Behavioral Profiles-Focus on Myers-Briggs

Submitted by roy on Sun, 11/16/2008 - 14:35.

Are you familiar with behavioral profiles like Myers-Briggs and DISC? Both have been used by businesses for many years. There are others in use, but they are fundamentally the same. In this post, I'll focus on Myers-Briggs.

Myers-Briggs was published in 1962 after years of research and became the de facto personality indicator for businesses around the world. It is still used today, though others like DISC have become as popular.

Myers-Briggs provides insight into four pairs of preferences. They are:

Extraversion	Introversion
Sensing	iNtuition
Thinking	Feeling
Judging	Perceiving

The first is a preference for being Extroverted (more outgoing) or Introverted (less outgoing). According to Myers-Briggs, extraverts desire breadth and are action-oriented, while introverts seek depth and are thought-oriented.

The second and third preferences are related to perception-how new information is understood and interpreted and judgement-how we make rational decisions. Sensing and iNtuition are how we interpret the information we receive. There are those that rely on their senses-they rely on what they can see and touch. They want data. Those that rely more on intuition tend to trust information that is theoretical or abstract. They look at how the data relates to the theory or pattern.

Thinking and Feeling are decision making functions and are used with Sensing and iNtuition to make decisions. Those with a Thinking preference tend to rely on logic and "cause and effect". Those with a Feeling preference tend to decide by looking at an issue from all sides and may associate or empathize with the situation.

Last are the lifestyle preferences of Judging and Perception-how we look at the world around us. Those that judge tend to see the world as concrete (options are closed), while those that perceive see it as abstract (options are open).

Based on this work, there are 16 types. They are:

ISTJ
Quiet, serious, earn success by thoroughness and dependability. Practical, matter-of-fact, realistic, and responsible. Decide logically what should be done and work toward it steadily, regardless of distractions. Take pleasure in making everything orderly and organized – their work, their home, their life. Value traditions and loyalty.

ISFJ
Quiet, friendly, responsible, and conscientious. Committed and steady in meeting their obligations. Thorough, painstaking, and accurate. Loyal, considerate, notice and remember specifics about people who are important to them, concerned with how others feel. Strive to create an orderly and harmonious environment at work and at home.

INFJ
Seek meaning and connection in ideas, relationships, and material possessions. Want to understand what motivates people and are insightful about others. Conscientious and committed to their firm values. Develop a clear vision about how best to serve the common good. Organized and decisive in implementing their vision.

INTJ
Have original minds and great drive for implementing their ideas and achieving their goals. Quickly see patterns in external events and develop long-range explanatory perspectives. When committed, organize a job and carry it through. Skeptical and independent, have high standards of competence and performance – for themselves and others.

ISTP
Tolerant and flexible, quiet observers until a problem appears, then act quickly to find workable solutions. Analyze what makes things work and readily get through large amounts of data to isolate the core of practical problems. Interested in cause and effect, organize facts using logical principles, value efficiency.

ISFP
Quiet, friendly, sensitive, and kind. Enjoy the present moment, what’s going on around them. Like to have their own space and to work within their own time frame. Loyal and committed to their values and to people who are important to them. Dislike disagreements and conflicts, do not force their opinions or values on others.

INFP
Idealistic, loyal to their values and to people who are important to them. Want an external life that is congruent with their values. Curious, quick to see possibilities, can be catalysts for implementing ideas. Seek to understand people and to help them fulfill their potential. Adaptable, flexible, and accepting unless a value is threatened.

INTP
Seek to develop logical explanations for everything that interests them. Theoretical and abstract, interested more in ideas than in social interaction. Quiet, contained, flexible, and adaptable. Have unusual ability to focus in depth to solve problems in their area of interest. Skeptical, sometimes critical, always analytical.

ESTP
Flexible and tolerant, they take a pragmatic approach focused immediate results. Theories and conceptual explanations bore them – they want to act energetically to solve the problem. Focus on the here-and-now, spontaneous, enjoy each moment that they can be active with others. Enjoy material comforts and style. Learn best through doing.

ESFP
Outgoing, friendly, and accepting. Exuberant lovers of life, people, and material comforts. Enjoy working with others to make things happen. Bring common sense and a realistic approach to their work, and make work fun. Flexible and spontaneous, adapt readily to new people and environments. Learn best by trying a new skill with other people.

ENFP
Warmly enthusiastic and imaginative. See life as full of possibilities. Make connections between events and information very quickly, and confidently proceed based on the patterns they see. Want a lot of affirmation from others, and readily give appreciation and support. Spontaneous and flexible, often rely on their ability to improvise and their verbal fluency.

ENTP
Quick, ingenious, stimulating, alert, and outspoken. Resourceful in solving new and challenging problems. Adept at generating conceptual possibilities and then analyzing them strategically. Good at reading other people. Bored by routine, will seldom do the same thing the same way, apt to turn to one new interest after another.

ESTJ
Practical, realistic, matter-of-fact. Decisive, quickly move to implement decisions. Organize projects and people to get things done, focus on getting results in the most efficient way possible. Take care of routine details. Have a clear set of logical standards, systematically follow them and want others to also. Forceful in implementing their plans.

ESFJ
Warmhearted, conscientious, and cooperative. Want harmony in their environment, work with determination to establish it. Like to work with others to complete tasks accurately and on time. Loyal, follow through even in small matters. Notice what others need in their day-by-day lives and try to provide it. Want to be appreciated for who they are and for what they contribute.

ENFJ
Warm, empathetic, responsive, and responsible. Highly attuned to the emotions, needs, and motivations of others. Find potential in everyone, want to help others fulfill their potential. May act as catalysts for individual and group growth. Loyal, responsive to praise and criticism. Sociable, facilitate others in a group, and provide inspiring leadership.

ENTJ
Frank, decisive, assume leadership readily. Quickly see illogical and inefficient procedures and policies, develop and implement comprehensive systems to solve organizational problems. Enjoy long-term planning and goal setting. Usually well informed, well read, enjoy expanding their knowledge and passing it on to others. Forceful in presenting their ideas.

(Excerpted from Introduction to Type by Isabel Briggs Myers published by CPP. Inc.)

I work in an industry and company full of ISTJ and ESTJ types. I bring some balance to the group, because my preference is INFP. I see things "upside down" from the majority of the people I work with. Remember, these are preferences, not absolutes. I modify my style throughout the day, and I can tell you that many people at work are surprised that my type is not ISTJ or ESTJ.

I've learned how to deal with those that operate differently than me so that I can be effective. Knowing a little about how others function and how I tend to function is a tool that enables more effective interaction. If you manage people, I highly recommend this for you and your team. It's not perfect, but it helps.

Have you taken a Myers-Briggs survey? What's your type?

roy's blog
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