“Understand Your Personality Type through MBTI” - Professor M.S.Rao

"One cool judgment is worth a thousand hasty councils. The thing to do is to supply light and not heat." - Woodrow Wilson

We often judge others but it is essential to understand ourselves first.  In this chapter, we will discuss various personality types based on Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).  In 1921, Swiss psychologist Carl Jung (1875-1961) published his work Psychological Types.  In this book, he suggested that human behavior is not random.  He opined that behavior follows patterns, and these patterns are caused by difference in the way people use their minds.  In 1942, Isabel Briggs-Myers and her mother, Katherine Briggs, put Jung’s theory into practice. They developed the Myers-Briggs Type Indicators which has been copyrighted.  This is the origin of MBTI.

MBTI contains 16 personality types which are combinations of E/I, S/N, T/F, and J/P where E for Extroversion, I for Introversion, S for Sensing, N for Intuition, T for Thinking, F for Feeling, J for Judging, and finally P for Perceiving.  MBTI helps you find out your study habits and helps you make your career decisions wisely.

The category of E/I deals with the way we interact with others, and the world around us.  Extroverts prefer to live in the outside world, drawing their strength from other people.  They are outgoing and love interaction.  In contrast, the Introverts draw their strength from the inner world.  They need to spend time alone to think and ponder. They are usually quiet and reflective.

The category of S/N deals with the way we learn and deal with information.  Sensing types gather information through their five senses.  They have a hard time believing something if it cannot be seen, touched smelled, tasted, or heard.  They like concrete facts and details. In contrast, Intuitive types are not very detail-oriented.  They can see possibilities, and they rely on their gut feelings. Usually they are very innovative people.

The category of T/F deals with the way we make decisions.  Thinkers are very logical people.  They don’t make decisions based on feelings or emotion. They are analytical and sometimes don’t take others’ values into consideration when making decisions. In contrast, Feelers make decisions based on what they feel is right and just.  They like to have harmony, and they value others’ opinions and feelings.  They are usually very tactful and diplomatic people who like to please others.  They are very warm people.

The category of J/P deals with the way we live.  Judgers are very orderly people.  They must have a great deal of structure in their lives.  They are good at setting goals and sticking to their goals.  They are the type of people who would seldom, if ever, play before their work was completed. On the other hand, Perceivers are just the opposite.  They are less structured and more spontaneous.  They don’t like timelines.  They play before their work is done. 

Here are the suggestions for all these categories: The Extroverts must work on listening skills and ensure that others contribute to their group.  The Introverts must get involved in a study group from time to time and must share their opinions and advice with others more often. The Sensors must try to think about the information in an abstract form and think about the information in the future tense. The people who are Intuitive must work on becoming more detail-oriented and look at information through the senses. The Thinkers must try to see information and data in more abstract terms and look for the “big picture.”  The Feelers must strive to look at things more logically and work to stay focused. The Judgers must take their time in making decisions and look at the entire situation before making a judgment. Finally, Perceivers must become more decisive and finish one project before they begin another.

There is nothing like good or bad personality.  Only thing you must learn is that people are different with different talents and skills. All these personality types change with age, experience and the nature of work one enters into.  There is a possibility of extroverts becoming introverts, sensors becoming intuitors, thinkers becoming feelers, judgers becoming feelers and vice versa over a period of time.  There are online tests to find out your personality type, and of which MBTI is one of them. You must undertake this test to understand what kind of person you are and what kind of career you fit in to excel personally, professionally and socially.

“The art of being yourself at your best is the art of unfolding your personality into the man you want to be. Be gentle with yourself, learn to love yourself, to forgive yourself, for only as we have the right attitude toward ourselves can we have the right attitude toward others.” - Wilfred Peterson

Reference

Cornerstone Developing Soft Skills by Robert M. Sherfield, Rhonda J. Montgomery and Patricia G. Moody Pearson Edition 2010

Professor M.S.Rao

Founder, MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Email: profmsr12@gmail.com

Blog: http://professormsrao.blogspot.com

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