to recall the physical relationship of objects to one another, including the distance between them, and/or their orientation to each other. Remembering how to get around town, recalling where you've put things, and being able to visualize the layout of a room are all examples of how you use this aspect of memory. Following is one of the questions used to measure the power of your Spatial Memory. It showed you a map of physical locations and asked you to memorize the relationship and space between each location. Then, by removing the labels, you were challenged to pinpoint the location of one of the landmarks on the map. Your answer is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring spatial memory, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Spatial Memory dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 5.9. So, as you can see, you're more skilled than others at recalling the relationship of objects and recreating an accurate visualization of a particular space. You are likely someone who thinks in images as opposed to words; this is a trait of many people who have exceptional spatial memory. Object-Oriented Memory Your Object-Oriented Memory allows you to visualize an object's movement and its ultimate destination and location in space. It involves being able to form a mental image of an object, rotating that image mentally, comparing it to the initial image, and judging whether or not the two objects are the same. This type of memory is used in various sports, as well as in everyday activities like packing a tight suitcase or organizing a closet full of various sized objects. Following is one of the questions used to determine the capacity of your Object-Oriented Memory. In this question, you're asked to memorize the shape of an object. The next part of the question required you to rotate that image in your mind until you could match it with one of the possible answers below. Your answer is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring object-oriented memory, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Object-Oriented Memory dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 8.7. So, as you can see, you're particularly skilled at using your Object-Oriented Memory. Interestingly, researchers have found that men tend to do better than women in this area, while women tend to have better skills when it comes to more verbal fluency. It's controversial whether these results can be explained more by biological differences between the sexes, or by the fact that men and women are socialized differently — taught to think, see, and participate in different activities that would foster, or discourage, this type of memory development. Reading Comprehension Your Reading Comprehension is a form of memory that allows you to read a passage or sentence, interpret its meaning, then store the general sense of its meaning for later use. As you read a passage, even this passage, you layer the meaning of the next sentence on to the meaning of the previous sentence — building on your initial sense of the meaning, and integrating new information to form a higher-level understanding and interpretation of the text as a whole. In general, your Reading Comprehension memory allows you to construct meaning based on the information you identify as important in the material. It also allows you to remember specific details from a passage and the specific ordering of information within the text. The following was one of the questions used to measure your Reading Comprehension. The first part asked you to read the following passage. The second part of this question required you to recall what happened in that passage. Your answer is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring reading comprehension, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Reading Comprehension dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 8.0. So, as you can see, you're more skilled than most at interpreting what you read and committing that information to memory as you continue to read a text. This makes it easier for you to analyze and interpret the overall intent and meaning of what you have read. This means that you are better able than many to transform what you read into working knowledge you can draw on when you want to. Delayed Recall Your Delayed Recall memory refers to your ability to transfer information from your short-term memory to your longer-term memory and then to recall it when you want to. Short-term memory technically lasts no longer than 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, the you either commit that that information to long-term memory, or the information slips away from your brain. Delayed Recall memory allows you to remember information several minutes, hours, or days, or even years after first learning it. Tickle measured your Delayed Recall ability by asking you questions about information you'd seen earlier on in the test. We used your performance on these questions as an indicator of how well you transfer information into a longer-term memory. This was one of the questions used to determine your Delayed Recall abilities. It asked you to recall which of the following images you had seen earlier in the test. This challenges your Delayed Recall skills because at the time you were first shown the correct image, you didn't think you needed to commit to memory for longer than a few seconds. Your answer is indicated with the arrow; the correct answer is indicated with a checkmark. Which direction was this shape facing when it was first shown in this test? A. B. C. D. Your answer on this question, combined with your answers to other questions measuring delayed recall, contributed to your overall score of 10 on the Delayed Recall dimension. Average Score Your Score The average score for all test takers is 7.0. So, as you can see, you're better than most at retaining information for longer than the standard 30-seconds of short-term memory. However, in order to preserve the information stored in your mind with Delayed Recall, you'll likely need to continue using or reviewing that information, or associating it with other existing memories. By doing so, you may be able to remember things for the rest of your life. Your Score The 6 Dimensions of Memory Understanding Your Memory Improving Your Memory Answer Key History Further Reading... Understanding Your Memory Why Does Memory Matter? Memory takes place in the area of the brain known as the hippocampus. You rely on your memory almost every second of every day, using it for everything from remembering which day of the week it is, to bigger things like how to do your job, or which bus to take or where to do your grocery shopping. Your memory allows you to remember the people in your life, all of the experiences that you have had, as well as what you plan to do each day and how you do it. Without memory, you would be a blank screen, stripped of all previous knowledge and experiences. How Memory Works Memory can be broken down into two distinct parts: short-term memory, which lasts about 30 seconds, and long-term memory, which starts after that 30 seconds and can potentially last a lifetime. There are three factors that help your brain determine which information to transfer to your long-term memory. The first is your degree of attention and concentration. Multi-tasking obviously decreases your ability to commit something to memory since your attention is only partially directed towards one activity. For example, if you watch TV while you study, you will likely have a much harder time transferring that information into your long-term memory because you'll be stimulated by what you're trying to learn, by what's on the TV and by what's going on around you, too. The second factor is the meaningfulness of the information; if something impacts you directly or seems important or interesting to you, it's more likely to stick in your long-term memory. The third and final factor is how well new information fits with your existing knowledge. If new information builds upon something you've already stored in your long-term memory, it's more likely to associate with the existing information in your mind and lodge itself into your memory. Short-term memory, then, is seen as the gateway to your long-term memory. The more something captures your interest and attention, and the more important that information is to you, the more likely it'll be stored in your long-term memory. Information that is repeatedly used and built upon tends to become a stronger long-term memory. However, certain special information can lodge itself into your mind indefinitely without following these standard memory rules. Let's now turn our attention to these unique types of memories. Flash Bulb Memory Have you ever wondered why you can remember certain days or events in your life so much better than others? How is it that you can sometimes hear or see something just one time, and remember it for the rest of your life? Scientists call these kinds of memories "flash bulb" memories. These memories stand out because of their powerful emotional content, a unique aspect that allows you to recall that memory that much more easily. For instance, Americans who were alive when President Kennedy was shot often recall the vivid details of when they heard the news — including who told them, where they were, how they felt, and other surrounding circumstances. Another example of this would be remembering with exceptional clarity a day of personal trauma, such as the death of a loved one. While these memories aren't always completely accurate, they do serve as an example of how emotional content can enhance the storage of a memory. Your Score The 6 Dimensions of Memory Understanding Your Memory Improving Your Memory Answer Key History Further Reading... Improving Your Memory The more information we can store and recall, the smarter we feel. Memory is crucial to the whole process of learning and retaining knowledge, both of which increase your perceived intelligence. After all, without memory, how could you show off your expertise in Renaissance Art or 1950's cars? However, a good memory isn't necessarily an indicator of a high IQ. Instead, it is a mark of effective learning and synthesizing strategies, as well as your genetic makeup. Since your memory can indeed be molded, the most important thing in strengthening your memory is to keep your mind active. Just as you exercise your body, you need to exercise your mind. If you continue to challenge yourself, your brain literally keeps growing. With use, your brain can develop new dendrites — the connections between the nerve cells in your brain — which helps your memory in retrieving and storing information. Although research does indicate that the strength of your memory is partially dependent on your hereditary genes, there are some specific things that researchers suggest for enhancing your memory. What Was Your Name Again? Are you one of those people who just can't seem to remember the names of new people? While it's a common problem, forgetting someone's name isn't the best way to make a first impression. Here's one technique to help you better play the name game: Tell yourself to pay attention. So many of us assume we won't remember a name, or are so focused on what's going on in the situation, that we don't really try to remember the person's name. But our brain listens to us when we tell it what we want to take in; paying particularly close attention is the way to signal that important information is coming. Associate the person's name with a defining characteristic. Our brains like to cluster information to solidify it. So instead of just thinking, "Sheila," try thinking, "Sheila, the pilot," or "Sheila, with those great hazel eyes." When picking something to associate with the person's name, choose something that interests you or seems intriguing (or, for that matter, unappealing or irritating). This will help the person stand out in your mind and cement the name in your memory. Repeat the person's name. You can think the name and characteristic silently to yourself during the conversation. You may also want to say the person's name at least once, but probably no more than twice, during the conversation. Try to end with something like, "It was nice talking to you, Sheila." Have a review session with yourself. Later, when thinking over the conversation, recall the person's name again to help further impress their name in your memory. Forgetfulness Got Your Tongue? You know you know it, you just can't remember it. It's on the tip of your tongue. How can you bring it from the deep, dark recesses of your mind? Here are a few ideas to job your memory: Give yourself a break. Literally. Sometimes pushing to remember just drives the memory away, whereas taking a few minutes to let your mind wander or focus on something else can sometimes be more successful in allowing your mind to recall the word. Or you can allow yourself to think of something associated that leads you to remember the word. Use the ABCs. If you're trying to remember a word, or the name of a street or store or person, try going through the alphabet. If you have a visual image of what you're looking for, hold it in your mind as you scan each letter of the alphabet. Some letters will be easy to discard, while others will linger in your mind, often leading you to recall the word you're looking for. Try to scan your mind for associations. For example, if you're trying to think of the name of a store, imagine the clerk, the atmosphere, the products, the stores on either side. As you form a more complete memory, the image of the store's sign or logo may come into your mind. The basic idea is to find things that you've associated with the name, in hopes that those things will bring the name to the surface of your memory. Numbers, Numbers Everywhere Phone numbers, birth dates, addresses, dollar amounts, and passwords are just some of the ways that numbers flood our lives. Remembering these can prove challenging for many of us, because strings of numbers are more abstract than strings of letters. For example, memorizing "8583938759309354" is going to take much longer than memorizing the word "associations" or the name "Sheila." There are many intricate systems to help people remember longer numbers. One of the most basic ways is to associate each number with a letter, also known as "pegging." There are numerous ways to attempt pegging, depending on how long the number is that you need to remember. A simplified version of pegging can be used for remembering phone numbers, especially since most phones have letters on the keypad to correspond with each number. Here's an example: Choose the number you want to remember. In this instance, say you get assigned the phone number 523-9369, and you want to come up with a corresponding word or phrase to help you remember it. Write down the possible letters for each number on the key pad. For instance, for the 5, you can use J, K, or L. For the next number in the sequence, 2, you can use A, B, or C. Once you have all the letter possibilities down, it's time to put your thinking cap on and get creative, making a word or phrase out of the number. With the particular number sequence, you can spell the words, "LADY FOX." It takes a bit of time to think up a good word from the letters you have to choose from, but once a word is in place for a number, you're much less likely to forget it. "Chunking" is another method that you can use to remember hard-to-recall numbers. It involves breaking up long series of numbers into more memorable sections, primarily by inserting hyphens. Phone numbers and social security numbers are already formatted in this way to make them easier to recall (555-9663 is much more memorable than 5559663). Whenever you're trying to memorize a longer number, you can group the series into smaller groups. For instance, if you have to memorize a number like 98584893939393904894, you can more easily remember it as 9858-4893-9393-9390-4894. To make it even easier, you could then employ your pegging skills to come up with five words that could correspond to these five sections of numbers. Memory Food The strength of your memory is based at least partially on what you eat. Here are some things that studies suggest can help feed your brain right: Drink plenty of liquids, especially water. A lack of water can lead to dehydration, leaving you feeling tired and making it harder to concentrate. Additionally, try to limit coffee and soda, as sugar and caffeine can interfere with your thinking. Eat a well-balanced diet that has fresh fruits and vegetables, adequate amounts of protein, and complex carbohydrates, such as brown rice or whole-wheat bread. Foods like these that are rich in antioxidants can nourish and protect your brain cells. Consider taking one of the supplements believed to enhance memory power. Some of these include gingko biloba (which shouldn't be used by people on blood thinners), Calcium-Magnesium, or antioxidants like Vitamin C. As with any supplement, make sure you are aware of all potential side-effects. Try to limit your alcohol intake. Drinking more than one or two glasses of alcohol per day can have a negative impact on the memory centers of your brain, thus impairing your recall abilities. Stay Positive You aren't the only one who has forgotten your best friend's birthday. And you certainly aren't the first person to spend hours searching for the sunglasses that were resting on the top of your head all along. So, don't be hard on yourself if you forget something. Remember that everyone has difficulty remembering things and very few people have perfect memories. The best thing you can do is to keep a positive attitude when your memory fails you. After all, if you start to worry that your memory is declining, that anxiety will only interfere with your ability to remember even more. Your Score The 6 Dimensions of Memory Understanding Your Memory Improving Your Memory Answer Key History Further Reading... Answer Key Following is the complete answer key to Tickle's Memory Test. The arrows point to your test responses, and the checkmarks indicate the optimal answer. 1. Which of the following did you see? 32 X 4 34 X 6 32 X 6 36 X 4 2. 3. 4. 5. Max and Emily met at a friend's party. After the party Emily asked her friend Jenny whether Max was seeing anyone. Jenny mentioned to Max that Emily had been curious about him. Max asked Jenny if he could have Emily's number. About a week later he called her and asked her out on a date. Emily was surprised to hear from him because Jenny didn't tell her that she'd given him her number. Nonetheless, Emily accepted the date and they went miniature golfing followed by Max cooking dinner at his place. The miniature golfing was Max's idea, and it turned out to be more fun than either of them had expected. They laughed a lot. A few days after this first date Max called Emily again. This time they met for drinks, went out to dinner, and then to a movie. Emily called Max the next day to thank him for a great date and to invite him to go hiking with her the following weekend. They were seeing each other pretty frequently, and soon decided not to see other people. Who was the first to express an interest in the other person? Emily asked Jennifer about Max. Max asked Jennifer about Emily. Max approached Emily at the party. Jennifer thought Max and Emily would be a good match. 6. What did Max and Emily do on their first date? They met for drinks and then had dinner. They met for drinks, dinner, and then saw a movie. Max made dinner and they then went miniature golfing. They went miniature golfing and then Max made dinner. 7. 8. Study the numbers below. 57 X 21 = 1197 What was the ANSWER to the equation? 1179 1197 1267 2296 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. What was the ANSWER to the equation? 13,297 13,972 12,973 12,739 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. The little family settled around Charleston, South Carolina, which had a large shipping community at the time. William, after presenting Mary Brennan to polite society as his wife and Anne as his legitimate daughter, started his legal practice again there. When Anne was sixteen years old she fell in love with James Bonny, and history proclaims him to have been either a penniless soldier or a small-time pirate at the time. Anne and James Bonny were wed against her father's will, for which he disowned her, costing them her dowry. The newlyweds moved to what was then called New Providence, now Nassau. What was Anne's father's profession? He was a doctor He was a captain He had a legal practice He owned a shipyard 22. What happened after Anne and James Bonny were married? Anne had an affair almost immediately Anne's father disowned her They had a child They sailed back to Ireland 23. Which of the following number sequences DID appear somewhere in the test? 36 x 4 5934 388-6892 54 x 18 = 972 24. Recall the map of the gardens you saw earlier on this test. Where is the rose garden located? 25. Which of the following symbols DID appear somewhere in the test prior to this question? A. B. C. D. 26. Which direction was this shape facing when it was first shown in this test? A. B. C. 27. Previously you read about Max and Emily and their first three dates. Which of the following did they do on one of those dates? Went dancing Went to a concert Went to an art gallery Went hiking

Merritt, currently your happiness baseline is 94, which is higher than 98 percent of the other people who took The Happiness Test. What this baseline means is that, taking both your high and low moods into account, your range of happiness, tends to be around this level. As most of us know from first-hand experience, happiness is a changeable thing. In fact, you've probably felt your own overall happiness level shift from year to year, month to month, or even day to day. It's natural to experience highs and lows at different moments in your life. If you expect to feel the happiest of happy all of the time, you'll probably be disappointed. However, you can strive to elevate your baseline of happiness, so that the lows you experience are not as low, and the highs you experience are even higher. A person's overall level of happiness is more consistent than an individual mood or passing feeling. Your baseline for happiness provides a kind of foundation for your emotions and experiences to rest upon. Because of this fact, if you retake The Happiness Test after some time has passed, your results may be dramatically different. This can be especially true if you take time to learn more about the nature of your own personal happiness patterns and apply the strategies suggested within this report. The material that follows will discuss specific ways you can achieve a shift in your happiness baseline, as well as altering the particular aspects that affect it. Currently, your results indicate that you already have a higher happiness baseline than most people. However, you can always improve. By gaining a better understanding of what makes up your happiness, you can learn to direct your energies to the areas that you may currently be neglecting. As you now know, your optimism has a positive effect on your overall happiness. However, your greatest source of happiness is your gratitude. Gratitude is a feeling of deep thankfulness for what your life offers you in both good times and bad. When you're grateful, you view life as deep and rich with meaning and feel thankful for the whole experience of living. You may cultivate this awareness on a regular basis through reflection or prayer. Your strong sense of appreciation for life's blessings is where your happiness springs from most. It's also the place where your happiness gains the most power and stability. Because gratitude appears to be the natural anchor point for your happiness, know that you can always tap into this quality when times get rough. For instance, like you, Meredith is a person who is usually very thankful for the good things in her life. Meredith's lifestyle is modest, but it still offers her plenty of things to be grateful for. She enjoys her work, her family, and her home. However, as happens in everyone's life at one time or another, Meredith's circumstances recently took a turn for the worse. Her 12-year-old cat, Tiger, died. Meredith was completely distraught by this loss. She cried for a full day and moped around the house even longer, feeling that life was unfair to take away such a cherished pet. But Meredith's sadness and confusion wasn't unusual or wrong. It was a natural reaction to such an emotional event. Even a very happy, grateful person has moments of sorrow and doubt. It's simply not realistic or even possible to be happy and thankful all the time. In Meredith's case, after a period of grieving she decided that it was time to put away Tiger's toys and other reminders of her pet and move toward her own happiness. Still, it felt strange trying to be happy and thankful after having been lost in such grief. Meredith didn't know exactly how to regain her grateful spirit. But over time she naturally began to gravitate toward her former feelings of gratitude. Meredith remembered what a happy cat Tiger had been and how thankful she was for the time she got to spend with him. With these warm feelings in her heart, Meredith began to think about how much there was to be thankful for in her life. In time, she had shifted herself back into a place where she was receptive, grateful, and truly happy again. Meredith's positivity and resilience in the face of a sad event is a good model to apply to your own life. There is real power in being grateful. Feeling gratitude helps you appreciate the gifts of knowledge and experience that life offers you. Being grateful may even give you a greater understanding of the cycles of life, your relationships with others, and the workings of a higher power. In addition to all these things, gratitude helps you build personal resources such as compassion and empathy. These are valuable assets that you can draw upon in less happy