Moving Forward With MBTI

After a couple of years approaching life and work through a particular strategic framework, I’m transitioning into a new set of lenses that feels more authentic and applicable. I’ve been a little “stuck,” and so this is a great time to shake things up.

I’ve leveraged the three buckets of “health, “family” and “vocation” as strategies—with corresponding daily and weekly tactics—for pursuing any goal that has come to mind. “Health” has included emotional, physical and spiritual aspects; “family” is basically what it sounds like; and “vocation” has encompassed learning, networking and my work in writing, consulting, coaching and facilitating. This plan made sense to me, and I shared the approach with many others as a holistic tool for encouraging their own purposeful living.

I now find that my home-grown tool is being transcended by an oldie but goodie: the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) instrument, around for decades and grounded in (but by no means limited to) the work of Swiss psychologist Carl Jung. The instrument helps people gain clarity on their innate preferences within eight fundamental patterns of mental activity. After answering a set of questions in which participants are asked to choose between two “psychological opposites,” they receive one of 16 four-letter “types” to explore for deeper understanding and application. Each type is valuable in and of itself, identifying normal human preferences and behaviors.

For many years I’ve been casually familiar with my “type” and the rationale behind the MBTI. Other tools such as StrengthsFinder and DiSC have proven valuable to me as well; I’m certified in the former, which is an effective coaching process popular in organizations.

Recently, however, I took a deep dive into the MBTI and became a certified practitioner after weeks of study and four intensive days of training at Nashville’s Belmont University. I can now administer the instrument and interpret it for other persons. This will certainly have professional benefits; but the most valuable aspect so far is the cluster of epiphanies I’ve had about myself. Deeper grounding in the dynamics within my MBTI type—which happens to be INFJ, for Introversion-Intuition-Feeling-Judging—is providing more perspective on my life’s journey and the choices I am leaning toward here in the middle years. It also has freed me of some common assumptions, especially regarding semantics.

INFJs tend to be characterized by enjoying the exploration of ideas and possibilities for the sake of ultimately serving others well. They often are writers, ministers, human resources professionals, teachers or counselors. The intuitive dimension (how we perceive information) is the most dominant and is usually introverted, like the massive portion of an iceberg below the surface of the sea. The feeling dimension (how we prefer to make decisions) is the second most-dominant, and is usually extraverted: the tip of the iceberg seen by others.

I’m now looking at all of life through the INFJ self-understanding. My “strategies,” therefore, are no longer segmented as “health,” “family” and “vocation” because these important slices of life are seamlessly incorporated into all of my innate preferences.  For example, my manner of being particularly energized by the inner world (introversion) is applicable to how I deal with my emotions, exercise, pray, interact with my family, approach my work, pursue continuing education, etc. Likewise, my inborn preference for intuition applies to my approach to these same behavioral areas, as do my preferences for feeling things deeply and being rather structured.

The goal of taking the MBTI? I believe it is two-fold: consciously being more aware about one’s innate preferences, and intentionally flexing one’s behavior toward holistic health and effectiveness.

If you have not taken the full-blown MBTI, I encourage you to make this small investment. There are limitless implications to more fully owning how you’ve been hard-wired, and leveraging this enhanced understanding for stronger relationships, career pursuits and general peace and happiness. I would be delighted to be a resource for you, should you be interested in learning more.