Self-help guru Tony Robbins has identified six primal needs that motivate all of our behaviours. Naturally, these drivers also manifest themselves in our work as leaders.

1. Certainty/Comfort: We all want comfort, and much of this comfort comes from certainty. Of course there is no ABSOLUTE certainty, but we want certainty the car will start, the water will flow from the tap when we turn it on and the currency we use will hold its value.
2. Variety: At the same time, and because the universe it seems has a sense of humour, we also crave variety. Paradoxically, there needs to be enough UNcertainty to provide spice and adventure in our lives, otherwise we get bored
3. Significance:Deep down, we all want to be important. We want our life to have meaning and significance. I can imagine no worse a death than to think my life didn't matter.
4. Connection/Love: At the same time we worry that if we become too important we will lose something equally important: the sense that we are loved, that we are part of a community: we want to be cared for and cared about.
5. Growth: There could be some people who say they don't want to grow, but I think they're simply fearful of doing so—or perhaps NOT doing so. To become better, to improve our skills, to stretch and excel may be more evident in some than others, but it's there.
6. Contribution: The desire to contribute something of value—to help others, to leave the world a better place than we found it—is in all of us.

Psychologist Carl Jung identified a range of archetypes, of personae that we encounter every day of our livers without realising it. These archetypes tell a story, and at the end of the day all business is about telling stories: press releases are stories about what our company is doing, marketing materials are stories about our products and services, annual reports are stories about what we have been doing and what we will do, brands are stories, about what we have achieved, how we can add value to those who deal with us, and so it goes on. The interesting thing is that the most memorable stories are those that invoke in the listener or reader one of the archetypes most clearly and strongly, and that makes archetypes extremely valuable in branding

So how do these primal needs manifest in our day-to-day life? In the course of a day or a week we may exhibit the traits of a single archetype, or we may jump from archetype to archetype. However, we will be more convincing in some roles than in others.

Below I have taken twelve of the most common archetypes that we find in business, and matched them to the primal need that is manifested most strongly in that archetype.

Certainty/Comfort: Helps us to feel safe. Manifests as Innocent or Sage

Variety: Helps us to feel excitement. Manifests as Warrior or Jester

Significance: Helps us to feel we have achieved. Manifests as Ruler or Outlaw

Connection/Love: Helps us to feel part of the community, that we belong. Manifests as Regular guy/gal or Lover

Growth: Helps us to learn and progress. Manifests as Creator or Explorer

Contribution: Helps us to feel worthwhile, that we have made a difference. Manifests as Caregiver or Magician

George Bush is at his most convincing when he plays the ‘average guy’ role, less so when he tries to be a ‘sage’. Here in the UK, Tony Blair originally presented himself as a caregiver. His early attempts to roll up his sleeves and be ‘one of the guys’ seem contrived and false.

In business, Bill Gates has always been a creator, and few people give him the credit for being a ‘caregiver’ that his charitable work deserves. Steve Jobs on the other hand, was the archetypal ‘outlaw’. Richard Branson is the ultimate chameleon, and perhaps more than any modern business figure, has learned how to meet most of his needs in balance: ‘jester’ (as his publicity stunts have shown), ‘outlaw’ and ‘warrior’ (as demonstrated by his battle with BA) but also ‘regular guy’ (in woollen jumpers) and ‘explorer’ (flying around the world in a balloon). If he has any gaps it is, perhaps, in the area of certainty and comfort!

So, thinking about your own brand, which archetypes do you use most frequently?
Which ones are you most authentically able to demonstrate? And which are your weakest?