times. Just like a living thing, your happiness will stay its most strong and robust with proper feeding. In other words, you have to regularly think thoughts and take actions that support being happy. Your test responses indicate that you feed your happiness by being particularly grateful. More than most people, deep down you truly know that you have a lot to be thankful for. On a very basic level, you seem to understand that you're blessed with many positive attributes, friends, and lucky breaks. This perception is probably the result of lots of positive reinforcement, perhaps even dating back to your childhood. For example, you may have had a parent or role model who openly expressed gratitude and taught you to keep your mind focused on the long list of things that you have to be grateful for. If you received such lessons, they were a tremendous gift that you're still putting to good use today. Is there a key to happiness? In fact, there may be many. Take a look at your scores for the seven major areas that contribute to happiness. You'll be able to see which ones are currently contributing most to your happiness and which may need more attention. By continuing to make the most of your strong areas and shoring up the weaker ones, over time you can be sure to experience an increase in the happiness you feel. In the meantime, pat yourself on the back for your higher scores. Your present happiness is rooted in those areas you already master. If you'd like to increase your happiness — as most people would — look to your lower scores. Those are the areas where you have the most room to grow and improve. Think about how a simple shift in your perceptions could increase your happiness. To that end, below Tickle's experts not only give you a more detailed description of your scores, they also lay out action steps to help you maximize all seven Happiness areas. Gratitude Gratitude Your score on the Gratitude scale is 10 out of 10. This scale measures your sense of appreciation for life's blessings. Because gratitude is your highest-scoring area, it's apparent that you already know firsthand how important this quality is to your happiness. Now all you have to do is keep it up and share the wealth. For instance, if a less grateful friend should turn to you for advice, consider telling them about the Take Action below. Overall, your gratitude score is on the higher end of the scale. This means that to some degree, you already feel grateful for your life's experiences. You probably also take time to acknowledge the benefits and blessings of what you have. Gratitude is available to everyone who sets clear and focused intentions to acknowledge the good and beneficial things in their lives. Sometimes gratitude even means being thankful for the lessons learned in the school of hard knocks. By taking time out to recognize the good in your life, you increase your gratitude. Try the Take Action below and start counting your blessings. People who reflect on the things they are grateful for — whether in journal writing, quiet contemplation, or sharing with others — are shown to have a greater overall sense of well-being than those who don't. Try this five-day journal exercise to begin your daily habit of being grateful: Find a blank book or writing tablet that you can use to create your gratitude journal. Each day, write down how and why you are grateful for the things listed below. Think about ways you can begin to more fully appreciate each. Day 1: Health. For example, "I am thankful for my health because it enables me to do active things that I enjoy, like bicycling to work on nice days. I can appreciate my health more by trying to eat right and by exercising more often." Day 2: Family. For example, "I am thankful for my mother because she always stands by me when I have a problem. I can appreciate my mother more by calling just to say hello more often and letting her know how much I value her." Day 3: Friends. For example, "I am thankful that I have a small, tight-knit group of friends because they make my leisure time much more enjoyable. They also support me in tough times by making me laugh. I can appreciate my friends more by throwing a dinner party to thank them for being such great company." Day 4: Work. For example, "I am thankful that I have such a great job because I truly enjoy what I do for a living. I can appreciate my job more by continuing to give it my best effort." Day 5: Home. For example. "I am thankful for my apartment because it is a very comfortable, enjoyable place to work, play, and relax. I can appreciate my home more by keeping it cleaner." You may choose to find even more things to be grateful for and record them in your journal. Try looking at smaller things. For example, "I am grateful that my husband made me breakfast this morning because it got my day off to a great start. I can appreciate him more by letting him know how much it helped me this morning." The more you write in your journal, the more conscious you will be of the small things — and the big things — that make your life great. For bonus points, try following through on some of the things that you can do to show your appreciation. Thank people more. Appreciate your life more. You might be surprised how good it makes you feel. Optimism Optimism Your score on the Optimism scale is 9 out of 10. This scale measures your tendency to anticipate the best possible outcomes for the situations life presents to you. When people are optimistic, they possess a feeling that good things are here to stay and bad things will improve in time. By increasing your optimism you can strengthen your belief in yourself. You can also start to see all the wonderful possibilities in life, rather than simply dwelling on the potential problems. By harnessing the power of positive thinking, optimism can help you steer clear of worry so that you can take life-enriching chances. Your score is on the higher side of the optimism scale. This means that when a tough situation presents itself, you're more likely to focus on the proverbial silver lining than the cloud. It also suggests that when faced with an obstacle, you'll usually look for ways to surmount it. Optimism is simply a matter of taking on a positive perspective; this is a skill that can be acquired and nurtured. Try the Take Action below to start thinking even more positively than you already do. Research has proven that optimists are happier and more successful than their pessimist counterparts are. The primary difference between optimists and pessimists is the way these two types of people view setbacks. An optimist will ordinarily see setbacks as temporary while the pessimist will tend to see them as permanent. Also, optimists claim less personal responsibility for setbacks than pessimists do. The primary reason that optimists are happier and more successful than pessimists appears to be that optimists are more likely to act, and even take risks, to do something about a setback. Because optimists see setbacks as temporary, they believe that situations are changeable and to some degree within their control. Pessimists, on the other hand, believe that they're stuck with things being the way they are until the situation changes on its own. Although pessimists can sometimes see reality more accurately than optimists, their passive attitudes are more apt to lead to depression and away from happiness. To become more optimistic, you must change your thought patterns to include more positive thinking. Here are the two major secrets to optimism. When something negative happens in your life, tell yourself that "this too shall pass." When you believe that a negative change is temporary, you'll be much more motivated to take action to move things in a more positive direction. Take stock of all the things not affected by the negative change. Acknowledge everything in your life that has remained positive. Making these mental notes can help you see that all is not ruined. In addition, remember that events rarely have a single cause. It's usually a combination of factors. Try to minimize the amount of blame you attribute to yourself when bad things happen. When something positive happens in your life, believe that it is going to last. When you feel that a positive change is permanent, you rid yourself of unnecessary worry and let yourself truly benefit from every new, happy change that you experience. So instead of worrying, focus your attention on all of the things in your life that have been improved by the positive change. Allow yourself to bask in the glow of good fortune. Also consider anything you did that may have helped this change to happen. Feel good about all the ways big and small that you're contributing to your own happiness. Self-Confidence Confidence Your score on the Self-Confidence scale is 9 out of 10. This scale measures the extent to which you like yourself and feel satisfied with who you are. When people are confident, they are self-assured and truly like themselves, believing that they are people of quality. Having increased confidence can help you to both take on challenges without fear and act without hesitation. Confidence can also help you develop strength in your convictions and improve your sense of self-worth. When compared with other people who took this test, your score on the confidence scale is relatively higher than that of most others. This means that most of the time you exhibit a reasonably high confidence level, especially concerning your self-esteem. Confidence is really a state of mind, a positive self-perception that you project to others. If you can see confidence as a skill rather than an innate characteristic, you'll be able to move more easily in the direction of increased confidence. Try the Take Action below to jump-start your confidence. It will help you by battling any self-criticisms you may possess. The way you feel about yourself doesn't just have a huge effect on your confidence level. It also impacts the way you treat yourself, the way you treat others, and the kinds of life choices you make. Know that you can greatly improve the quality of your life through the power of your mind alone. To do so you need to honestly assess how you feel about yourself and take steps to change your self-concept for the better. The good news is that you don't have to be born with confidence; you can learn to be more confident. For starters, try to figure out what is negatively affecting your confidence and why. List your top five negative criticisms of yourself. (Leave a few blank lines below each criticism.) Review your criticisms for gross generalizations. Omit words such as always, never, and totally. If you can't omit them, change them to words like sometimes and somewhat. Try to make the criticisms more specific. Come up with examples that illustrate why you believe in your criticism. If you can't come up with anything, take note of that and use it as ammunition against your negative self-talk in the future. For each criticism ask yourself: What about your negative criticism is true? What is untrue? What could this negative criticism be doing to serve you? In many cases, our negative criticisms of ourselves are there to warn us against danger, to keep us from making mistakes, or to guard against failure. Finally, be honest with yourself about your weakness. Accept that you are flawed, but realize that you are probably not as bad as you were originally making yourself out to be. Cheerfulness Cheerfulness Your score on the Cheerfulness scale is 9 out of 10. This scale measures the extent to which you have a good-natured disposition and experience blissful delight in even the smallest things. When people are cheerful, they possess a jovial state of being in which pleasure comes easily to them. Becoming more cheerful can help you to explore your surroundings, enhance your relationships, and stretch your imagination because cheerfulness opens your mind and heart. You might be surprised to learn that cheerfulness can also be the key to developing increased knowledge and creativity. This is likely due to the ways being cheerful expands and alters your perspective. Your cheerfulness score is somewhat higher than that of many others. This indicates that you're probably already a pretty playful, lighthearted person much of the time. Have you ever heard the saying, "Laughter is the best medicine?" There's actually some truth to it. Certain medical studies have shown that laughter even speeds recovery after surgery. Although being jovial and cheery in your daily life may feel frivolous at times, playing and laughing more can improve your health, your outlook on life, and your overall happiness. Try the Take Action below. It will help you make a point of laughing every day. Laughter can renew your spirit, heal your body, and awaken your proverbial inner child. As we get older, few of us laugh as much or as hard as we did as kids. When's the last time you let yourself have a real belly laugh? Research indicates that the average adult gets by on only 15 smiles or laughs a day. Children, on the other hand, laugh or smile an average of 400 times a day. As adults, we have some catching up to do. A lot more laughter is in order. At first, it may be hard to let yourself give in to fits of laughter; you may not quite remember how. But with practice, you'll likely be able to recapture at least some of your childish mirth. If you do achieve riotous laughter, congratulations! You're doing your health a big favor, not to mention your well-being. You'll also probably feel a lot happier to boot. Try these tips for increasing the laughter in your life. Find humor in everyday situations. There is almost always something funny happening. When you get upset about something, try laughing out loud. Sometimes you can gain perspective on a negative situation by laughing it off. It's rarely as bad as you think it is. Dare yourself to laugh for 10 seconds without a break once every hour. If you can do that, you will already be laughing more than most adults do! Try remembering funny things from your past. Amuse yourself throughout the day by conjuring up funny things that have happened to you in the past or imagining new ones. Allow yourself to laugh out loud. Who cares if people see you cracking yourself up? You're just thinking of something funny. Make funny friends. It's good to spend time with people who keep you laughing. Join a laugh club. Laugh clubs started catching on in India about six years ago; now they are international. People all over the world are meeting on a regular basis to promote laughter. See if you can find a club in your area. Personal Growth Personal Growth Your score on the Personal Growth scale is 9 out of 10. This scale measures how focused and proactive you are about exploring who you are and expanding your life's impact. When people are committed to personal growth, they're dedicated to being the best that they can be. They also put effort toward exploring what life has to offer. By increasing your focus on personal growth, you can feel a greater sense of personal control over what happens to you. Personal growth can also nurture your spirit, develop your willpower, and increase your strength and focus. Your score on the personal growth scale is higher than average. This means that for the most part you have good focus and initiative when it comes to taking matters into your own hands to improve your life. Honoring your commitment to personal growth takes both dedication and a positive attitude. Sometimes it's tough, but by following through and working toward your goals, you can create an upward spiral toward further growth and achievement. Try the Take Action below to make even more space for personal growth in your life. Although a commitment to personal growth comes naturally to some, others need to work a little harder to make space in their lives for change. Establishing and achieving goals is hard work and often takes great effort, even if you have a strong motivation to do so. Try taking the following steps to help make yourself more receptive to personal growth and change. Take care of yourself. Eating well, exercising, and getting enough sleep are important to your day-to-day well-being. If your health begins to suffer, you probably won't have enough physical or emotional energy to devote to your personal growth efforts. Keep your eye on the ball. Do your best to stay focused and determined, even when life presents you with obstacles. If you do lose focus, acknowledge why it happened and vow to get back on track. Beating yourself up for minor setbacks will harm you more than it will help. Integrate change into your lifestyle. Think of personal growth as part of a lifelong improvement process. If you see it as more than a short-term fix, you'll probably remain much more motivated. Have fun. The more you can enjoy the journey of personal growth, the more positive change will tend to flow toward you. Celebrate your victories. The best rewards often don't come after making a change but are in the positive change itself. Give yourself credit for making these positive steps happen. You deserve it. Contentment Contentment Your score on the Contentment scale is 8 out of 10. This scale measures your general sense of peace and satisfaction with your life. When people are content, they feel that life is good and that they're truly satisfied with what the world has to offer them. By increasing your contentment, you can begin savoring the beauty in more everyday moments. You can also gain a greater sense of connection with your surroundings, other people, and even a higher power. Contentment is the quality that can help you develop an expanded worldview and real insight. In terms of your numerical score in this area, you scored on the higher side of the contentment scale. This means that you're already somewhat content with your life or at least that you have moments of contentment when you feel things are going your way. Increasing your contentment doesn't have to be complicated. Often your ability to live in the present moment has more to do with your level of contentment than actually having what you want does. Try the Take Action below and begin to find more contentment from within. Research has revealed that the secret to contentment doesn't come from wealth or health or any other sort of abundance. The utter absence of money or physical well-being affects contentment, but any level beyond basic subsistence levels of health, wealth, and so on has no effect on contentment at all. The main lesson in this fact is that contentment springs from being happy with what you have and believing that, all in all, life is good. Consider this research finding while doing the following exercise. On a piece of paper, begin the following sentence: "I would be happier if...." Let yourself be petty. Write down everything that comes to mind when completing this sentence. Maybe you will write, "I had more money," "I were more attractive," "I were smarter," "I had more friends," or similar statements. Now look at each of the things on your list. For each, ask yourself the following questions: How could your situation be worse than it is? What about this area can you be content about (even in a small way)? Is keeping your feeling of discontent worth a small measure of your happiness? If not, cross it off your list and resolve to be content with what you have in that area. If you have crossed off everything on your list, congratulations on your new contentment! Now you just need to remember to honor the decisions you made in this exercise. You can stop here. If there is at least one item on your list after you finish crossing things off, close your eyes and imagine yourself having what you believe you lack. How much more content do you think you would feel? Now try imagining yourself unable to get what you think you lack. How much less content do you think you would be? Your chances of ever being content — even if you obtain what you think is missing — are lower if you cannot find contentment with the present moment and the present situation. This is because it is easy to slip into a pattern of putting off contentment because you feel you need something more. This way of thinking will keep contentment just slightly out of reach for your whole life. Relationships Relationships Your score on the Relationships scale is 8 out of 10. This scale measures the extent to which you are positively affected by the people in your life who make up your social support network. When people have positive personal relationships, they have a base of support that they can turn to in happy and sad times. Over time, increased social interaction can help you relax into the knowledge that you can be who you are. This assumes, of course, that you are choosing to be around people who truly validate and support you. Having positive personal relationships can help you to develop more self-confidence, a sense of belonging, and greater ease in relating with all kinds of people. When compared with others who took this test, you scored on the higher end of the relationship scale. This indicates that on the whole, you enjoy positive connections with the people in your life. Although almost everyone has times when they feel discouraged by someone close to them, for the most part you feel like your relationships are meaningful and bring out the best in you. By appreciating and valuing the people who appreciate and value you, you go a long way toward cultivating meaningful and lasting bonds. Try the Take Action below to learn how you can improve your relationships even more. Social interaction is a basic human need, and its benefits are numerous. No matter how independent you feel you are, humans actually require a certain amount of social interaction in order to thrive. The amount and variety of social interaction each person needs to be at their peak happiness levels will vary. Regardless of what you find your specific needs to be, below you'll find three ideas to help you tend and grow your connections with others. Give priority to your closest relationships. Make a list of the two to five people you regard as your closest confidants. When you have a choice to make between spending time with these close friends that you've listed or hanging out with someone else, choose those close friends first. Also, try keeping in touch with all of your close friends on a more regular basis. Show each one of them that you value the connection the two of you share. Throw a party. Invite everyone you know or would like to know better and encourage your friends to bring guests that you don't know. This way, you'll have the opportunity to expand your network of friends and acquaintances easily and quickly. This tactic can work even better if you invite a slightly smaller core group of people for a monthly get together. Festivities could take the form of a potluck dinner, a book club, a movie night, or even a bowling party. Help others. Your support network also provides you with the opportunity to support others when they need it. Giving help to a friend makes you feel needed, brings you closer to your friend, and generally makes you feel better about yourself. Happiness is a consistent, moderate state of satisfaction or joy. True happiness with yourself and your life comes from having a strong, balanced, consistently positive approach to yourself and your world. Traditionally, it has been thought that if a person doesn't feel an overall sense of happiness with life, there must be something wrong. However recently, psychologists have begun to believe that this just isn't so. Happiness, they claim, is a state of mind, a life perception, and a series of good habits. This is good news. If happiness is a skill set, then you can learn to be happier. Some people seem to be born happy. This may be true. Or perhaps these "happier" people have simply already learned these happiness skills through their interactions, through reading, or by having a keen perception into human nature. Whatever the case, their happiness is something you can learn from and achieve for yourself. In fact, if you know someone who seems very happy, they'll most likely be happy to advise you if you ask them about their outlook on life. It should be noted that certain people experience intermittent moments of happiness without feeling like they can characterize themselves as happy people. In fact, some individuals have extremely happy moments, feeling a state of euphoria, and later crash down into depression or misery. These individuals lack the balance just described, either because they haven't learned the skills or, in rarer cases, because of biological factors having to do with their brain chemistry. Finally, even happy people have down days. It's unrealistic to expect permanent, nonstop happiness. Such a thing doesn't exist in reality. However, you can learn to be more content with your life, confident in yourself, grateful for what you have, committed to your personal growth, full of laughter and good cheer, and optimistic. You can also learn to develop positive, supportive relationships with the people around you. In fact, by focusing yourself steadfastly on these seven areas, you can quite readily achieve them. Just remember that by enjoying yourself on your path to greater happiness, you're already a good way to achieving what you desire. History of the smiley face The smiley face was originally created in 1963 by Harvey Ball, a graphic artist working for State Mutual Insurance. The Massachusetts insurance company commissioned Ball to create a button for its morale-boosting campaign. Initially, Ball created a button with just a curved line representing a smile. He realized, however, that when turned upside down, his button turned into a frown. To remedy the problem, Ball added two dots for eyes and gave the whole button a sunny yellow color to promote cheer. His total art fee was $45. State Mutual created a first run of 100 of the buttons, which were a huge hit. The insurance company went on to distribute thousands of happy face buttons...and the rest is history.

Merritt, your ideal sexual partner is: Type 2 partners are sexually curious and playful when it comes to sex. They are also bold and confident in asserting their sexuality. Your Type 2 match has an unusually potent sexual energy. Their sex appeal shines through naturally in just about anything they do — whether dressed to the nines or kicking around the neighborhood in sweatpants. Regardless of where they are, they turn heads with what they wear, how they move, and where they position themselves relative to others. There's just something about them that will draw you in. And thanks to a healthy dose of confidence, they won't be afraid to use it to both of your advantages. A Type 2 has lots of experience, a never-ending reserve of creativity, and the same goal as you: ultimate pleasure. Having this in common opens the door for the two of you to play with all kinds of sexual possibilities until you hit upon combinations that are blissfully and uniquely yours. Like you, the emotional connection — and the affection often expressed during sex — are less important than the physical sensations for Type 2 people. That's not to say your match doesn't pay attention to your personal closeness and genuine caring, but it does tend to take a backseat to the physical feelings of pleasure. Ultimately, a Type 2 is best characterized by their readiness to dive into the unknown. They're sensual, lively, and, most importantly, will never rush through the experience of sex,— not when there are so many ways they can be creative with it. Statistical studies indicate there are 10 distinct sexual personality types. No one type is any better or any worse than another. The difference between them comes from the unique combination of behaviors, preferences, and attitudes individuals hold about sex. You, too, are one of these types, but this test is designed to show you the specific characteristics of your ideal sexual partner. You are most likely to be compatible with someone who shares your views on these things — but it's actually a bit more complex than that. As you answered the questions to Tickle's Ideal Sexual Partner Test, we analyzed your responses and were able to break down what someone who is sexually compatible with you is like on a number of levels. From there, we paired you with the sexual personality type that best reflected your unique wants and needs. Now that you have the personality of your ideal sexual partner, you probably want to know how to find them — before you get intimate. To help you understand what you should look for, we've taken a look at how your perfect partner scored on 5 classic sexual personality dimensions: sexual experience, value of emotional connection, seductive behavior, libido, and focus on orgasm. This is what your ideal partner's sexual personality profile looks like. Libido Sexual Experience Seductive Behavior Emotional Connection Focus On Orgasm 1 50 100 Taking a closer look at, and getting to know each of these dimensions, will give you both a clearer picture of who your ideal sexual partner is and how to identify realistic partners before you go too far down the wrong path. Here are descriptions that will help you understand the dimensions in depth. Libido Libido 1 50 100 Finding someone whose libido — or sex drive — matches your own is incredibly important. Otherwise your timing is all off: they'll be ready to go when you're not and vice versa. Since you're someone who is always in the mood, you need a partner who's also always in the mood. How to spot it when you see it Although someone's sex drive is one of the harder things to figure out until you really know them, there are some clues to look for. People with a high libido tend to live life to the fullest. They love to experience things. At a museum or concert, this is the person who loses themselves in a painting or song. While out at dinner, the person with a high libido will be the one who not only knows what every item on the menu is and how it's prepared, but can comment on each of the wines as well. They could be the world traveler who will know exactly where you should shop while in Katmandu. They aren't necessarily thrill seekers, they're simply masters of appreciating things. They want more out life's sensual pleasures than others. What this person dislikes most of all is limits. They find rules restrictive. Relative to other test takers, you want someone who has a high sex drive. So, start looking for these signs or any other that could indicate they are into indulging in sensual experiences to the extreme. A test to determine their level of libido Try wining and dining your love interest at a nice restaurant. Make sure the place you take them goes the extra mile with nice music and a great atmosphere. You want your date to be overwhelmed with pleasure. If you've met your match, They will bask in the sensuous scene you've set. They will comment on the lighting, want an extra glass of wine and may even ask for dessert. In fact, with libidos like the two of you have, this opulent scene is probably just a prelude to a whole night of indulgent pleasure. Sexual Experience Sexual Experience 1 50 100 The Sexual Experience dimension measures how comfortable your ideal sex partner is with trying out new things in bed, and how confident they are with sex in general. The more savvy they are, the more they're willing and eager to experiment. You're looking for someone who has a high rating on this dimension. How to spot it when you see it Your ideal sexual partner tends to be the kind of person who tries to get you to try new things, from the latest restaurant, to taking a course, to attempting to cook Thanksgiving dinner all from scratch. People who are sexually experienced go where their curiosity leads them — and they'd love nothing more than to take you along with them. You're likely to meet someone sexually experienced at an unusual gathering. Maybe they're the one trying to get everyone to try dinner at the Cambodian restaurant that just opened. When you're at a bar, keep your eyes on the dance floor. It's the sexually experienced person who often gets the dancing started, or who pulls you on to the floor. It's not that they're trying to embarrass you, it's simply that they want you to have as much fun as they are. And with life, as with sex, they're ready to dive in and enjoy. A test to determine their level of sexual experience Think up an idea or belief that is considered "out there" by many people. It could be anything from a hot-button political issue to an unusual suggestion for what to do one evening. Bring up the issue to them, and see how they react. If they show genuine interest in considering this subject from a different point of view, you're off to a good start. This implies that they're fairly receptive to hearing new things and are curious. It also indicates that they will not make you feel ashamed for broaching new subjects with them. The chances are, if the person is open-minded in general, they will also likely be open-minded in the bedroom. And that means they won't be closed off to trying the new and playful things you might like to do. Seductive Behavior Seductive Behavior 1 50 100 The Seductive Behavior dimension measures how much your ideal sexual partner draws attention to their sexuality. Do they know how to use their charms to attract who the want? According to your results, you are looking for someone who knows how to flaunt it. How to spot it when you see it In general, a seductive person is comfortable with their sexuality and isn't afraid to show it. However, seductive behavior can come across in hundreds of different ways. It could be the way a person talks or what they talk about with potential partners. Do they make suggestive comments or flirty jabs? Maybe it's the clothes they wear — do they flaunt lean arms or a toned stomach? Most of the time, seductiveness is just a general vibe. The most important thing to remember here is that a person's exterior says very little about what they're like behind closed doors. In order to get an idea whether someone's outward behavior carries over to the bedroom, you'll probably need to look to their other sexual dimensions as well. A test to determine their level of seductive behavior Seduction is a big part of sex for you and you want a partner whose switch is permanently "on." A surefire way to figure this out is to invite them to do something routine and everyday. Go to the hardware store with them, have them tag along while you deposit your paycheck or maybe even pick up your dry cleaning together. Do they still have that buzz around them? Chances are if they can find a way to turn you on in a bank line, you've met your seductive match. Emotional Connection Emotional Connection 1 50 100 The Emotional Connection dimension sheds light on how much your ideal sex partner cares about the deeper bond between the two of you. It also measures how much you can expect them to show affection towards you. You are looking for a sexual partner who considers the emotional connection to be of medium importance in a sexual relationship. How to spot it when you see it If you noticed someone hanging out with their friends and saw them put their hand on a friend's shoulder or hug someone goodbye, chances are this person is comfortable expressing affection. Also pay special attention to people who remember your name or small details about you that even you don't remember telling them. These are people who value the connection they've made with you. Anyone who's asking you personal questions — what you do for a living, where you live, where you grew up — and takes the time to really listen to your responses is probably someone comfortable with the more tender and intimate aspects of sex. A test to determine their level of emotional connection A good way to test whether someone's level of emotional connection is high or low enough for you is to find out if they like to kiss. There are ways of doing this without actually touching lips. Try dropping a line along the lines of "I will always remember my first kiss because it really set up how special they can feel," or "kissing is one of the best parts about sex." See if they agree, disagree or are indifferent with that. Your ideal sexual partner would likely be in medium agreement with this. Focus On Orgasm Focus On Orgasm 1 50 100 The Focus On Orgasm dimension measures how important orgasms are for your sex partner. Some people focus exclusively on how to reach orgasm, while others enjoy sex and everything that leads up to orgasm just as much. Of course, you want to find someone who feels like you do about sex — that orgasms are critically important but not the only focus. How to spot it when you see it Needless to say, orgasm-focused people are goal-oriented. They may even be a little competitive. Keep an eye on someone who likes to one-up other people's stories with their own, or who is a little cutthroat when it comes to games. These are sure signs that they are focused on an end result and gets a little high when they reach it. You tend to want someone who's a little less intense when it comes to these things. Another thing about goal-oriented people is that they're highly visual. They're able to focus on how things look and tend to strive for beauty as the ultimate ideal. Pay attention to someone who is always commenting on your appearance or the appearance of everyone around them. Are they merely appreciating it or are they actually consumed by it? You want someone who can simply appreciate it. A test to determine their level of focus on orgasm Throughout our research, Tickle has found that people who agreed with the statement "When I close my eyes, I am able to think more clearly" tended to be the same ones who found orgasms extremely important. So, why not try this out on your potential partner? Simply find a subtle way to ask them, "Do you find that when you close your eyes you are able to think more clearly?" If they answer "yes!" clearly and firmly it's a safe bet that orgasms are extremely important to their sexual enjoyment. If they give you a so-so answer, assume that they love a good orgasm, but it's not the be-all, end-all of their sex lives. If they just can't imagine that closing their eyes would help them think better — chances are they're into sex for the enjoyment of it all, not just to reach orgasm. So, now you know what to look for, but the question remains: what is the likelihood of even finding someone like this? Since 7.7% of all women are a Type 2, it depends on whether that's a large enough pool for you to choose from. If you'd like to expand your options, read about the two other types who may not be your ideal partner, but who definitely share a lot in common with you sexually. Your next best fit is with a Type 1. Type 1 partners are sexually savvy, radiate sex appeal and have a wealth of bedroom smarts. They are comfortable talking about sex and have explored their sexual interests whether through experience, books, or seeking expert advice from others. Probably because they are okay with discussing sex and learning more about it, they trust their sexual instincts more than most, and they're not afraid to share this knowledge with their partners. The good news about your Type I match is that they enjoy giving pleasure as much as they enjoy receiving it. Chances are your Type I will not only know the most direct path to orgasm for themselves but will also likely be able to figure out, or learn from you, what they need to do to fulfill you. But orgasm isn't the only thing on their minds. They also pay attention to the details along the way, which can lead to a much more pleasurable sexual encounter. They enjoy the ambiance of sex and truly want to connect with you. Your Type I match is fully committed to sex as a shared experience. That is why you can look forward to a meaningful experience with this partner, one in which genuine affection and love fuel your passionate flames. Like you, this person wants to experience the heights of sexual pleasure and is ready and willing to explore all dimensions of sex. Approximately 6.1% of all women are this type. Your third best fit is with a Type 5. A Type 5 match wants to experiment with different approaches and foreplay to help you both reach a physical high. The sensations of sex are what this person most enjoys and focuses on — much more so than the emotional bond you can forge during your most intimate moments. This partner enjoys the adventure of sex and doesn't mind if it gets intense at times. This is someone who can take the act of sex to places you never thought it could go — and will do so frequently. Or at least they will think about it frequently. They have a sex drive as fierce as their curiosity about how to raise their level of pleasure. But this person also shares a more personal side to them. They tend to keep their eagerness to find pleasure in sex behind closed doors and they don't flaunt their sexuality in public as much as you might think. A Type 5 is simply dedicated to sex's more wild and pleasurable sides. They like to push the boundaries and have an amazing talent for knowing exactly what works for them and what doesn't. Like you, sex is simply fun and expressive for this person. It doesn't carry a lot of emotional weight. While a deeper connection could or could not happen for either of you, it's simply not a focus when you're in the mood. Approximately 7.1% of all women are this type.

Merritt, you are radiating positive energy from your: This is the chakra located at the top of your throat. The fifth chakra represents honesty and truth. In your case, this chakra appears to be clear and unblocked so that positive energy can flow from it freely. Radiating positive energy from your fifth chakra indicates that you've cultivated higher wisdom concerning the important life lessons associated with this energy center. You're apt to feel a more burning need than others do to speak the truth, treat people with respect, and act with integrity. Possessing strong fifth chakra energy also suggests that you're not one to fight your life's natural path. Instead, you seem to align your will with divine will. More than many others, you really are able to go with the flow. Perhaps this is because you sense that your life is connected to something greater. Such a belief can help you accept situations that don't go your way. It gives you the ability to remember that life has meaning in store for each of us, regardless of how things appear to be going at any given moment. Your willingness to let your life unfold and to stay anchored to what's true likely gives confidence and inspiration to those around you each day. Such positive energy is admirable. At the same time this positive energy is being conveyed, you are showing signs of an energy disruption in your First Chakra. This blockage could be due to current events in your life that make you question your sense of safety in the world. You may also be feeling alienated from those who used to make you feel most secure and cared for. Alternately, this blockage could also be caused by more long-standing beliefs or negative circumstances that have made you fear for your life or safety. Such problems could have come in the form of actual threats to you, or they may have simply been worries over anticipated difficulties. Either is potentially damaging to your first chakra's natural flow. Your chakras reading Your seven chakras The seven bodies Balancing your chakras History behind the test The picture below depicts where each of the seven chakras is located in the human body. Note that some people believe the body has more than seven chakras. However, generally speaking, most believe in the seven energy centers illustrated here. 7th chakra [ level 9.3 ] 6th chakra [ level 9.8 ] 5th chakra [ level 9.9 ] 4th chakra [ level 7.6 ] 3rd chakra [ level 9.8 ] 2nd chakra [ level 7.6 ] 1st chakra [ level 5.4 ] The First Chakra [ level 5.4 ] The first chakra or root or base chakra is located at the base of the spine. This is a source of great energy and is the first of the seven chakras in terms of where it is located on your body. Here it is depicted in the body: Your first chakra is associated with your connection to a tribal force and your sense of belonging in the world. It symbolizes the physical plane of existence — both the earth and your physical body. This being true, it's not surprising that the first chakra is known to be the source of self-preservation and survival. When this first chakra energy is disrupted, you may be more liable to feel alone in the world, be afraid for your safety, and feel disconnected from other people. You're also likely to feel ungrounded, lacking a strong connection to the earth or your body. Energetically, when the first chakra is disrupted you can feel you have no real "roots." Your first chakra is a level 5.4 out of 10. This means that right now you seem to feel a certain pressure related to the struggle to survive, yet you're not entirely driven by this concern. On the contrary, you're likely able to put issues surrounding your safety and security in perspective most of the time. However, it still appears that the energy in this first chakra is having a negative impact on you at times. This is an area you may want to work on. These are some common themes associated with problems in the first chakra: Believing that you're holding onto life by a string, like your life is about to fall apart Feeling that you are in a powerless position Working diligently to ensure you do not lose shelter, money, or safety Extreme blame or lack of identification with your family of origin Fear that you will be rejected and completely alone Eating for comfort and to ground the body Disruption in this chakra is also sometimes associated with separation from the mother at birth. In its ideal state, the first chakra brings health, prosperity, feelings of security, and a vivacious attitude toward life. However, when energy is blocked, it may result in any number of illnesses. Blocked energy in the first chakra is most often associated with problems in the: Colon Bladder Female or male reproductive system Urethra Possible psychological problems associated with disruption in this chakra include: Identity problems Dissociative disorders Dependent personality disorder The Second Chakra [ level 7.6 ] The second chakra is associated with the element of water. It is often called the sexual chakra, because sexual energy is believed to originate there. But the second chakra is much more than simply a sex chakra; it is the seat of creativity. This chakra is located at the sacrum, which is the densest bone in the spinal column. Here it is depicted visually: When the second chakra is closed or blocked, it can make the entire person appear lifeless. A blocked second chakra can cut you off from your emotions, and you may feel removed from an interest in sexuality. On the other hand, if your second chakra is excessively open, emotions can sometimes rule your being, creating an unbalanced system overall. Your second chakra is a level 7.6 out of 10. This means that at present, you are relatively free of the tug of greed and envy that others struggle with so often. Your chakra's energy is flowing freely, so when appropriate your sexual desire is accessible to you. However, having a higher level for this chakra often means that your sexual energy is channeled into creative energy in general. This can give you a strong proclivity toward both self-expression and creative work. Some common themes associated with problems in the second chakra are: Difficulty being a "good loser" Threatened by dependency on others Envy and greed dominate thinking Feelings of entitlement that don't necessarily correspond with actual deserved rewards Difficulty regulating emotions — either having no access to them or feeling overwhelmed by them Taking on exaggerated male or female roles Fear of poverty In its ideal state, the second chakra brings a sense of fluidity, a depth of satisfaction and feeling, sexual fulfillment, and the ability to go with the flow of life. Blocked energy in the second chakra is often associated with problems in the: Kidneys Lower back Pancreas Spleen Prostate gland It is also associated with: Allergies Diabetes Diarrhea Ulcers Hypoglycemia Anemia Leukemia Premenstrual syndrome Sexually transmitted diseases Menstrual problems Infertility Vaginal infections Ovarian cysts Impotency Slipped disks Bladder infections Possible psychological problems associated with disruptions in this chakra include: Depression Sexual difficulties Borderline, narcissistic, antisocial, or histrionic personality disorders The Third Chakra [ level 9.8 ] The third chakra is associated with the element of fire. Appropriately, it is located at the solar plexus in the sternum. Here it is depicted in the body: The third chakra is associated with personal power. People who are empowered have high positive energy emanating from their third chakras. Knowing that you can move things forward in your life to order to learn, grow, and live well is closely related to having a clear third chakra. Individual charisma is also generated in this energetic region. Conversely, people who don't trust their own perceptions or feel confident in their own decisions may experience disruptions in this chakra. When the third chakra is closed or blocked, it can lead to a lack of energy, fatigue, and a yearning to be quiet and shut down. During times when this chakra is blocked, confrontations with others can be very hard to initiate or even tolerate. Blockage can also lead to problems building and sustaining interpersonal relationships based on equality. Your third chakra is a level 9.8 out of 10. This means that at this point you are highly empowered to take life on and move forward with a strong confidence backing you up each step of the way. Here are some common themes associated with problems in the third chakra: Inability to stand up for yourself Low self-esteem Feeling unable to make necessary life changes or to get unstuck if in a life rut Feeling easily overwhelmed by real or perceived obstacles in life Being overly self-critical Being highly sensitive to others' criticisms or rejection Preferring to not make your own decisions Having trouble receiving compliments Difficulties building respectful relationships with others Being easily intimidated Feeling like a victim Being resentful about having to take responsibility for others In its ideal state, the third chakra generates a great deal of energy for meeting personal goals. It also encourages a balanced sense of self, deep self-acceptance, and self-respect. These positive feelings carry over to one's relationships with other people. Blocked energy in the third chakra has been associated with problems in the: Adrenal glands Liver Stomach It is also associated with: Digestive difficulties Ulcers Addictions, especially to stimulants Arthritis Eating disorders Cancer Coordination problems Multiple sclerosis Obesity Premature aging Gallstones Pancreatic disorders Diabetes Hepatitis Indigestion Possible psychological problems associated with disruptions in this chakra include: Obsessive-compulsive disorder Uncontrollable or overwhelming anger Bipolar disorder or more mild but still extreme highs and lows in mood Insomnia The Fourth Chakra [ level 7.6 ] The fourth chakra is associated with the element of air and is sometimes called the heart chakra. This is due both to its location near the heart and because of the emotions with which it is associated. Here it is depicted in the body: The fourth chakra is associated with a gradual increasing of consciousness, as it sits between the lower three and upper three chakras. However, primarily, it is the center of unconditional love. When a person becomes disconnected from their heart and the emotions associated with this region, the fourth chakra becomes closed off. This often results in both low energy and shallow breathing. At times when you're feeling a fourth chakra blockage, you might even feel that it's difficult to breathe. Emotionally, when this chakra is blocked, you're likely to feel wounded or victimized. Often this will be due to trying to work out past problems. People who have studied chakras liken this kind of chakra disruption to a hurt child inside of us, hashing out scenes over and over, trying to get closure on difficult events. If this kind of inner turmoil happens on an ongoing basis without relief, the overall effect can be a feeling of being stuck in the past. When the energy from the fourth chakra is disrupted, you may have trouble protecting yourself from emotional harm because you generally feel raw and emotionally vulnerable. When the fourth chakra is open and energy is flowing positively, far different feelings result. For example, you are likely to feel open, loving, and compassionate to those around you and to be very accepting of people for who they are. Your fourth chakra is a level 7.6 out of 10. This means that right now, you appear to be the epitome of embodied compassion. As a result, you likely feel an unconditional acceptance of most people with whom you come in contact. You're also much more able than most people are to make your heart open and available to others. This is sure to engender not only positivity in your fourth chakra but also positivity in your life. These are some common themes associated with problems in the fourth chakra: Feeling stuck and wounded by events from the past Being unable to forgive someone and holding on to the anger you have toward them Fear of breaking down emotionally Being too emotionally vulnerable Feeling unloved or unworthy of love Feeling shamed by being rejected Being resentful of others for the love they receive Extreme loneliness Fear of showing affection In its ideal state, the fourth chakra will radiate love and warmth. It will help also help you feel a strong, centered connection with yourself, so that you can reach out to others with compassion and a lack of judgment. This chakra also helps you to come to new levels of self-discovery. Disrupted energy in the fourth chakra has been tied to problems in the: Heart Thymus Upper back Lung Shoulders It is also associated with: Vascular difficulties High blood pressure Autoimmunity problems Heart attacks Enlarged heart Blocked arteries Asthma Emphysema Bronchitis Poor circulation Possible psychological problems associated with disruptions in this chakra include: Self-destructive behaviors Suicidal ideology or acts Trouble emotionally connecting with others Feeling alienated from others and in opposition to yourself The Fifth Chakra [ level 9.9 ] The fifth chakra is associated with acts of communication, including speaking the truth or finding creative ways for self-expression. It is located at the base of the throat and is often called the throat chakra. Here is an illustration: This chakra is associated with sound in general. The meaning of your own personal truth is central to this chakra. The more free-flowing the energy of this chakra, the more you are able to speak your truth without fearing the consequences — or at least without letting external forces stop you from doing it. When the throat chakra is too open, you may talk more than other people would like and may not listen closely enough. On a different level, this chakra is also associated with personal will. When the chakra is very open, your will can be excessively strong; when it is closed, your will can seem nonexistent. However, at times when the fifth chakra is in balance, your will is aligned with divine will. During such periods, you're likely to feel that things are going your way, rather than having to fight against the current in order to reach your goals. When your fifth chakra is disrupted, personal truths can become harder to express. You may even become afraid to speak your opinions or feel unsure about what you might say. Issues of the will can also come to the fore during these negative times. For example, you may feel that when things go wrong, others are entirely to blame and when things go right, it's solely your will that created the success. Such exaggerated and absolute thinking is often connected to disruptions in the fifth chakra. Your fifth chakra is a level 9.9 out of 10. This means that at present, you're not one who is afraid to speak the truth. In fact, you appear to be well aligned with your true self, and you aren't hesitant to let the world see who you are. Self-expression and skilled communication likely come very naturally to you right now. Some common themes associated with problems in the fifth chakra are: Fear of public speaking Fear of letting go Feelings of inner rigidity Fear of exposure Dishonesty to cover the feared truth Inability to say what you mean In its ideal state, the fifth chakra gives you the energy and centering you need to speak the truth. It also helps you to make unique contributions to the world by unleashing creative, self-expressive energy. Blocked energy in the fifth chakra is sometimes associated with problems in the: Ear Lymphatic system Mouth and teeth Neck and shoulders Throat Jaw It is also associated with: Hearing difficulties Parathyroid complications Thyroid problems Sore throat Jaw misalignment Stiff neck Tension headaches Swollen glands Possible psychological problems associated with disruptions in this chakra include: Stuttering Poor auditory memory Inability to use words for adequate self-expression Addiction to drugs Cigarette smoking Alcohol overuse The Sixth Chakra [ level 9.8 ] The sixth chakra is associated both with light and with psychic abilities. This chakra provides a source of inner knowing, as well as an objective reflection of how things are. By being focused on a commitment to the truth and flexibility of thought, people with clear sixth chakras usually have a sense of life's realities that surpasses usual conscious barriers. For this reason, the sixth chakra is connected with higher levels of wisdom and a level disposition. It is located between the eyebrows. Here it is depicted in the body: When this chakra is closed or blocked, you may have trouble seeing the big picture of events that are unfolding in your life. The truth of matters can be dwarfed in details, and you may become easily confused. At times like these, you can sometimes overlook the subtler forces in any situation because you're so busy giving attention to literal details. You may also find that you have a tendency to judge people and events pretty harshly. Your sixth chakra is a level 9.8 out of 10. This means that at this point in time, you generally see the grander scheme of life and have more perspective on difficult situations than most others do. Psychic powers are inherent in the chakra energy you are generating, making it valuable to pay attention to your intuition. You are the type of person others likely consider to be wise beyond your years. Here are some common themes associated with problems in the sixth chakra: Trouble putting things into perspective Lack of strategic thinking; inability to see the forest for the trees Inability to pick up on intuitive or psychic information Being highly focused on concrete, linear thinking Confusion and clouded thinking Fear of self-examination and the unknown Emotional denial Insecurity over others' skills Being slow to learn from life experiences It's also interesting to note that when someone's sixth chakra is too open, they can become so geared toward generalities and the big picture that they become unable to focus on a project's details to complete it. Also, a very open sixth chakra can lead to receiving too much psychic information so that one is overwhelmed by it. In its ideal state, the sixth chakra brings you insight and helps you see both the big picture of a situation and its important details. By providing perspective, this chakra helps balance and prioritize the issues of your daily life. It can also provide access to psychic information. On the other hand, blocked energy in the sixth chakra is associated with problems in the: Face Eyes Central nervous system Brain Head Sinuses Pineal Pituitary It is also associated with: Headaches Cancer, especially brain tumors Visual problems Blindness Deafness Neurological disorders Possible psychological problems associated with disruptions in this chakra include: Extreme confusion Inability to focus Either lack of intelligence or access to it Being hooked on fantasy Paranoia Poor visual memory Psychoses Schizophrenia The Seventh Chakra [ level 9.3 ] The seventh chakra is associated with thought. It signifies our relationship to all things and the unity of everything. This chakra also symbolizes self-knowledge and spiritual consciousness. It is located at the crown of the head, but it is connected with the entire muscular system, the skeletal system, the skin, and nervous system. Here it is depicted in the body: The seventh chakra is associated with a more profound spiritual connectedness than the other six chakras are. This chakra is the seat of higher wisdom and the energy that comes from it. The seventh chakra is thought to give access to the infinite intelligence that exists in the universe and is our key to opening the door to it. This chakra allows for self-expression on higher spiritual levels and is associated with the pineal gland, the gland that produces visions in dreams. When asking the question, "Who am I, really?" you are tapping into the energy of your seventh chakra. When this chakra is closed or blocked, you can feel cut off from spirituality. At such times, your relationship with the divine becomes limited, and fears of the spiritual side of life can be magnified. Disruptions in your seventh chakra can also amount to the inability to gain closure on unfinished business. Such problems have the potential to end up as a real thorn in your side. Most of all, lack of flow in your seventh chakra leads to an inability to live in the present. People with blocked seventh chakra energy seem to always be either revisiting their past or looking ahead to the future. Your seventh chakra is a level 9.3 out of 10. This means that by and large, you are able to live in the present. In fact, your connection to your spiritual self appears to be strong. Perhaps this is because you realize that your vision of life is only one reality and that a deeper truth lies in the spiritual world. As one with a high-level seventh chakra, you should realize that sometimes even positive energy related to this chakra can lead to spiritual crises; this is simply part of the path a more evolved person takes.

Merritt's Personality Report Relaxed Apprehensive Self-Doubt Confidence Safety-Seeking Risk-Taking Internal Experience External Appearance How You Approach Life Wherever you go Chosen One, you do the right thing. You have an uncanny sense of what is right and what is wrong in this world, and you side with the good-guys every time. People recognize this in you, which is why they might often come to you for advice. People don't see you as judgmental. How could they when you tend to look at an issue from so many sides? Not everybody has the tolerance, or interest, in fairness that you do. But then, not everybody is as motivated as you are to please others. When it comes to pleasing people, you are a pro. Your balance of insight, kindness and understanding of situations around you is much more developed than most. You are probably a good sympathizer and empathizer, and that adds to your wisdom. You are curious and interested in your immediate environment and you are concerned with how you fit into the world at large. Trouble and unrest on the other side of the planet might as well be in your backyard. You are unusually sensitive to understanding people's plight — even when they come from a completely different background. When it comes right down to it, you're a caregiver — whether you know it or not. Maybe you tend to people's immediate problems, or perhaps you work on a larger scale — pushing ideas, or supporting good causes. Either way, you look out for people. Though sometimes you might feel under-appreciated for your efforts, you rarely embark on a cause for the glory of it. Still, you do appreciate when people applaud your efforts, or admit that they admire your work ethic and dedication. Even if you don't hear it through your modesty, people tend to trust you, and respect your opinion when it most counts. On a subconscious level, this must have translated into your high-level of confidence about who you are and what you stand for. As thoughtful as you are, there's still a more spontaneous, adventure-seeking side of you. That combined with your ever-present curiosity leads to a particularly high energy level that people both envy, and want to have around them. You are warm, giving, knowing, and patient. You go after your goals, but not at the expense of others. Even when you have to step on a few toes to get things done, people have a hard time getting frustrated by you. That's probably because your intentions are usually honorable and you emit very natural, positive feelings. Not to mention, you are unusually reliable and responsible. There's a reason you're a Chosen One. So get out there and do the world some good. Your areas of greatest vulnerability You are driven to do a good job and take pride in your responsibilities. This brings you lots of satisfaction — not to mention the admiration of others. But do you ever find that you push yourself too hard? With so much confidence and such a strong sense of self, you may find yourself determined to finish a task so you don't let others down. The problem comes in when you feel responsible for situations that may be out of your control. This happens to everyone, but for you, this has a different kind of impact. Be your best: It may help to remember that it's okay to let others down once in a while, to let things go sometimes. You needn't worry that this will become a pattern for you, or that you'll lose your values or sense of pride. Your core competence and responsibility are very deep, solid qualities that you can trust. And knowing this can help you begin to give yourself a break occasionally. Section II — What makes you a Chosen One? Your personality is actually determined by two personality sub-types — your primary, or dominant sub-type, and your secondary sub-type. In your case, Chosen One, your two sub-types are Golden and Seeker. Your primary sub-type is defined by "Golden" characteristics and your secondary sub-type is defined by "Seeker" characteristics. Your primary type is Golden Like other people with Golden characteristics, you have relatively high self-esteem and are very conscientious. You tend to be someone others rely on since you're responsible, dependable, and dutiful. You are also probably pretty efficient — you hate to waste time. You like to go about life with a positive attitude — both about yourself and the world around you. You're known intellectually as a careful, deliberating thinker. In terms of entertainment, you gravitate toward media that is romantic, happy, and inspiring — avoiding the more dark, edgy or sad subjects. Lastly, you probably have interests in a wide variety of things including cooking, eating out, nutrition, travel, sports, recreation, fitness, health and traditional religion. You are the rare being who wants nothing more than to have a positive effect on the world. Not only are you are driven to make the world smooth and efficient so that everyone can live in harmony, but you actively look for ways you can make this dream a reality. Occasionally, this dream can manifest out a fear that if you don't take care of the problems of the world, nobody will. You may have a lack of faith that things will not be okay unless you intervene. Your secondary type is Seeker People with Seeker characteristics have a thirst for highly stimulating experiences. They gravitate towards unpredictable situations and they thrive in those environments. Seekers would rather improvise than live by a strict calendar that adds structure to their daily life. They seek out ever-evolving experiences because they tend to find consistent routines boring and unstimulating. Seekers also like to explore intellectually, which is why they tend to enjoy abstract thinking. With everything they do, Seekers enjoy the challenge of new situations. In terms of entertainment, they like media that is dark and edgy, flashy and loud, strange, and intellectual. They tend to be interested in activities that get them out in the world like the performing arts and new age spirituality. Section III — Your Four Personality Dimensions Your primary and secondary personality sub-types determine your personality type. There are, however, additional elements that contribute to your complete personality profile. Based on how you answered the questions on the Ultimate Personality Test, we have determined where you fall on four distinct personality scales: Relaxed/Apprehensive, Self-Doubt/Confidence, Safety-Seeking/ Risk-Taking, and Internal Experience/External Appearance. The scales are not dependent on one another. They are meant to show you whether you tend towards one or the other extreme, or are somewhere in the middle. Here's the breakdown of your scores on the four personality dimension scales. Relaxed Apprehensive Self-Doubt Confidence Safety-Seeking Risk-Taking Internal Experience External Appearance Relaxed versus Apprehensive Relaxed Apprehensive Your scores place you in the extremely relaxed region of the relaxed/apprehensive scale. This means that relative to others who have taken the test, you have a calm disposition. It also indicates that you are good at dealing with change and chaotic situations. Like other people who score high on the relaxed side of this scale, you are likely to be stimulated by chaos and may approach life with a "the more the better" kind of attitude. Your energy levels veer toward high because you tend to be relaxed about problems that are out of you control. You are someone who is relatively less inclined to react emotionally to things that happen — not because you don't feel the emotions, but because you don't let things get to you as easily as others. The flip side of this is people who score high on the apprehensive side of this scale. They are likely to be drawn to situations that are less stimulating to their senses. Because they are easily affected by change, they try to stay away from environments that can over-stimulate them. These people have strong reactions to what others would consider minor changes. That is why people who score high on the apprehensive side of the scale try to slow down the pace. When faced with chaotic situations, they will look for more calming places to be. Despite their talents, they are generally more self-critical and shy than others, even if it seems there's no reason for them to be. Since you're someone who thrives on excitement, you need to take time to analyze different aspects of your life if you're feeling unhappy. Are you feeling stunted, bored or depressed about something you can't quite put a finger on? The answer could lie in uncovering an element of your routine that isn't challenging or stimulating enough. Is your job predictable or easy? Do have a hard time finding good entertainment in your town? Are your relationships falling into a rut? Even if friends and family envy your life — your home, your mate, your job — remember it's ok if you're still not satisfied. It doesn't mean that you're not grateful, it simply means that you need a change to keep you from being bored. If you're not up for dramatic life changes, make sure you're vigilant about mixing things up a little: take a new class, plan a trip, learn a new skill, or start an art project. Self-Doubt versus Confidence Self-Doubt Confidence Your scores place you in the extremely confident region of the self-doubt/confidence scale. This means that relative to others who have taken the test, you are satisfied with who you are. It also indicates that you are dependable and generally have a positive outlook on yourself and your surroundings. Like other people who score high on the confidence side of the scale, you are probably self-assured and responsible. Because of these traits, you are often the one friends and colleagues have come to rely on — both on the job and in personal situations. Your self-esteem is high and, as a result, you're known as a natural leader. On the flip side are people who score high on the self-doubt side. They have a tendency to look to others to determine their self-worth. They seek calm environments and often focus their energies on jobs that have less responsibility and are therefore less stressful. They are sometimes prone to being overly-critical about themselves, but can work their way out of those thoughts because ultimately, others might point out their talents. If you're feeling some unrest in your life it could be because you don't have as many responsibilities as you'd like to. Other people may be telling you to unload your burdens, that you do too much. But, for you, the opposite might actually be true. You are willing and capable, so maybe it's time to take on a few new projects. Safety-Seeking versus Risk-Taking Safety-Seeking Risk-Taking Your scores place you in the moderately risk-taking region of the safety-seeking/risk-taking scale. This means that relative to others who have taken the test, you sometimes throw caution to the wind and leave things up to chance. Sometimes however, you prefer to play it safe and seek the security of predictable situations. Since you scored just slightly more on the risk-taking side of things, let's take a look at characteristics of people who scored more towards the extremes of the scale to gauge where you fall in between. People who score high on the risk-taking side combine a love of the new and unusual with a talent for inquisitive, abstract thinking. They seek out action and find structure and predictability to be strangling experiences. People who score high on the safety-seeking side of the safety-seeking/risk-taking scale prefer their environments to remain stable. They feel that predictability has positive connotations and that stability is a comfort and an indication of safety. Don't underestimate the power structure and routine can have on your emotional state. Take a look at areas in your life you feel restricted. Is there anything that can be done about them? Do you have to adhere to strict work hours, for example? If that is something you can't control, focus on the areas in which you do have control. Take a walk in the morning instead of the evening. Go out to dinner instead of making it. Even little things like that can have an impact you might not expect. External Appearance versus Internal Experience Internal Experience External Appearance Your scores place you well into the experience-focused region of the internal experience/external appearance scale. This means that relative to others who took the test, you're more concerned on what things are like on the inside and less concerned with how things appear on the outside. Like other people who score high on the internal experience side of the scale, you don't really believe that material possessions are a reflection of their success. In fact, you tend not to focus on how things appear to others at all. You feel that success comes from doing a good job, and knowing that you have positively influenced the world. On the flip side are people who score high on the external appearance end of the scale. They tend to be motivated by a wish to be socially desirable. They want to move up and be seen in the world. For them, true success is important, and material possessions are the sign they have achieved it. Therefore, these people sometimes believe that happiness is directly a result of success and that the possessions they own are a reflection of that success. You are someone who takes comfort in surrounding your things with nice things and there's nothing wrong with that. So the next time your parent's raise their eyebrows at your latest purchase, or your friends joke about your "habit" of acquiring the latest electronic gadgets, don't let it get to you. There's nothing wrong with buying yourself a new outfit, a new car, or whatever it is you've had your eye on. Don't underestimate the power owning "stuff" can have on your emotional life. Just make sure it's within your means. Otherwise other parts of your life might suffer. Section IV — The Chosen One and the World Around You How Others See You People see you as down to earth with a free spirit. You convey your genuineness to others with your ability to focus on what counts — you are not easily swayed by superficial things. You also don't act in fake ways to “get ahead” or to look better than others. People notice that about you and appreciate it. People intuitively trust you with their secrets. They can see that you are not judgmental, and that appeals to many. You are open and free, yet grounded in the things that really matter. Communication Style When communicating with others, you are both confident and calm — a powerfully appealing combination. Your even demeanor means it's rare for you to become upset or overwhelmed. In fact, you're likely to act as a neutralizing force when things get really intense. When you're approached aggressively, you're unlikely to react defensively. It is important for you to stay sensitive and realize that what might appear irrational in others may just be the manifestation of their own self-doubt. Use your strength to have compassion for others. Your Romantic Life You have high standards for love, believing in one love that outshines the others. To you, successful romance has two aspects: an emotional connection based on mutual care, and doing things together that you and your partner both love. You're happy with someone who enjoys the unexpected as much as you do. You'll both be excited at the prospect of situations with an unknown outcome. You and your well-suited mate enjoy high quality conversation and fulfilling experiences together. You are deep, sincere and willing to take emotional risks. You succeed in romance when you use your intuition and intelligence to choose someone whose compatibility with you goes deeper than the surface. You At Your Best You would love it if every day were full of play and freedom. When you can indulge your creativity, zest for fun and knack for expressing yourself, you're at most definitely at your best. For balance in your life, however, it's important for you to build in times of peace, quiet and recovery. Left to your own instincts, you can become overstimulated at times, and exhausted by exploring all of your interests. So give yourself the gift of some downtime. That'll set you up to be really present when you follow your passions for exploration and fun. Achieving Success You don't need possessions and status to prove your self-worth. So what does ambition mean to you? As long as you're pleased with what you are doing, there's no need to strive for more. With this combination of traits, you're beautifully suited to finding work that is personally fulfilling and of service to others. You're fortunate to not have self-esteem tied up with external success, so ask yourself what you want to accomplish with all that talent — and then enjoy the process. What Really Motivates You Motivation for you is simple: doing the right thing. You have a crystal clear sense of your values — and you settle for nothing less than acting with the utmost integrity. You love to help others, prevent problems and, in general, be the responsible party. You are intensely motivated by your wish to always be part of the solution and to vigorously avoid ever contributing to the problem. Conflict You value issues that go beneath the surface so you're not likely to get caught up in petty conflicts. When you do find yourself in conflict with people, it's likely to be people you're truly close to and with whom you're emotionally engaged. The topic of the conflict tends to be something fairly complex and definitely profound and challenging. Your insight and calm help you get through these situations with minimal drama. The only drawback there is that sometimes people mistake your cool demeanor for not caring about the issue. Your challenge is to communicate that getting upset isn't the only way to thoughtfully address a difficult issue. Getting Unstuck in Your Life For you, being stuck in your life is not likely to mean stuck in self-doubt or self-defeating patterns. You're more likely to get stuck on a whirring treadmill of activities, ideas and adventures. Although you're often admired for your energy and gusto for living, the downside is that you can exhaust yourself and miss out on some of life's subtler pleasures. Another possible pitfall is that those around you — your friends, your sweetheart, your friends and family — don't naturally run at the same non-stop pace. This means that sometimes you wind up dragging them along on your sprint through life. Your challenge is to slow down, take some time for reflection and recovery. Just remember that you can always step off that treadmill. And when you do, you'll see everything from a new perspective. Section V — What is Personality? You know that everyone has a different personality, but what exactly is a personality? The word "personality" actually comes from the word "persona" which referred to the various masks that actors wore to depict different roles in Greek plays. That's how we got the popular notion of personality as the combination of traits that make each person distinctive. While most people agree that a human being's personality is far too complex to categorize and label, some scientists and philosophers have devoted their lives to doing exactly that. They believe that although there are idiosyncrasies to each distinct personality, there are more general “personality types” that can be identified. One of the advantages of defining these types, is that once you know how someone tends to behave, you can start to predict future behavior. This has applications in both the real, and the theoretical world. Before we get into exactly what these models are useful for, let's look at the history of personality typing and how older theories have developed into today's more popular personality tests. Section VI — History of Personality Tests As early as the fifth century B.C., the Greek philosopher/physician Hippocrates recorded the first known personality model. He based his four “types” on the amount of body fluids an individual possessed. The Greek physician Galen expounded upon Hippocrates' theory. He believed a predominance of blood led to a confident person who was cheerful and strong. A predominance of mucus led to an indifferent, slow personality. A predominance of black bile led to a depressed personality, and a predominance of yellow bile led to a violent and strong personality. German philosopher Immanuel Kant later popularized these ideas in the 1700's, when he organized those constructs along two axes, feelings and activity. Depression represented weak feelings, confidence reflected strong feelings. Indifference represented weak activity, violence represented strong activity. The next big step came from Wilhelm Wundt who started to think about these categorical groups not as finite, but as continuous dimensions. He proposed that the four temperaments fall on high or low positions on two axes, changeability and emotionality. The idea that four basic temperaments existed, eventually became the basis of a number of late 19th-/20th-century behavioral theories. Some of the most significant work on this subject was done by the Swiss psychoanalyst, Carl G. Jung. In 1922, he introduced four categories of mental functioning: sensing, intuition, thinking and feeling in his work Psychological Types. At the time, Jung's ideas about personality types went largely unnoticed, due to the frenzy surrounding the modern psychoanalytic theories of Sigmund Freud, B.F. Skinner and others. In the 1950s, however, Isabel Myers and her daughter Katherine Briggs revived Jung's ideas. Myers and Briggs used Jung's personality types as a base, then devised a 16-type indicator designed to identify patterns of human action. This test became the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a tool for identifying different aspects of someone's personality. This “tool” exposed a whole, new international audience to Jung's psychological types. The tool further connected the science of personality typing, because the MBTI types were consistent with Hippocrates' four temperaments. More than three million Myers-Briggs Type Indicator tests are administered each year in the U.S. More than four million people have taken Tickle's Ultimate Personality Test. Behavioral scientists are not the only researchers interested in personality types. For a more mystical look at personality, we should turn to the Enneagram. This system has a more mysterious background. Based on an ancient nine-pointed diagram used as far back as 2000 B.C. by Pythagoras, the Enneagram leaves a blurry trail through many of history's mystical philosophies. Plato and his followers, the Kabbala branch of Judaism, the Islamic Sufi tradition, and even esoteric branches of Christianity have all found spiritual significance in the nine-pointed symbol. It wasn't until the 20th century that the Enneagram meshed with new-age psychology. The nine-pointed symbol became the template for a personality typing system that overlayed nine personality types on top of the Enneagram structure. Modern Personality Tests In addition to the MBTI (the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) which is still one of the most widely used personality tests, other popular theories and tests exist. The Keirsey Temperament Sorter is a test built around David Keirsey's groundbreaking 1978 book Please Understand Me. The Keirsey Temperament Sorter is similar to the MBTI in its use of four dimensions and 16 categories, but the Keirsey method claims to have a more complex system of characterization. In the 1970's researchers agreed that there was another way to measure personality traits. Tests like the IPIP-NEO are based on a five-factor personality methodology. Some scientists feel this is the most revealing way to describe personality because it can measure five fundamental dimensions of personality. Personality Tests and Daily Life An important thing to remember about personality tests is that no one personality type is better or worse than another. In addition, the results of most personality tests, including Tickle's Ultimate Personality Test, derive their final personality types from more than one influence — usually a primary type shaded by at least one secondary type. Although it is an imperfect science, personality models shed light on the complexities of human behavior. Undeniable patterns in human actions have existed since the dawn of man. Taken as guidelines and not absolute truth, personality tests can help us understand and better relate to ourselves and the world — to understand why we are the way we are. We can also use them to understand each other, not only to improve friendships, but to facilitate work relationships and career choices. Many businesses use personality tests or abbreviated versions of personality tests to evaluate a prospective employee's strengths and weaknesses. Marriage counselors recommend certain personality tests to determine compatibility. But the most common use of personality typing is for fun and self-discovery. As you understand the spectrum of personality types and where you and your friends sit along that continuum, you can't help but gain a new appreciation for the simple differences, and amazing similarities, among us complicated beings. Section VII — The Science Behind Tickle's Personality Test Tickle and a team of four PhDs spent the past two years developing the Ultimate Personality Test. While fine-tuning it, we wanted to make sure of two things: 1. That is was a fun and insightful test that yielded interesting wisdom about your personality and 2. That it was grounded in real science. Your Ultimate Personality Test went through it's own tests while being developed. The test you took is 50 questions long — but those questions fell out of months of research that tested thousands of qualities associated with personality. These were the best of the best when it came to identifying and isolating personality types. Our scientific research team pored over the vast literature on personality. We administered a two-hour test giving hundreds of questions to thousands of people. We performed factor and cluster analyses on the results, then went back to survey those same test-takers to validate our study. Now, more than 4 million people have taken the test. As we've collected that enormous volume of data, we have been able to refine the test and make it even more accurate — delving deeper into the personalities and characteristics of the individuals who take our Ultimate Personality Test. Now, we're offering the results of our research to the public. The Ultimate Personality Test is scientifically accurate. The results of the test will tell you what your personality type is, and how your personality type reacts to situations that involve romance, career, family, and health. In short, this test will change your life.

Merritt, your personalized test results indicate that over the past year, you've earned 906 karma points out of 1000 potential karma points. Of all the ways you've been building your karmic future during this time, your good will is your strongest asset. When faced with a moral dilemma, you're more apt than others to make the ethical decision. Such choices have positively influenced your karma up to this point. Playing by the rules may simply come naturally to you, or maybe you've worked to develop this trait over time. Regardless of how you achieved such good will, you appear to be one of those trustworthy individuals who holds fairness in high regard. So whether a friend asks you to keep a secret or a relative entrusts you with keys to the family vacation house, they can be sure you're not going to take unfair advantage — even when it would benefit you or be more convenient. Your willingness to choose what's right over what's easy not only strengthens your current relationships but will also come back to you positively in the future. Through your concerted efforts to serve justice, you generate good karma for yourself and the universe. Exercising good will is a sign that your values are in the right place. The more integrity you display in your dealings with others and the more respect that you give them, the more you'll see these traits directed toward you in return. Sometimes it may feel like your moral actions are going unnoticed by others, but take heart in knowing that the universe is aware of everything you do. When you choose to take the easy way out of a situation, you mar your self-image and negatively impact your karma. But each time you choose to do or say what you know in your heart to be right, you're sowing seeds of goodness that will reap a bounteous crop in your future. Sometimes it helps to look at a real life example to understand karma in action. Take Maggie, for instance: Like you, Maggie's karma is most beneficially impacted by her good will. As a rule, she always tries to do what's right, even if it doesn't always make her look good. For her living, Maggie works at an ad agency where she is responsible for supervising an entire department. Deadlines at the agency are tight and the hours are often long. It's the kind of stressful environment where people have little patience for slip-ups. Recently, Maggie's entire team had been working on a large presentation for an important new client. However, on the Friday morning before the meeting, Maggie arrived at her office to find that the project's computer files had been corrupted and therefore could not be opened. It was Maggie's responsibility to back up the team's files each night, but she'd neglected to do it for several days. This meant that a large part of their work would have to be reconstructed. The error would cost the entire team their weekend and the company a considerable amount of money in overtime pay. Maggie knew that she could lie and say that the back-up files were also corrupted, but she knew that in doing so she would be putting all of the blame on Seth who was responsible for their system maintenance and for the initial data corruption that occurred. Rather than letting Seth take the fall alone, Maggie confessed to her own part in the problem. When explaining the situation to her staff, she reminded them of how much she valued all of their efforts and promised them comp time in return for their weekend work. Maggie also apologized to the team for her neglect and asked that they rally around her and Seth to reconstruct the presentation together. Her honesty and willingness to do what was right bred an atmosphere of camaraderie and trust in her department. Over time, this led to higher productivity and better morale for Maggie's team. It also led to a promotion for Maggie based on her above-board leadership style. Karma revealed What exactly is karma, anyway? When you run into a friend who you've been thinking about calling, is that karma? What about when you find out that your co-worker was born in the same hospital you were on the same day? Or when you meet a new sweetheart at a place that neither one of you normally go — is that karma? Actually, none of these scenarios would be directly related to karma, although many people would mistakenly think so. Karma is different from coincidence or destiny or luck. Karma is the universe's infallible justice system. According to karma, what goes around comes around and you get what you give. Karma states that nothing is by chance or luck. Instead, karma is based on anything you intentionally think, say, or do. According to the laws of karma, your past actions have determined your present life, and your present actions are shaping your future. The generation of karma is an ongoing process. This means that your actions today, or on any given day, will directly affect your lifetimes of tomorrows. Karma is known as "natural law," which means that your actions will bring equivalent rewards or punishments regardless of whether another person ever knows about them. In this way, your future is always in your own hands. You have the opportunity to reform or enhance any area of your karma in any given moment. It's believed that by building your individual karma, you guarantee that good things will come to you in the future. Achieving good health, financial well-being, abundant love, and overall satisfaction are felt to be linked to your thoughts, words, and actions. However, according to the Buddhist principles of karma, the effects of your personal karma spread far beyond yourself. Buddhists believe that your karma also impacts the collective karma of a group — be it your family, your community, or the world population. Therefore, the ultimate goal is to use our karma to eliminate suffering for as many people as possible, in addition to ourselves. Karma can serve as a clear and practical moral gauge that you can use in your everyday life. For example, when you're having negative thoughts about someone else, consider how these thoughts negatively impact your individual karma, as well as the collective karma of the world. Instead of simply indulging in your negativity, you may decide that everyone would be better served if you transformed these ideas into more positive and constructive thoughts. Karma is like an extension of the Judeo-Christian golden rule: "Do unto others as you'd like to have done unto you." Imagine a future for yourself that entails a bounty of kind thoughts, compassionate words, and caring actions streaming toward you and from you. According to karma, this is an entirely possible outcome, completely in your own power. Your karma reading Your karmic profile Tips for improving your karma The history behind the Karma Test Further reading You've earned 906 Karma Points Your karma reading Your karmic profile Tips for improving your karma The history behind the Karma Test Further reading -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Good will This past year, you've earned 160 karma points for Good Will. Exercising good will is a sign of possessing strong values. According to karma, the more respect you show others and the more integrity you display, the more you will experience the benefits of these traits in your own life. Your high score in Good will is a sign that over the past year, you've used sound moral judgment in your decision-making. It isn't always easy to do what's right. However, your choice to do so has enhanced your karma and hopefully left you with a good feeling about yourself. Acting honorably in your personal life encourages others to do so as well. This slowly builds the momentum needed to positively impact society as a whole. True good will Is there something you've done to someone else that you still feel bad about? It's never too late to apologize. Give them a call or write a letter. As you think about what you're going to say, focus your intention on good will. Be honest about your feelings, without placing blame or continuing the bad feelings. Owning up to your actions and apologizing can be a freeing act of good will. Having genuine good will necessitates that you have the right intentions. Here are some ways you can use karma the next time you're faced with a difficult moral dilemma: Ask yourself what's right, as opposed to what's easiest. Take a moment to sense inside yourself which decision seems more just. Finally, align your intentions with your actions. This means that you should do something because it feels right, not because you're afraid of getting caught or feeling guilty. Intentional good will fosters high self-esteem, strong relationships, and excellent karma. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Forgiveness You've earned 157 karma points for Forgiveness. Forgiveness is the thing that allows you to maintain your belief in others and have hope, even when faced when people's mistakes or misdeeds. According to karma, finding the generosity within yourself to forgive means that you, in turn, will someday be shown mercy or granted good things. Your high score on Forgiveness karma indicates that your heart and mind have been open and flexible over the past year. In your personal life, forgiveness has likely resulted in strong, loving connections, trust, and positive communication. On a larger scale, forgiveness among people and nations can be a path to peaceful human coexistence. Because karma is an ongoing process, continuing to employ this same level of forgiveness will keep you on the right track in this area of your karmic existence. True forgiveness While forgiveness is sometimes mistaken for passivity, you don't have to be a doormat to be forgiving. Instead, you can be a welcoming mat. By communicating fair but firm boundaries, you can better protect yourself from continued mistreatment. In addition, by stating your needs and conditions, you provide yourself with a safe space to forgive and offer others the chance to make amends and reconnect with you. It's easy to get worked up if you feel like someone is getting in your way or making life difficult for you. Being forgiving is sometimes a challenge. However, sometimes a little forgiveness can go a long way. If you're faced with any of the situations below, why not try out these forgiving gestures: The next time someone makes a driving mistake or cuts you off in traffic, try giving them the "No problem" wave instead of an angry look. When a loved one unintentionally says something that offends you, simply let it pass without comment. If you have a long-standing grudge, try writing a letter to the person and offering your forgiveness. Even if you're not ready to send the letter, focusing your intentions on being forgiving is a step in the right direction. Offering people tiny measures of forgiveness every day will rack up your karma, while alleviating tension and making others feel good. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Caring You've earned 148 karma points for Caring. Nurturing others through caring acts builds both strong relationships and good karma. It also reminds the people you care for how important they are in your life. This encourages loved ones — and even strangers — to care for you in turn. Your high score in Caring indicates that over the past year you've worked quite diligently to nurture those around you. Meeting others' needs not only strengthens their ability to thrive, but it also helps you to thrive through others' support. The laws of karma state that kind acts will be reciprocated. Sometimes it's the little things that matter most. You appear to be doing a great job at those important small things that make those around you feel loved. Keep it up and good care will come back around to you. True caring Sometimes caring can feel like an obligation; it becomes something you think you should do, or something you feel is expected from you. Seen in this light, nurturing others can become a burden that builds resentment over time. To avoid this outcome, check in with yourself regularly to make sure that your intentions are pure. Being nurturing should feel rewarding, not like a task. When you're caring for others, ask yourself if you're acting simply to get something in return or to alleviate your responsibility to them. If so, take time to step back and find your compassion. Decide only to do and say those things that come from a place of tenderness and love. It doesn't take much to show someone how much you care. Here are some easy ways you can be extra caring: Call or send cards to people you love on a regular basis. Contact people on special occasions. Tell them about the traits that you think make them truly special. When loved ones are sick or stressed, cook them nourishing meals. Remember, grand gestures are always welcomed, but it's the little things in life that can really keep your relationships going strong and rack up those karma points. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nobility You've earned 150 karma points for Nobility. It's believed that noble actions directly impact your karma: When you do a good deed for someone else, good things will come to you in return. Noble actions can be powerful in several ways. They help alleviate the suffering of others, make you feel better about yourself, and enhance your karma, all in one fell swoop. Your high score on Nobility indicates that you've done your fair share of good deeds over the past year. Everyone needs help now and then. By doing noble acts, you help to assure that on a grand level everyone gets the support that they need. Your generous actions are helping to make the world a better place. Keep up your good works. More and more good will come to you as a result. True nobility Karma is not just about what you think, say, and do. It's also about the intentions behind your thoughts, words, and actions. Doing a good deed solely to impress others or reap the personal benefits isn't going to boost your karma. Genuinely noble actions are more about helping others than about one's own profit. Noble actions can be large or small in scale. Here are a few that you can undertake in your own life: Dedicate your time or money to a just cause. Drop some change into the meter if you see a car that's about to get a ticket. If someone's car breaks down, offer to call a tow truck or help them push their car to the side of the road. Helping someone else in a small way each day doesn't take much time, and it makes all the difference in the world. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Compassion You've earned 152 karma points for Compassion. The ability to truly feel for another person because you understand their perspectives and experiences is a generous gift. By offering the people in your life your genuine compassion, you prevent them from being alone during times of sorrow. The laws of karma dictate that through such acts you'll receive the emotional support you need in tough times as well. Your high score in Compassion indicates that you've regularly offered your sincere warmth and concern to others over the past year. Being able to share someone else's emotional burden can help in vital ways. In times of trouble, people often need a compassionate shoulder to cry on more than anything else. Being able to truly put yourself in others' shoes encourages you to treat them with the respect and care they deserve. If you stay on your current path, your compassionate nature will continue to bring you good karma in the years to come. True compassion It's one thing to act in a compassionate manner by offering words of condolence or sympathy when the occasion clearly warrants it. It's quite another to be truly compassionate. For that, you need to feel the emotions behind your actions. For instance, social rules dictate that we say, "I'm so sorry," when someone loses a loved one. The next time you're faced with this situation, take a few minutes to really think about how the grieving person must feel. By experiencing those emotions yourself — even by imagining them — you can connect with a deeper, more genuine concern for the well-being of others. Sometimes a little compassion is the best gift you can give. So when the opportunity arises, try one of these compassionate acts: When people are sharing their heartfelt feelings, truly listen so you can get in touch emotionally with what they're going through. When someone tells you a painful story, ask yourself how you'd feel in that person's place. It will help you better empathize with them. Express your genuine regret for the pain and loss of others. From time to time, situations arise where there's nothing you can do to fix a problem. In these cases, it's compassion that eases people's burden and brings you good karma in your relationships. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Selflessness You've earned 139 karma points for Selflessness. Making sacrifices for others when it's warranted is one of the benefits of being human. When you act out of love and kindness to assist others, it's believed that the karma you accumulate will bring you the help you need just when you need it most. Your high score in Selflessness attests that you've often been able to put the needs of others before your own over the past year. Acting unselfishly is a sign to the people in your life that you care deeply for their well-being. In addition, tending to those in greater need helps to strengthen our communities and builds deep wells of karma. Over time, your selfless acts will also ensure a steady stream of good karma all your own. True selflessness Being selfless doesn't mean entirely neglecting your own well-being. On the contrary, giving up your own fundamental needs on a regular basis isn't healthy. Such behavior compromises your feelings of self-worth and your ability to maintain positive relationships. True selflessness is about putting others before yourself because you can handle the sacrifice. After you've taken care of your own basic needs, sacrificing some of your time and energy for others is an act of generosity that will be justly rewarded through karma.

Your IQ score is 152. This means that you are smarter than 99.9% of all other Super IQ test takers. This number is the result of a scientifically-tested formula based on how many questions you answered correctly on the Tickle Super IQ Test. But there's more to intelligence than a single number, a single score, or a single label. Tickle uses 8 distinguishable dimensions of intelligence in the Super IQ Test. By analyzing your individual scores on those 8 scales, we are able to look beyond the raw IQ score into how you process information, and which intellectual strengths you're best at. Your test results indicate that the way you process information makes you a Complex Intellectual. You are highly intelligent and talented in two critical areas: math and language. While others may be skilled at one, you are exceptional at both. Your ability to understand theoretical or abstract information and your attention to detail only make your mathematical and linguistic skills stronger. You are a highly conceptual, complex thinker. Because of your numerous intellectual abilities, you probably rarely come across something you're not good at. You are a quick study and so have a tendency to look for and find the deeper meaning in things. You might intellectualize a situation or muse about its layers of complexity, making grand-scale associations. While others are relieved to have tangible, concrete information to work with, you may find yourself easily bored and so you seek more intellectual content. Here's an example of your Complex Intellectual thinking skills at work in a real-life situation: You go to a play with a bunch of friends. You recognize that some of the lines from the play are highly similar to a play you read a long time ago in school. Not only that, but you also notice that the play is structured in such a way that those types of lines occur in every other scene in the play. You are excited by your revelations and start explaining this to your friends. You want to go out for coffee and talk about what it all might mean, and whether the author intended it to be this way. Others might be more inclined to talk about the costumes or other more obvious elements of the play, and you shouldn't take this too personally. Your insights are definitely valuable, so don't stop sharing them — just be aware that you might occasionally receive some blank stares. Thank goodness you think the way you do! Your thinking style Your Super IQ dimensions Tips for improving your IQ Answer key The history behind the Super IQ Test Further reading Now that you know about how you process information, let's drill down to see what your specific intellectual strengths are. None of the intellectual abilities is more important than any of the others. And it's your unique scores on each of these scales, that makes you an interesting addition to any group, office, or family. These intellectual strengths color your world and the way you perceive it, and also allow you to contribute your original perspective when solving problems and coming up with ideas. No one intellectual dimension can define you. It's the original combination of your intellectual strengths that makes you special. Reasoning Organizational Logical Numerical Verbal Visual Mechanical Spatial low high As you can see, your top scores are in the areas of Reasoning, Organizational, and Logical. This is a very unusual combination — only 6 in 1,000 people have it. Want more proof? Then pay attention to the percentages of people who scored higher and lower than you on each of the 8 intellectual strengths. Abstract Reasoning Ability Reasoning low high Your score is 99 out of 100. With abstract reasoning you can think on multiple levels and see relationships between ideas that are not easily apparent. When you're using your abstract reasoning skills, you draw on both external logical and creative sources of information to come up with your solution. Here's a question that required high abstract reasoning ability to solve: What comes next in the sequence? A B C Here's the answer: The progression from one figure to the next is the addition of 1/2 of the previously added box. So the first figure is one box; the second figure is the first box plus a box 1/2 of its size; the third figure is the previous two boxes plus a box 1/2 of the last added box's size. Therefore the final figure (the question mark) should be the third figure plus a box 1/2 of the last added box. The correct answer is B. In every-day life, abstract reasoning ability is used to understand complex, multi-layered situations, sometimes involving the associations and relationships between two seemingly different sets of information. For example, imagine someone who has taken piano lessons and was taught that the skill was more easily obtained when she pointed out her struggles to her teacher. She was able to learn from them and improve. This same woman then takes writing lessons and again makes her mistakes obvious so that the instructor can suggest changes and she can improve. Compared with others, your abstract ability is very high. This means that you have a very strong abstract ability. Organizational Ability Organizational low high Your organizational ability score is 99 out of 100. Organizational ability is what allows you to organize and arrange information effectively, be precise, and proofread carefully. Here's a question that required high organizational ability: Which of the following character strings is the closest match to 8,392,211,109? Here's the answer: The correct answer is B. Try reading each of the answer options not as numbers, but rather as a string of characters; when you do so, you will find that B has the fewest mismatches, position for position, in the string of characters. See below (mismatches highlighted in red): Original string: 8,392,211,109 Answer A: 8,382,311,119 3 mismatches Answer B: 8,3925211,129 2 mismatches Answer C: 8,39,2211,208 4 mismatches Answer D: 8,329,211,108 3 mismatches In every-day life, organizational ability is what you use to proofread a paper or organize a messy desk. Coming up with an organizational system for keeping track of things comes easy to those who are high in this ability. It is a highly practical skill. Compared with others, your organizational ability is very high. This means that you have a very strong organizational ability. Logical Ability Logical low high Your scored 99 out of 100. Logical ability is what you use when determining whether or not something makes sense. You rely on logic when analyzing an argument, step-by-step. This ability also contributes to your aptitude for recognizing underlying patterns. Here's a question that required high logical ability to solve: Mary loved pink flowers more than she loved red ones. She didn't like orange flowers at all, and while she liked yellow flowers, she couldn't say that she really loved them. Which of these is true? A. She liked red flowers less than orange flowers B. She liked yellow flowers more than red flowers C. She liked pink flowers more than yellow flowers D. She liked orange flowers more than pink flowers Here's the answer: She liked yellow flowers but didn't love them; however, she did love pink and red ones - pink more than red. Thus far the order of preference is pink, red, yellow. But she liked orange least of all, which means the new order is pink, red, yellow, orange. This means that she liked red more than orange (which makes option A not true). She liked yellow less than red (which makes option B not true). She liked pink more than yellow, which makes option C true, and she liked orange less than any of the flowers, which makes option D not true. Therefore, the correct answer is C. In every-day life, you might use this ability to figure out the best route to the store, or to figure out the best deal when choosing between a couple items to buy. Everyone has a certain ability to use logic to solve problems. Some are better at it than others, however. Compared with others, your logical ability is very high. This means that you are an extremely logical person. Numerical Ability Numerical low high You scored 99 out of 100. You use numerical ability when you spot a numerical pattern or solve a numerical equation. Here's a question that assessed your numerical ability: Which number completes the series? 1, 3/2, 2, 5/2, ? Here's the answer: 3 In every-day life, you use the ability to calculate a tip at a restaurant, or estimate taxes on a purchase. Everyone has this ability to a greater or lesser extent. Compared with others, your numerical ability is very high. This means that you have no problem processing numbers. Verbal Ability Verbal low high Your verbal ability score is 99 out of 100. Verbal ability means having an expansive range of vocabulary, being able to use it, and feeling a desire to add to it. It is also what allows you to comprehend the relationships and subtle difference between words. Here's a question that required verbal ability: The opposite of acute is: A. Severe B. Incisive C. Dull D. Flamboyant The opposite of the word acute, meaning sharp or finely tuned, is dull, so the correct answer is C. In every-day life, verbal ability is essential to being able to interpret written materials. It's also valuable for communication — the more vocabulary words you know, the more precisely you may be able to convey your point. Compared with others, your verbal ability is very high. This means that you have a very strong verbal ability. Visual Ability Visual low high Your score is 99 out of 100. Visual ability allows you to accurately visualize all aspects of an object for the purposes of recreating it, the way painters do. It's also what you use to imagine a scene from a novel or a story someone tells you — the ability to accurately reproduce reality in the mind's eye. Here's a question that required high visual ability to solve: Which of the images below is a perfect square? Here's the answer: Eyeballing it, you can see that image A is the square with identical length and height, and so the correct answer is A. In every-day life, visual ability is what you use when creating original art. In order to reproduce an object on canvas (as painters do) you have to be able to accurately represent the dimensions of those objects in the picture. Getting the accurate perspective and depth is easiest for someone with a strong visual ability. Compared with others, your visual ability is very high. This means that you have a very strong visual ability. Mechanical Ability Mechanical low high You scored 98 out of 100. Mechanical ability is what helps you understand how machines and tools work. Someone with a good amount of mechanical ability probably has an innate understanding of physics. High mechanical skill is also associated with a high degree of precision and practical thinking. Here's a question that required high mechanical ability to solve: Which object will fall faster? A 8 x 11 piece of paper or a peanut? Both weight the same amount. A. The piece of paper B. The peanut C. It is impossible to know The paper will encounter more resistance than will the peanut, and so it will fall more slowly. The peanut will fall faster and so the correct answer is B. In every-day life, mechanical ability comes in handy when anything in the house breaks, or when you have to purchase something that requires physical assembly. It is also helpful in finding solutions to physical problems, such as determining how to build a pulley to bring water out of a well. Compared with others, your mechanical abilities are very high. This means that you have a very strong mechanical ability. Spatial Ability Spatial low high You scored 96 out of 100. You use spatial ability to judge the relationship between objects and physical space, like a parked car and the width of the road. It is also what helps you visualize a room when you are decorating or rearranging furniture. Here's a question that required high spatial ability to solve: Which is the odd one out? A B C D Here's the answer: The thunderbolts in A, B, and C are all going in the same way, but the one in D is actually a flipped version of the rest. In every-day life, you use this ability when you drive or even when you are walking through a packed crowd (so that you don't run into other people!). Some people actually use this ability to help them with non-physical things. If they are trying to understand a situation, they might think of the words as shapes that they need to negotiate. Compared with others, your spatial abilities are very high. This means that you have a very strong sense of how things exist in physical space. Your thinking style Your Super IQ dimensions Tips for improving your IQ Answer key The history behind the Super IQ Test Further reading Want a higher score next time? Here are some activities you can do before taking your next IQ test. Get more oxygen to your brain. You'll be able to think more clearly. To do this, go for a walk, or simply take deep, long breaths. Practicing yoga is also good. Some even claim you can get more oxygen by swimming underwater, and holding your breath for longer and longer periods of time. This increases the amount of oxygen in your brain and will allow you to focus better on the test. Take time to relax. If you feel anxious, you'll probably make more mistakes. Practice peaceful visualization, imagining scenes that are calming to you. Meditate or do whatever it is you know calms you down, before taking the test. Listen to Mozart. It may sound like a stretch, but some researchers have found that listening to Mozart actually increases your spatial IQ. They call it the Mozart Effect and believe that the music stabilizes the neural connections necessary for spatial-temporal abilities Practice, practice, practice. Take a range of different types of IQ tests. The greater the range of problems, the more ready you'll be to tackle the unexpected on a new IQ test. Why not take Tickle's Ultimate IQ test, if you haven't already. Your thinking style Your Super IQ dimensions Tips for improving your IQ Answer key The history behind the Super IQ Test Further reading = Your Answer = Correct Answer 1. Which rectangle is on top of all the rest? A B C D E F The rectangle that has no lines going through it is the one on top of the rest. The correct answer is B. 2. If Kentwood is closer to Marshall than Bershire, and Marshall is closer to Kentwood than Bershire, then Bershire is closer to: A. Kentwood B. Marshall C. It is impossible to know Kentwood and Marshall are closer to one another than they are to Bershire. But since there is no information about how far Bershire is away from Kentwood or Marshall, it's impossible to know to which it is closer. Therefore the correct answer is C. 3. Which number completes this series? 99, 97, 95, __, 91, 89, 87 A. 95 B. 94 C. 93 D. 92 Each of these numbers is equal to the previous number in the series, minus 2. Therefore, the correct answer is 93, or C. 4. Which rectangle is bigger, the yellow one or the pink one? A. The pink rectangle B. The yellow rectangle C. They are the same size The yellow rectangle is larger than the pink rectangle, so the correct answer is B. 5. Shirts on sale for 1/2 off have a red tag. Shirts on sale for 1/4 off have a blue tag. Stephen bought two red-tagged shirts originally priced at $10 each, and one blue-tagged shirt originally priced at $16. How much did he spend before taxes? A. $22 B. $26 C. $29 D. $36 Stephen bought two red-tagged shirts that were $10 a piece, but they were selling for 1/2 off, or $5. Therefore, Stephen spent $10 total for two red-tagged shirts. He bought only one blue tagged shirt, originally priced at $16. If it was 1/4 off, that is the same as saying it was 3/4 of the total price = 3/4x16 = $12.00. All in all then he spent $10 on red-tagged shirts and $12 on blue-tagged shirts, for a total of $22.00, or answer A. 6. Which object will fall faster when dropped from the top of a building in normal weather conditions? An 8 x 11 piece of paper or a peanut? Both weigh the same amount. A. The piece of paper B. The peanut C. It's impossible to know The paper will encounter more resistance than will the peanut, and so it will fall more slowly. The correct answer is B. 7. What is another word for irksome? A. Confused B. Tiresome C. Motivating D. Kind Another word for irksome, meaning irritating to the point of tedium or boredom, is tiresome, so the correct answer is B. 8. What comes next in the sequence? A. B. C. The progression from one figure to the next is the addition of 1/2 of the previously added box. So the first figure is one box; the second figure is the first box plus a box 1/2 of its size; the third figure is the previous two boxes plus a box 1/2 of the last added box's size. Therefore, the final figure (the question mark) should be the third figure plus a box 1/2 of the last added box. The correct answer is B. 9. Marts are twice as long as Mops. Mops are three times as long as Worbs. That means that: A. Worbs are six times as long as Marts B. Marts are six times as long as Worbs C. Marts are eight times as long as Worbs D. Worbs are eight times as long as Marts Mops are three times as long as Worbs, or Mops = 3xWorbs. Marts are twice as long as Mops, or Marts = 2xMops. Therefore, if you plug in 3xWorbs for Mops, you get: Marts = 2x(3xWorbs) = 6xWorbs. This is equivalent to saying that Marts are six times as long as Worbs, or B. 10. The deli sells beef on Tuesdays for 50% off and ham on Wednesdays for 40% off. If ham is $2.50 per pound and beef is $2.00 per pound, then which is cheaper: a pound of ham on Wednesdays or a pound of beef on Tuesdays? A. The ham B. The beef C. They are the same price A pound of ham on Wednesday is equal to the regular price of ham ($2.50 per pound) minus the discount($2.50 x 0.40). This is the same as saying that the price = $2.50 - (0.4 x 2.50) = $2.50 - $1.00 = $1.50. For beef, the normal selling price is $2.00. If it is 50% off the price on Tuesdays, then this is the equation = $2.00 - (0.5 x 2.00) = $2.00 - $1.00 = $1.00. Therefore, the beef is cheaper, or B. 11. The line is longer in which image? A B They are the same length When the circles are placed at the ends of the line, as in figure B, it can have the visual effect of making the line look longer than it actually is. The opposite is true when the circles are placed within the line, as in figure A. But the two lines are the exact same length, so the correct answer is C. 12. Alphabetize the following words: Kensington, Kempthorn, Kirkwood, Kentfield. A. Kirkwood Kensington Kempthorn Kentfield B. Kensington Kempthorn Kirkwood Kentfield C. Kempthorn Kensington Kentfield Kirkwood The first letter (K) is the same for all four names. The second letter (E) is the same for three of the names but different for the fourth (I in Kirkwood). Since (I) comes after (E), Kirkwood is alphabetized last of the group. For the other three, consider the third letter - the (M) in Kempthorn comes before the (Ns) in the other two, Kensington and Kentfield. Then to determine the order of the last two, note that the fourth letter of Kensington is an (S) where as the fourth letter of Kentfield is a (T). Therefore, Kensington should be alphabetized before Kentfield. The correct answer is C. 13. Each of these boxes is filled with tiny marbles of identical size and shape. Which of them contains the most marbles? A B C D The box with the greatest volume will contain the most marbles. Volume can be determined by multiplying length and width and height. Box A has a volume of 8x4x2 = 64. Box B has a volume of 6x5x2 = 60. Box C has a volume of 10x1x1 = 10. Finally, Box D has a volume of 5x8x2 = 80. Therefore, Box D contains the most marbles and the correct answer is D. 14. Which chair could fit under this table? A. B. C. Either one could fit under the table Eyeballing it, you can see that Chair A is too tall, but Chair B will fit. Therefore the correct answer is B. 15. The opposite of acute is: A. Severe B. Incisive C. Dull D. Flamboyant The opposite of the word acute, meaning sharp or finely tuned, is dull, so the correct answer is C. 16. Which image is not like the others? A B C D The ball and the half-circle in figures A, B, and D are on opposite sides of the image (the left-hand side and the right-hand side). In image C, they are on the same side of the image (the left-hand side). Therefore, the correct answer is C. 17. On Monday, Kelly ran one-half as fast as she normally does, and twice as fast as she did last Saturday. If she runs 4 miles per hour normally, how many miles per hour did she run on Saturday? A. 1 B. 4 C. 8 D. 16 E. 32 If Kelly normally runs 4 miles per hour, then on Monday Kelly ran one-half as fast, or 2 miles per hour. But then on Monday she ran twice as fast as she did last Saturday which means that her speed last Saturday = 1/2 the speed she ran on Monday, or 1/2x2 miles per hour. Therefore, on Saturday she ran 1/2x2 = 1 mile per hour. The correct answer is A. 18. Three identically-sized balloons are filled up with different amounts of air. Which of the three balloons, shown below, would be hardest to pop with a pin? A. B. C. The balloon that is filled with the most air will be easiest to pop with a pin. Therefore, the one that would be hardest to pop is the smallest one, or C. 19. List the following words alphabetically: heart, nose, head, hair. A. Hair Heart Nose Head B. Hair Head Heart Nose C. Nose Hair Heart Head To alphabetize, look at the second and third letters. The (A) in hair is earlier in the alphabet than is the (E) in heart or head, or the (O) in nose (the (E) in heart and head comes before the (O) in Nose). To order head and heart, compare the (D) in head to the (R) in heart; (D) comes before (R) in the alphabet and therefore the correct ordering is the one shown in answer B. 20. Once the car starts moving, which wheel will travel more ground? A. The front wheel B. The back wheel C. Neither - they will cover the same distance The back wheel will make fewer revolutions than the front wheel. However, each wheel will have traveled the same number of miles. Therefore, the correct answer is C. 21. What means the opposite of timid? A. Aspiring B. Bold C. Shy D. Indecisive Another word for timid is shy, meaning fearful or hesitant. That means bold would be the opposite. The correct answer is B. 22. Which of the images below is a perfect square? A B C D E Eyeballing it, you can see that image A is the square with identical length and height, and so the correct answer is A. 23. Organize these words into two logical groups: nail, fish, hammer, pet, tool, cat, dog. A. Nail, hammer, tool, fish Pet, cat, dog B. Nail, tool, hammer Fish, cat, dog, pet C. Nail, fish, cat Pet, dog, tool, hammer D. Hammer, tool, dog Nail, pet, cat, fish The two logical groups are animals (pet, cat, dog, fish), and tools (nail, hammer, tool). Therefore, the correct answer is B. 24. Which circle is bigger? A B C. They are the same size The V shape gives the illusion of depth. An image showing two objects of the same size (as these are), but at different distances away (from a definitive boundary) usually indicates that the object that is farther away is, in reality, larger than the object that is closer. But if you look closely, that's not true in this case. The circles are the same size, so the correct answer is C. 25. Mary loved pink flowers more than she loved red ones. She didn't like orange flowers at all, and while she liked yellow flowers, she couldn't say that she really loved them. Which of these is true? A. She liked red flowers less than orange flowers B. She liked yellow flowers more than red flowers C. She liked pink flowers more than yellow flowers D. She liked orange flowers more than pink flowers Mary liked yellow flowers but didn't love them; however, she did love pink and red ones - pink more than red. Thus far, the order of her preference is: pink, red, yellow. But Mary liked orange least of all, which means the new order is: pink, red, yellow, orange. This means that she liked red more than orange (which makes option A not true). She liked yellow less than red (which makes option B not true). She liked pink more than yellow, which makes option C true, and she liked orange less than any of the flowers, which makes option D not true. Therefore, the correct answer is C. 26. Which color is there more of? A. Yellow B. Purple C. Neither - there is the same amount of yellow and purple Eyeballing it, you can see that there is more purple than yellow, so the correct answer is B 27. Kip was on his way to class. He was 5 minutes late leaving and then was stuck in traffic for 10 minutes. He ran into a friend just before arriving at class and talked with her for 13 minutes. How many minutes late was he to class? A. 10 B. 15 C. 23 D. 28 Kip was 5 minutes late at first, and then he was stuck in traffic for 10 minutes, making him a total of 15 minutes late. Then he was delayed an additional 13 minutes, for a total of 28 minutes. The correct answer is D. 28. Which is the odd one out? A B C D The ends of thunderbolts A, B, and C are all pointing in the same way (from upper left to lower right). But D is actually a flipped version of the rest (pointing from upper right to lower left). 29. Organize these words into two logical groups of two: wish, search, hope, look. A. Wish, search Hope, look B. Wish, hope Search, look C. Search, hope Look, wish D. Wish, look Search, hope Search and look are both verbs that describe trying to find something. Wish and hope are both words that describe positive anticipation for the future, so the logical grouping is found in B. 30. Which staple fits best into this stapler? A. B. C. Eyeballing it, you can see that the first staple A is the only one small enough to fit, so the correct answer is A. 31. The opposite of pronounced is: A. Subtle B. Caring C. Picturesque D. Stylish The opposite of pronounced, meaning obvious or prominent, is subtle, so the correct answer is A. 32. Which of these cans is not like the others? A B C D In all but one of the cans the ball is off to one side. D is the only can in which the ball is nearly in the middle, so the correct answer is D. 33. Half of Miks are Maks. One-fourth of Maks are Mokes. If Kerry has 400 Miks, how many Mokes has he got? A. 50 B. 100 C. 200 D. 300 Kerry has 400 Miks. Since half of Miks are Maks, Kerry has 200 Maks. If 1/4 of Maks are Mokes, then Kerry has 1/4x200 = 50 Mokes. Therefore, the correct answer is 50, or A. 34. You want to make a temporary step stool to reach a high shelf in a library. You have these three books to use. How should you stack them to best ensure your safety? A. Book 2 should be on the bottom, book 3 on the top B. Book 1 should be on the bottom, book 2 on the top C. Book 3 should be on the bottom, book 2 on the top D. Book 2 should be on the bottom, book 1 on the top The most stable step stool can be made by putting the largest book on the bottom as a base and the smallest book on the top. Therefore, the correct answer is A. 35. Which of the following character strings is the closest match to 8,392,211,109? A. 8,382,311,119 B. 8,3925211,129 C. 8,39,2211,208 D. 8,329,211,108 The answer to question 35 is B. Try reading each of the answer options not as numbers, but rather as a string of characters; when you do so, you will find that B has the fewest mismatches, position for position, in the string of characters. See below (mismatches highlighted in red): Original string: 8,392,211,109 Answer A: 8,382,311,119 3 mismatches Answer B: 8,3925211,129 2 mismatches Answer C: 8,39,2211,208 4 mismatches Answer D: 8,329,211,108 3 mismatches 36. Which number completes the series? 1, 3/2, 2, 5/2, ? A. 3 B. 5/2 C. 5 D. 7/2 Each number is equal to the previous number plus 1/2. The last number in the sequence is 5/2 5/2 + 1/2 = 6/2 = 3. Therefore, the correct answer is A, or 3. 37. Which of the central circles is bigger? A. A B. B C. They are the same size The smaller circles surrounding the center circle in image B give the illusion that the center circle is actually larger than it is. In A, the circles surrounding the center circle are much larger than they are in B. Therefore, in contrast, the centrer circle A looks smaller than the center circle B, when in actuality they are the same size, so the correct answer is C. 38. Which of the following has the most spelling mistakes if the correct spelling is: Wichenhausingtonshire? A. Wichenhausingtonshire B. Wishenhausingmonshire C. Wissenhaasimgtomshike D. Kichenhausingtonshire There are 8 mistakes in answer C. A has 0 mistakes; B has 2 mistakes; D has 1 mistake. The correct answer is C. 39. Which of these images can be put together to form a triangle? A. B. C. D. All of the above All three of these images is a triangle split into pieces, which means that the correct answer is All of the above, or D. 40. What is another word for exquisite? A. Beautiful B. Atrocious C. Sturdy D. Moderate Another word for exquisite, meaning lovely and fine, is beautiful, so the correct answer is A. 41. Which shape completes the hexagon? A. B. C. D. Eyeballing it, you can see that the shape that completes the hexagon is C. 42. Ken works at a store that is open until 6pm on Monday and Tuesday, 7pm on Wednesdays, and 5pm on Thursdays and Fridays. Ken starts work at noon and works Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. How many hours a week does he work? A. 10 B. 15 C. 17 D. 18 On Monday, Ken works from noon to 6 or 6 hours. On Wednesday, he works from noon to 7 or 7 hours, and on Friday he works from noon to 5 or 5 hours. The total number of hours he works in a week is 6+5+7 = 18 hours, or D. 43. There is a telephone pole posted at every mile along this road. How far are the two people from each other? A. 1 mile B. 3 miles C. 4 miles D. 6 miles If you count the number of poles between the feet of the two figures, you find there are three poles in-between, for a total of 4 miles between them. Therefore, the correct answer is C. 44. 11*x = 2*y. If y = 11, then x=? A. 0 B. 1 C. 2 D. 11 If y = 11 then the equation becomes 11*x = 2*11 = 22. If you divide both sides by 11, you get: x = 2. Therefore, the correct answer is 2, or C. 45. The two pulleys below move at 1 revolution per minute. After 1 minute, which pulley would lift the weight farthest off the ground? A. Pulley A B. Pulley B C. They will have lifted the weight the same height When both pulleys are moving the same number of revolutions per minute, pulley A is actually pulling more rope upward per minute. Therefore, the weight in pulley A would be lifted further off the ground, and the correct answer is A. 46. All booms are moons. If all moons are swoons, then all booms are swoons. A. True B. False C. It's impossible to know If all booms are moons and all moons are swoons, then all booms must be swoons. Therefore the correct answer is True or A. 47. What does this scale read? A. 90 B. 130 C. 145 D. 155 Eyeballing it, you can see the scale is about 2/3rds of the way between 100 and 150. This is equivalent to a scale reading of 130. Therefore, the correct answer is B. 48. Two trains were traveling in opposite directions, moving away from one another. One train was moving at 5 miles per hour. The other train was moving at 6 miles per hour. They were 5 miles apart to begin with. After two hours, how far apart were they? A. 16 miles B. 27 miles C. 35 miles D. 60 miles After one hour, they were 5 + 6 = 11 miles farther away from one another. After two hours, they were another 11 miles apart, for a total of 22 miles apart in 2 hour's time. This is in addition to their initial distance of 5 miles apart, making a total of 27 miles, or B. 49. Which image completes the circle? A. B. C. D. Eyeballing it, you can see that Answer A is the one that, when put together with the graphic, makes a complete circle. 50. The greens are playing the blues. The greens have won more games than the blues. If the blues win this game, then which of the following cannot be true? A. The blues have won more games than the greens B. The greens have won more games than the blues C. The greens and blues have won the same number of games D. The reds have beaten both the greens and the blues The greens have won more games than the blues, which means that if the blues win the next game, they will have won one in addition to their previous number. At most, they will have won the same number of games as the greens. Therefore, they cannot have won more games than the greens and the correct answer is A. 51. If all Laps are Lops, all Lops are Loops, and all Loops are Lups, then which of the following is not true? A. All Laps are Loops B. All Loops are Laps C. All Laps are Lups D. All Lops are Lups If all Laps are Lops, and all Lops are Loops, then all Laps are Loops (so A is true). Now, if all Loops are Lups, then all Laps are Lups (so C is true). Now if all Lops are Loops and all Loops are Lups, then all Lops are Lups (so D is true). The only one that is not true is B - so this is the correct answer. 52. Which side of the teeter-totter will hit the ground first? A. The left side B. The right side C. The teeter-totter won't move D. They will hit at the same time The heavier side will fall to the ground faster than the lighter side. Therefore, the correct answer is the right side or B. 53. What is another word for late? A. Incorrigible B. Hasty C. Silly D. Tardy Another word for late is tardy, so the correct answer is D. 54. Mason was 1 street before Carey, 4 streets before Ellis, and 19 streets before Jackson. How many streets after Ellis was Jackson? A. 9 B. 10 C. 14 D. 15 Mason was 4 streets before Ellis and 19 streets before Jackson. This means that Jackson was 19 - 4 = 15 streets after Ellis, answer option "D".

Your strongest belief is Honesty Now that you know that Honesty is one of your core convictions, let's take a look at how that value influences your emotional landscape — the way you experience the 8 key emotions, and how intensely you feel them. As you read your report, know this: Experts agree it's healthy to experience a full range of emotions. Some, such as happiness, are pleasant to experience. Others, like anger, may make you feel uncomfortable. Just remember that even emotions that might not feel good (like anger or sadness) may still be good for you. To avoid a certain feeling, you might try harder to avoid getting into a similar position in the future — thereby sparing yourself those bad feelings again. Overall, emotions can serve as a means of expression as well as tools for self-protection and motivation. Here's what yours say about you. Your emotional landscape report Your emotional landscape More on your belief system History behind the test For More Reading This section will reveal the intensity at which you experience the 8 key emotions (Happiness, Respect, Fear, Sadness, Hostility, Anger, Expectancy) on a scale from low to high. Read the Take Action recommendations and find out how to manage your emotions, regardless of where they are on the scale. EXPECTANCY HAPPINESS RESPECT Curiosity Peace Appreciation Expectancy Happiness Respect ANGER Yearning Elation Admiration FEAR Irritation Anger Fury HONESTY Panic Fear Worry Hatred Despair Interest Hostility Sadness Wonderment Disinterest Brooding Shock HOSTILITY SADNESS WONDERMENT -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Peace Happiness Elation Happiness is an incredibly powerful and positive emotion. Most of us would agree that we'd like to have as much happiness in our lives as possible. Tickle's research has shown that the experience of happiness is strongly linked to feeling competent. When you feel like you can aptly handle what life sends your way, you're more likely to feel the exhilaration of happiness. A sense of connection and belonging is also closely related to your capacity for happiness. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience happiness at a high intensity. When something really good happens in your life, you want to jump for happiness and sing your praises to the mountaintops, sharing your news with anyone and everyone. Your happiness is generally exuberant, as opposed to tranquil. While others may be more inclined to turn their happiness inward and experience it on a more personal level, you're more likely to express yours. These feelings of euphoria can be exhilarating, and as long as they are experienced in moderation, they are the icing on the cake of life. Appreciation Respect Admiration The capacity for respect is the gateway to a deeply fulfilling life. Respect in ourselves and others involves taking risks and being able to bounce back if those risks don't pay off. Tickle's research has shown that the ability to respect is strongly linked with a bounty of positive attributes, particularly a sense of self-reliance. When we can count on ourselves, it feels safer to give our respect and our faith to others. A high sense of self-worth is also closely related to your ability to feel genuine respect. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience respect at a high intensity. When you place your respect in others, you're likely to hold them in the highest regard. Your respect is absolute, while others may be a bit skeptical. Some people may think of respect as simply valuing and approving of others, but when you respect another person, you put your whole heart into it. Your tendency is to rely on the truth and integrity that you imagine is an important value of those you meet, but know that some may not be worthy of this. For you, it may be important to be more cautious about where you place your respect. Worry Fear Panic We tend to think of fear as an emotion that needs to be overcome. However, sometimes fear serves to keep us safe from potential dangers. In moderation and good proportion, fear is a useful ally. That said, Tickle's research has indicated that the more self-reliant an individual feels, the less fear they tend to experience. Taking good care of yourself and your needs can greatly diminish feelings of fear. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience fear at a moderate intensity. When something frightens you, such as a dark alleyway or an upcoming test, you may find that you experience a sense of agitation. In situations where some people feel terrified, and others feel slightly uneasy, you tend to feel something in between. You are likely to be good at listening to your fears and using them as a safety gauge. On the rare occasion when you feel pestered by an irrational fear, you may want to consider employing some relaxation techniques. Practice visualization One way to cultivate positive emotions is to practice visualization. The next time you're feeling fearful — whether you're chronically afraid of walking to your car at night, or you're terrified of saying something wrong in a social situation, or you're just feeling general anxiety — take 10 minutes to do a visualization exercise. Everyone from professional athletes to high-powered businesspeople employ visualization techniques to help them meet their greatest goals. You can use visualization to decrease anxiety and fear and replace them with a sense of calm and control. Here's how to do it: Find a private place where you can focus. You'll need to be uninterrupted for at least 10 minutes. Choose the fearful situation you want to focus on. When you first start out, try to choose a scenario that makes you feel only mildly anxious. For example, choose an upcoming dinner party that you're worried about attending or a phone call that you dread making. Close your eyes, and imagine yourself in that situation. Picture the vivid colors in the setting, feel the temperature, and smell the air. Feel the fear that starts to rise in your body. Really put yourself in the moment. Now, picture yourself doing everything just the way you've always wanted to. You say and do all the right things, exuding confidence and self-assuredness. People respond with approval and excitement. You're safe and successful. Now, choose another fearful situation, perhaps one that makes you a little more anxious and repeat the steps. Knowing your ideal outcome in a situation and visualizing how to get there builds confidence and helps you face your greatest challenges with courage and calm. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Brooding Sadness Despair Sadness can creep up for seemingly no reason, like on cloudy days when we find ourselves feeling a little down. It can also be overwhelming in the form of grief, such as when we lose a loved one. It's painful to feel deep sadness, but it's an inevitable part of life. Allowing ourselves to experience our sadness gives us the full range of the human experience — without sadness, how can we truly understand the emotions of happiness or eager expectancy? Yet when left unchecked, sadness can start to take over and color our view of ourselves and those around us. Tickle's research shows that feeling loved and connected to others can help alleviate feelings of sadness. Thus, a great antidote for the blues is an evening spent with a caring friend or family member. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience sadness at a moderate intensity. When you get into a funk, you generally avoid the full depths of misery. Your feelings of sadness indicate that you're in touch with your emotions and that you aren't afraid to acknowledge painful feelings. Because of this, you likely tend to be an empathic person. While being able to access your sadness is a useful emotional tool, you may sometimes get stuck in your sadness. During those occasional sad times, you may want to make plans with others to watch a light comedy or engage in other uplifting activities. Gain a fresh perspective Sadness, when chronic or pervasive, can color the lens through which we view our lives. By imagining a soothing place outside of your current life, you can get a fresh perspective on something ultimately pleasurable and this will help shift feelings of sadness. The next time you're feeling blue, try this imagery exercise: Imagine a setting that you find particularly appealing and peaceful. Maybe it's a cozy cabin in the wintry woods, complete with a patchwork quilt and a roaring fire. Or an open field on a sunny day, the breeze gently rustling the grass. Choose any place you wish you could be at that moment, anywhere that makes you feel the way you want to feel. For this example, let's use a warm, private beach. Find a quiet and comfortable space to imagine this beach. If you want to recline, prop yourself up with pillows all around you. Turn off the phone ringer. Close the doors. Dedicate the next fifteen minutes to yourself. Close your eyes and allow yourself to sink into the pillows. Picture the white sand beach and the sparkling blue waters. Feel the warm sand beneath you, cradling every inch of your body. Listen to the roar of the water, the calls of faraway seagulls. Inhale the fresh, salty air, and when you exhale, feel all of the tension drain out of your body. Feel the warm sun soaking into your muscles, softening them, and draining all the tension. Explore every sensory detail, giving yourself the time and space to really savor the experience. When you're done, slowly open your eyes and take a deep breath in, and then let it out slowly. Give yourself a few minutes to come back to the present moment, refreshed and more relaxed. If you enjoy these exercises, you may want to explore the many CDs and tapes for sale that can lead you through imagery exercises or make one of your own. You may also choose to imagine positive events that have happened in your past or particular experiences that were highly pleasurable. These mini-mind vacations can introduce a sense of contentment into your day in just ten or fifteen minutes and they will give you a break from the blues for long enough that you feel refreshed and ready to face what's bothering you. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shock Wonderment Interest On occasion, it's fun to be filled with wonder, to be surprised. For example, it feels good to come home to discover that our household chores have already been done, to find out we're getting a bonus at work, or to hear unexpected good news. However, Tickle's research has indicated that feelings of wonderment can also leave us feeling unsettled. Being filled with wonder means we're taken off-guard, and as a result we may feel less able to access our personal resources of power. Feeling surprised in this way can also cause us to be less flexible, since being startled, by its very nature, makes us feel less in control. Deepening our connections to others can help us to feel more grounded and less prone to this kind of upset when things happen that we weren't expecting. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience wonderment at a high intensity. When something surprises you, you tend to be stunned for a long time. Unexpected news, such as a significant promotion at work, impacts people in different ways. Some people tend to feel mildly upset or alarmed, but you're more likely to feel shocked. If the intensity of your wonderment throws you off, it may be helpful for you to pay extra attention to the thoughts and concerns of those around you, as this may give you a heads up about things that would otherwise escape your attention. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shock Hostility Interest Hostility can take the form of utter lack of interest or complete hatred. There are plenty of times when some degree of hostility is warranted. We may feel weary after our fifth unpleasant blind date in a row or offended when someone treats us with disrespect. When a person does something heinous, such as assault an innocent stranger, it's not unreasonable to feel something more akin to loathing. That said, hostility and hostility can also be unwarranted; expressing scorn just because someone is driving more slowly than you think they should can wear on you and spread negativity to others. Tickle's research has shown that compassion is the natural antidote to hostility. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience hostility at a low intensity. When someone makes an inappropriate comment, for instance, you're more likely to feel bored or jaded, whereas others may gravitate toward more intense feelings, such as dislike or even loathing. Your feelings of hostility can be used as a gauge to identify behavior that is ultimately offensive, and they can motivate you to take action against such behavior. Since you experience hostility at a low intensity you probably tend to be more empathetic toward yourself and others, and you probably try to maintain positive feelings about people in general. Keep an eye on your tendency to be bored by someone's inappropriate behavior — boredom can be an indication that you've given up the hope of responding to a person or situation effectively. Responding with action instead of apathy may be a useful tool for you to deal effectively with inappropriate situations. Develop a regular meditation practice Often we feel bored with situations or hostile toward the behavior of others because of our strong judgments about them. For instance, we might think things like: This job isn't good enough for me. My partner doesn't appreciate me. My friend is making a huge mistake. While there are times when judgment is healthy — for instance, when someone is abusing us or someone else — the problem is in seeing a definitive right or a wrong when there are actually multiple paths of thought. One way to examine our judgments is to practice regular meditation. There are many different kinds, most of which focus on bringing your awareness to the present moment. Here's a good method to start with: Find a comfortable and quiet space to sit. You'll start with a five-minute meditation session (set a timer if it will help you let go more easily). Close your eyes, and focus on your breath. Listen to it moving in and out of your body, slowly and deeply. Bring your breath all the way down into your belly, letting it fill up before slowly exhaling. While you continue to inhale and exhale, place all of your focus on the sound and feeling of your breath. Other thoughts will try to horn in — the laundry, deadlines, your tense neck — but you should just let them pass. Continue to focus and refocus on your slow, deep breathing. If you have a hard time focusing on your breath at first, you may choose a mantra — a word that you can repeat again and again. Some common mantras are the words "om," "peace," or "calm." You may also want to think of the word "in," as you inhale, and "out" as you exhale, but you should choose a method that helps you find that state of calm, focused attention on your breath. When judgments come to you as you are sitting there, just observe them, and then let them go. You don't need to be constrained by any one way of thinking. You don't need to obsess about the past or worry about the future. All you need to do is focus on the present moment, yourself, and your breath. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Irritation Anger Fury Anger is perhaps the most controversial and confusing of emotions. When left unchecked, anger can spin out of control and cause us to behave in destructive or hurtful ways. When ignored, it can fester inside and overpower our other more positive emotions. Yet the experience of anger is also healthy and beneficial. Tickle's research has revealed that the healthy expression of anger is linked to feelings of self-reliance. Anger can help us to gauge when we are being treated fairly and when we need to speak up for ourselves. When anger starts to feel overwhelming, it can help to work on being flexible with ourselves and others. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience anger at a low intensity. When you're wronged, you're unlikely to feel enraged or even angry. You tend to experience your anger as irritation or annoyance. Because you aren't quick to anger, you're easy to get along with and people appreciate your flexibility. However, there are times when feeling anger at a higher intensity is healthy and appropriate. It may be helpful for you to engage in a daily meditation practice, which can help you get in touch with any dormant feelings. Gaining access to your anger when you need it can help to ensure that you're your own best advocate in life. Try progressive muscle relaxation Anger involves a building up of tension and then finding an outlet or release for it — and it can be dangerous to unleash your anger in the wrong way or place. One way to release some of your stored-up or intense anger is to try Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR). PMR is a relaxation technique that involves tensing and releasing muscle groups, which some psychologists believe mimics the physiological response of intense laughter. Regardless of why it works PMR just feels good — afterward you'll be left with looser muscles and a feeling of great release. Here's how to do it: Lie down in a comfortable position, and take a few deep breaths to help you settle in. Then, squeeze and hold all of the muscles in your face. Scrunch your forehead, close your eyes, crinkle your nose, clench your jaw, and purse your lips together as tightly as you can. Then, without releasing, squeeze all features even tighter. And then even a little tighter. Hold the squeeze as tightly as you possibly can for between 30 and 60 seconds, and then, all at once, release all of the muscles. Take a few deep breaths, and then move on to your neck and shoulders. Hunch your shoulders until they practically touch your ears. Clench your neck and your jaw tight. Hold it. And clench them tighter and tighter. Hold for 30-60 seconds, and release. Follow these same steps individually for each of your muscle groups — first your arms and hands, then your stomach and lower back, buttocks, thighs, calves, and, finally, your feet and toes. Once you're finished, try clenching your entire body all at once. Tense your body as vigorously as possible, scanning each muscle group and squeezing all of them as tightly as you can. Then, after 60 seconds, release your muscles and feel the whoosh of relaxation take over. Enjoy a minute or two of calm, deep breathing before rejoining your day. Sometimes all it takes is some relaxation to release the anger that you were feeling. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Curiosity Expectancy Yearning Expectancy is the emotion that has us thinking of our futures. Our curiosity will always keep us exploring new topics and pursuing new relationships. It's hope that drives us to pursue our goals. It's eagerness that drives us to look forward and build today what we can enjoy tomorrow. Tickle's research has shown that expectancy is linked with feeling a high degree of personal power. We allow ourselves to hope because we believe that to some extent we can do something to make our dreams a reality. Expectancy comes easiest when we feel secure in ourselves and safe in our world. In addition, the more open-minded we feel, the easier it can be to luxuriate in our excitement about the future. Your test results have revealed that you tend to experience expectancy at a moderate intensity. For instance, when planning your vacation or getting ready to start something new, you're likely to spend a lot of time preparing. Looking forward to things can add spice to life, and being able to feel that excitement means you don't tend to prepare for the worst or hold back on your eagerness. This enthusiasm adds thrill to your life, and others find your good feelings contagious. The downside to your levels of expectancy is that sometimes you may feel disappointed or let down when things go wrong, and you may find it difficult to be 'in the moment' when you're focusing on something that hasn't yet happened. Making sure to balance your expectations for the future with an appreciation for what you already have is important for your emotional balance and well-being. Find positive meaning in your life One of the best ways to limit the impact of negative emotions is to find positive meaning in life. This can be achieved in a number of ways: Increase the number of pleasant activities you engage in each week. Choose things you genuinely enjoy doing, not things you think you should do. For instance, if physical activities are pleasurable for you, take long walks, or lounge around in your local pool, or take a yoga class. If you love quiet time alone, allow yourself to read novels or trashy magazines or the newspaper in the morning, while you sip fresh-squeezed orange juice. Consciously make pleasant activities a part of your daily routine. It may feel good to share some of these activities with others, while saving some for special alone time. Look on the bright side. While it may seem cliché, there are tangible benefits to reframing a negative experience into a positive one. Your beliefs about an event, and the thoughts you choose to give merit to, directly impact your emotional state. So when you don't get that job you were hoping for, trust that something better will come along. When you miss that movie, take pleasure in the fact that you'll have more time to chat with your dinner date. Actively looking for what the possible benefits of any situation are, and choosing to focus on those rather than the drawbacks, will increase your sense of satisfaction and peace in your life. Consider exploring your spiritual self. Those with spiritual or philosophical beliefs seem to find and appreciate the meaning of life; they make sense of major life events and more likely to find positive meaning in their lives. Set and attain realistic goals. Feeling like you're making progress in life toward what's important to you makes it much more likely that you'll find a state of contentment. For example, if you've always wanted to feel physically strong and fit, commit to walking 10 minutes a day, adding five minutes to your daily walk time each month. If you've always wanted to write that novel, start by committing to writing for two hours a week, and then follow through with it. Give ordinary events in your life special meaning. If you hate going grocery shopping because you think it's boring, think of it as a way to nourish yourself. See it as an act of self-love and ultimate caring, and remind yourself of that each time you go. View your work as a way to support yourself and your loved ones. Your emotional landscape report Your emotional landscape More on your belief system History behind the test For More Reading As you already know, the emotions discussed above, and how you experience them, stem from your core belief in Honesty. Your Honesty directly affects how you scored on the emotions scales, as well as how you experience the key emotions in life. Think of your belief as a lens through which you view the world, and then read below to find out what it means about your approach to life. Then go back and look at your results on the emotions scales and you may begin to understand why you scored the way you did. Your strongest belief is honesty. 48% of test takers also hold honesty as an important value in life. Because of your uncompromisingly honest nature, you generally feel most fulfilled when you can fully share your thoughts and feelings, good or bad. People likely come to you when they need a forthright opinion because they know you are brave enough to tell your version of the truth, and you enjoy being around people who are forthcoming with their thoughts and opinions as well. Those around you have come to expect that you will generally "tell it like it is." You may feel that any untruth, even a little white lie, will lead to more harm than good. Your emotional intolerance for dishonesty — in yourself and others — makes you a highly trustworthy person. Here's an example to illustrate what we mean: Juliet's strongest belief is also honesty. It's not hard to imagine that when her co-worker let her in on his plan to skim money off the top of their company's profits, she was pretty shocked. As his motivation, he cited their employer's recent reduction in benefits and the fact that they hadn't received a raise in three years, but none of his justifications swayed Juliet. Because she has such a deep belief in the value of honesty, all of her emotions about the experience were heightened. She was appalled by her co-worker's inferior ethics, but she didn't want to turn him in, especially since she knew he had a family to help support. Instead, she reminded him that their employer had made many of the cutbacks as a strategy to avoid laying anyone off during the dry spell. And because she felt that it compromised her honesty to be in any way a part of the money-skimming plan — even by just knowing about it and letting it happen — she then informed her co-worker that if he went ahead with it, she'd have no choice but to expose the discrepancies in the books. Juliet felt comfortable with her approach because she was putting the decision back in her co-worker's hands and informing him of the consequences ahead of time, which she felt was the most honest way to manage the situation.

The issues on your subconscious mind are most affecting your: Love Life Whether you're in a committed partnership, you're casually dating, or you're single, your love life revolves around your romantic hopes and needs. Perhaps your conscious mind is aware that something is troubling you with regard to it or maybe you just have a vague sense that things don't feel quite right. However tuned in you are to your feelings about your love life, you most likely have deeper issues that affect how you are subconsciously viewing your circumstances. Some issues are isolated to one realm of life, but generally an issue affects several areas at once, and to varying degrees. Your subconscious mind could be preoccupied with your love life because of a wide variety of issues you aren't aware of. The following are some pretty common ones that people have around love. Do any resonate with you? Worrying that you aren't doing a good enough job in your love life. You might feel like you can't adequately meet the needs of a partner, or that you aren't giving enough. Worrying that you aren't doing your best. You might feel that your love life isn't yet complete or satisfying. Perhaps your romantic relationships don't possess the intimacy and connection you feel you're capable of engaging in. Worrying that you'll be betrayed. Especially if you've experienced difficulties in your past, you may subconsciously worry that a lover will betray you. Or perhaps you're concerned that you aren't capable of being faithful or committed. Worrying that you'll be rejected. When unchecked, this common fear can make you overly self-protective, which can make it difficult to relax in your romantic relationships. Wishing you didn't make things so complicated. You might feel that your love life is overly structured, and you may subconsciously wish there were more flexibility to relate freely with your romantic partner. Did any of the issues you just read sound familiar? Once you recognize your subconscious concerns, you'll most likely be better able to find resolution. Follow the steps below and get in touch! 1. Begin writing a list of issues you think might be affecting you in the area of your life that is experiencing some trouble. 2. Consider your scores on the core issues discussed in the "Issues impacting your subconscious" section. Did you score high on any that are affecting the challenging area of your life? 3. Choose one issue to focus on. 4. Bring the issue into your conscious mind in a variety of ways. Leave a note on your bathroom mirror to remind yourself; meditate on where the issue came from and how it impacts your life; talk about it with a friend or partner. 5. In a month or two, ask yourself how/if this issue is still impacting your life in that one area, and then consider whether it's been resolved in all areas of your life. If it still seems like the issue is affecting your well-being, you may want to enlist the help of a therapist. Once everything has shifted for the better, you may want to use the same techniques on other issues. What's on your subconscious mind Your subconscious take Issues impacting your subconscious Mysteries of the subconscious mind Tapping into your subconscious History behind the test Further reading Though your subconscious mind is currently most preoccupied with your Love Life, there are actually seven additional realms of life it contends with. In this section, you'll find out how your other realms are impacted by learning what your relatively high or low score in that area means. A real-life example is provided to illustrate the impact certain issues can have on your life and the techniques that can be used to resolve them. You'll find more step-by-step details about how to employ these techniques yourself in the "Tapping into Your Subconscious" section. Love Financial Sex Health Personal growth Work Friendships Family low high Love Realm Love low high You scored 62 on the love life scale. Your love life revolves around your romantic partners. Whether you have a committed partnership, you're casually dating, or you're single without prospects, your love life concerns your romantic hopes and needs. Your relatively high score indicates that the circumstances surrounding your love life are taking up a lot of your subconscious energy. Perhaps you're longing for a jumpstart, whether that means a new sweetheart or some quality time with your current partner. Or maybe you're experiencing some kind of change, and it is emotionally draining. For whatever reason, some aspect of your love life may be dissatisfying and this is making you preoccupied. It's no wonder that most of the songs on the radio are about love — it's a complex, yet marvelous thing we are always trying to understand better. Take Beth, for example: She worked incredibly long hours, and blamed her nonexistent love life on this. While her friends offered to set her up, she always made the excuse that she didn't have time. The interesting thing was that Beth's performance at work was starting to slip. Even her boss suggested she take a bit of time off. Beth couldn't figure out what was happening, because she was actually very happy with her job, even though she could see from time to time that she might be taking her commitment to it a bit too far. What she didn't know was that her subconscious mind was actually worrying over her love life, specifically around her fears of betrayal. Her last relationship had ended with a nasty breakup that involved infidelity, and ever since Beth had immersed herself in her career to avoid facing her feelings about that betrayal. Though this issue affected other areas of Beth's life, she was particularly worried that she'd again be betrayed by a romantic partner. This fear was causing Beth to feel distracted at work, leading to mistakes that she'd never made in the past. By identifying that it was in fact her subconscious issues around betrayal that were taking up so much of her mental space, she found she was able to focus on and face up to this issue. Eventually, she found that she was able to work fewer hours and still excel at her job. She used her extra time to start pursuing a more fulfilling love life. Financial Realm Financial low high You scored 38 on the financial scale. Your finances involve everything having to do with money: your bank account balance, your debts, and your investments. Believe it or not, many of your financial hopes and fears can impact your subconscious mind. Aside from money being necessary to take care of yourself, it has also always been assigned a certain status in our lives, and this can be stressful. Take Jake, for instance. He had a good job that had brought home a big paycheck for many years, though he was thousands of dollars in debt, and he had little savings to speak of. He always made excuses for why the state of his finances was so bad: He lived in an expensive city, he was still paying off student loans, and he was still just getting off the ground in his job. But when even his friends who made less money than he started talking about buying homes, he started realizing that he was in terrible financial shape. What was really holding him back if it wasn't the amount of money he was bringing home? He started doing freewriting, not just about his finances, but about where he was in life in general. After some practice, he discovered that he actually had a deep fear that he wasn't living up to his potential. This seemed to impact many aspects of his life, including his finances. By making his subconscious fear conscious, he was able to set more concrete goals, including a budget. Sex Realm Sex low high You scored 18 on the sex life scale. Your sex life is made up of all of your sexual experiences, past and present. It includes all of your sexual desires, fears, and fantasies. Your test results indicate that your subconscious is relatively free of preoccupations about your sex life. Those who score high in this realm wish their sex lives were more satisfying. Others worry that they're not good enough in bed. For whatever reason, their subconscious minds are preoccupied with thoughts and feelings about their sex lives. You, on the other hand, seem to be satisfied with your sex life. You would think that this area of our lives would get easier as we matured — not necessarily. Take Graham, for example: He was finding that he wasn't enjoying his sex life as much as he had in the past. Although he was attracted to his new partner, he found himself avoiding sex for the first time in his life. He claimed he was tired, or at least he thought that must be the problem. He blamed work and the weather and just about anything else he could think of, but inside he felt troubled. When he and his partner did have sex, he couldn't shut his mind off, and he found himself worrying over a bunch of little things, including whether or not his partner could tell that he was distracted. Finally, after trying self-hypnosis, Graham discovered that he had an issue around not being good enough in bed. His worries about not being able to adequately please his new partner — who had a good deal more experience than he did — were taking away his pleasure and excitement. With the help of his partner, he worked through this fear and was finally able to relax during sex, and both of them enjoyed themselves more. Health Realm Health low high You scored 18 on the health scale. The condition of your health impacts you on a daily basis, but is also responsible for how you experience nearly all aspects of life. Your past ailments, your present condition, and your general fears about your well-being are all a part of this realm. Your relatively low score in health indicates that this realm isn't preoccupying your subconscious mind all that much. If it were, you could expect to feel obsessed about your health, perhaps because of a chronic injury or illness. Many of those who score high in this realm worry that they aren't healthy enough. It could be that their personal or family medical histories are leading them to have these health concerns. Whatever it is, some aspect of their health is preoccupying their subconscious minds, whereas yours seems content with this realm of your life. What do we have without our health? Our health is extremely important to us and yet many of us live in denial and don't take care of ourselves. Take Stan, for example. He had always been a physically fit person. He'd read health magazines while running on the treadmill each night after work, and this was before he went to lift weights! His low-fat, low-carb, high protein special diet was so precise that he weighed his portions on a scale. He took tons of different vitamins and supplements each month, depending on what the magazines recommended. And then, one day, Stan stopped everything. He couldn't explain it, but all he wanted was to lie on the couch and eat pizza. This continued night after night after night. He was starting to consider canceling his gym membership. He knew his behavior was extreme, but he just couldn't do it all anymore. When he called to cancel his routine physical and didn't ask to reschedule, his doctor called him back with concern. She knew that Stan was a bit of a fitness extremist, and he never missed the opportunity to ask her health questions. Stan told her what was going on, and she suggested he see a therapist to get to the bottom of it. After several sessions with a therapist, which included hypnotherapy, Stan discovered that he was confronting his issues about making his life too complicated. For him, everything had always been an all or nothing proposition. With the help of therapy, Stan was able to work through his issues and find his way to a happier, healthier middle ground. Personal Growth Realm Personal growth low high You scored 16 on the personal growth scale. This is the area most related to your general hopes and aspirations about life. Your continued self-improvement in relationships, career, finances, and health, as well as your ability to identify and realize your life purpose, are all connected to your personal growth. Your test results indicate that your unconscious isn't concerned with your action around personal growth. Those who score high in this realm feel stuck in their lives, wondering what their next step should be. Many feel trapped, like they don't have the ingenuity to make a change. They may worry that they don't have enough time or energy to devote to improving themselves or developing your hobbies. For some reason or another, their subconscious is preoccupied with their lack of personal growth, whereas yours seems to be satisfied with this realm of your life. Taking time out for personal growth and improvement can seem impossible, even though we know that it's incredibly necessary to explore our curiosities. Take Jenny, for example — she was depressed. She felt stuck in just about every area of her life: She wasn't getting along well with her family, her love life was nonexistent, and her job paid poorly (and on top of that, bored her to tears!). She wanted to change, but she didn't have the first idea where to start or what she wanted. All she knew was that she was profoundly unhappy and unsatisfied. Finally, she started freewriting in her journal for fifteen minutes a day. At first, her writing was just full of complaints and excuses. But then one day she struck upon her deepest issue: She was afraid she'd never live up to her potential. Ever since she'd dropped out of school, she'd been drifting through her life without a purpose. She continued to write in her journal until she came up with actual dreams and goals, as well as a plan for how to implement them. Work Realm Work low high You scored 2 on the work life scale. Your work life involves what you do to make money, as well as any aspirations you have for your current and/or future careers. Issues in your work life may be related to the actual work itself or to relationships you've formed with your boss or your co-workers. Your test responses reveal that your subconscious issues aren't affecting your work life very much. Those who got a higher score than you in this realm of life may be dissatisfied with their careers or may find that their work isn't as challenging or interesting as they'd like. They possibly feel drained by the day-to-day demands of their job. This may be because things aren't going as well at work as they'd expected, and their subconscious mind is struggling to figure out the next step they should take. For some reason, some aspect of their work lives is preoccupying their subconscious, though they may find that consciously they're reluctant to think or talk about the problem. Your subconscious, on the other hand, seems content in regard to this realm of your life. For many of us, work is a realm that can bring up lots of issues around performance and this is stressful because work is where we also make the money that keeps ourselves and our families cared for. Irene, for instance, was having a hard time at work. She constantly felt distracted, making it hard for her to keep her deadlines. Her workplace was pretty competitive, and rather than rising to the occasion she felt like she was just slipping further and further behind. Her boss had spoken to her several times about her performance, but she insisted that she could handle all of her projects, even though she knew she was sinking more than swimming. She was getting so anxious that she couldn't sleep through the night, which in turn made it even harder to concentrate in the morning. She knew that her job was stressful, and that her work environment wasn't the most supportive, but there seemed to be something more than that going on. To find out, Irene started journaling each time she got stuck at work. After ten minutes of freewriting, she was often able to clear her mind and get back to work. One of the issues that she stumbled upon during this practice was her fear of rejection. She already knew she was a shy person, but her journaling helped her to see how her fear of rejection was giving her boss and her co-workers too much power over her state of mind. She tried to refocus her energy on doing what she thought was her best, rather than on trying to please them and prevent them from rejecting her. Friendship Realm Friendships low high You scored 1 on the friendship scale. Your friendships are the platonic relationships you have with people of your choosing. Healthy friendships offer us love and support outside of that which we get from family, romantic partnerships, and our sexual partners. Your test results indicate that your friendships aren't draining very much of your subconscious energy. Those who score higher in this realm tend to feel dissatisfied with their current circle of friends, perhaps because they have differing interests. Some may be in arguments with their closer friends, or some may simply be longing for more fulfilling connections throughout their social lives. Whatever the exact circumstances, their subconscious minds are picking up on some trouble in their friendship realm, whereas yours seems content. We are social beings and so we typically find it important to nurture and maintain friendships, but sometimes that's easier said than done. For instance, Catrina had just moved to a new city for work, and she didn't know anyone in town. She'd thought she'd be able to meet new people easily since there seemed to be so many her age in her office. But when no one reached out to her during her first week on the job, she started to pull herself inward. She told herself she was focusing on her job, which was demanding and new. But at night, Catrina found that she had terrible nightmares about strangers calling her names and chasing her down the street. The dreams got increasingly distressful until she finally decided to try some dream analysis techniques. Catrina eventually realized that she was experiencing an immobilizing fear of rejection. She could begin to see the pattern so clearly: The more afraid she became, the more closed off to people she became; the more closed off she became, the more her co-workers avoided her. Finally, she had to face her fears by inviting her co-workers out to lunch and starting to make herself more available. It was scary at first, but over time she started to make some friends, and a lot of her fears dissipated. Family Realm Family low high You scored 1 on the family life scale. This realm concerns the people you rely on most on a daily basis or in difficult times. This could be your family of origin — your parents — or your adult family, including your partner and/or your children. Your relatively low score in this realm indicates that your family life is not taking up too much of your subconscious energy. For those who are preoccupied with family, there is often a problem that's causing anxiety. Also, some people feel their family life is less than satisfying, or they worry a lot about their families. These concerns take up a lot of energy, and this can cause unconscious stress. It seems, however, that you feel pretty good about your family life. Though we typically depend on our families for love and support, certain circumstances can make our Family lives difficult. For example, Tara works full-time and has a partner and two children. All of these things are very important to her. Whenever she was at work, however, she felt distracted and mildly anxious. This was hard to understand since everything there was going smoothly and she was happy with her job. In addition, she slept poorly at night, but she couldn't figure out what was wrong. A friend suggested that Tara begin freewriting — anything that came to mind she should put down on the page. Through this activity, Tara identified her unconscious issue of not being good enough. While this issue impacted many areas of Tara's life, she was particularly worried that she wasn't being a good enough mom or spouse. This fear was causing Tara to feel drained, which made her less present when she came home from work. Initially, she thought she was simply tired from work, which then made her more fearful that she was neglecting her family. Once she was able to resolve these fears, she found that she actually had much more energy for her family at the end of her day. What's on your subconscious mind Your subconscious take Issues impacting your subconscious Mysteries of the subconscious mind Tapping into your subconscious History behind the test Further reading All of us live with core issues that impact the way we think and feel. Because many of those issues are subconscious, we may never have had the opportunity to address them. If we were more conscious of them we could begin to heal old wounds and free up our minds for more productive and nurturing beliefs. Tickle has analyzed your responses and determined how strongly these five core issues resonate with you. The higher your score, the more likely it is that the issue is having an impact on your life. Do you ever feel inadequate? Your subconscious is moderately preoccupied with feeling you're not good enough. Typically, feeling inadequate stems from feelings of shame and difficulties with self-confidence. Identifying the origin of this issue with the help of freewriting, self-hypnosis, or dream analysis (see explanation of techniques below) is a good first step toward alleviating these feelings. Do you ever worry that you're not doing your best? Your subconscious is moderately preoccupied with issues about your potential. People who score high on this issue may be suffering from unrealistic expectations about themselves, or they may be afraid to go for what they really want. Freewriting — one of the techniques discussed later in your report — can help you discover how this issue is holding you back and help you to identify realistic and attainable goals. Do you ever feel distrusting? Your subconscious is moderately preoccupied with issues of trust. People who are wary of others, can typically trace their distrust back to times or situations in which they were betrayed by friends or loved ones. Dream analysis is a good way to analyze this issue and discover exactly why we're afraid of trusting others. Are you afraid of being rejected? Your subconscious is moderately preoccupied with rejection. Typically, this issue is exacerbated when you take too much stock in the opinions others have about you. Building self-esteem and nurturing yourself can take some of the intensity out of this fear. Do you ever wish you didn't make things so complicated? Your subconscious is moderately preoccupied with feeling you make things more complicated than you need to. The next time an area of your life feels like one big ordeal, try freewriting about the issue; write down all of your feelings and fears. Once you've got it all down, try to prioritize the issues and select one or two of the most pressing, and then just address those to start. What's on your subconscious mind Your subconscious take Issues impacting your subconscious Mysteries of the subconscious mind Tapping into your subconscious History behind the test Further reading Because your subconscious mind is difficult to access directly though your conscious mind, it's difficult to know for certain what's going on in the deepest recesses of your psyche. Sometimes, though, the subconscious speaks up and makes a brief appearance in your conscious awareness. Once you learn to notice these intrusions of the subconscious, you can use this information to help you make decisions in your conscious mind. Did I say that? Have you ever meant to say one thing, but then said something else entirely? When you call someone by the wrong name, for instance, is that just a mistake, or is it actually a call from your subconscious mind? Many dub these errors in speech and writing "Freudian slips" as Sigmund Freud used them to gain insight into information he believed his patient was repressing. Consider that your accidents may actually be a moment of insight into your most concealed, conflicting desires. Write the incident down next time it happens and give some thought to what it might mean. Have a hunch? Sometimes you get a "gut" feeling about a person or situation. Maybe you think you're applying for the job you've always wanted, but once it's offered to you, you sense that something's not right about the situation. Some believe this intuition comes from your subconscious mind, which is a storehouse of valuable information, not all of which your conscious mind has access to. Learning to quiet your mind and trust your intuition is one of ways you can gain a deeper connection to your subconscious wisdom. Subliminal messages These are considered any information you absorb below a certain level of conscious awareness. While researchers differ in their opinions about the effectiveness of subliminal messages, many studies indicate that there are potential benefits to incorporating information into your subconscious minds. For instance, some studies have shown that exposing patients to anti-smoking subliminal messages during elective surgery have helped a good number of patients reduce or quit their smoking habits by the one-month post-surgical appointment. By introducing the appropriate subliminal messages, the powerful subconscious mind can influence the conscious mind to respond positively.