Just My Type | MBTI and Decision-Making | Sara Biren

 

I’m a big fan of MBTI®–Myers Briggs Type Indicator®, a system to help individuals identify preferences in how they gather information, give and receive energy, mentally process or use their minds, and make decisions–this month’s theme at YAOTL. The assessment asks questions regarding four main elements:

• E/I - Extrovert/Introvert: How to direct and receive energy; outer world or inner world
• S/N - Sensing/Intuition: How to take in information; do you focus on details or the big picture?
• T/F - Thinking/Feeling: Do you rely on logic (objective) or emotion (empathetic) to make decisions or conclusions?
• J/P - Judging/Perceiving: How do you approach the world around you? Do you prefer closure and completion or do you prefer to keep your options open and appreciate new information?

These preferences combine to become one of 16 personality types.

I first took the full assessment as a junior in college through my employment with the university housing department. When I got the results and read the description of my type (ENFP), something deep inside relaxed and let out a sigh of relief.

I felt validated. I finally had the correct terminology to describe who I’d known I’d been all along. I read everything about MBTI I could get my hands on: books like Type Talk, Type Talk at Work, 16 Ways to Love Your Lover. I “typed” my coworkers and my family members. I typed my dates and future husband (ENTP) and his family. Eventually, I typed our kids (INFP, ESFP). My husband’s into it now, too, and we type our friends, just for fun.

What spoke to me then (and still does today), what was so compelling and fascinating about MBTI, was that it gave me a framework for engaging with the world. How to interact and communicate with others, especially people who may not process or see things the way I do. At the same time, MBTI helps me understand myself, how I view situations, how I can best reenergize and take care of myself, and how I make decisions (typically with my heart and/or based on a gut feeling; I like to have a variety of options and explore them thoroughly, which often delays the process).

The average adult, it is said, makes a staggering 35,000 decisions in a day. Should I shower now or later or not at all? Should I have another cup of coffee? Should I hike at Evergreen Park or Lower Schuette? What time should I go to bed? Should I read another chapter? Most of the decisions in any given day won’t make a significant impact–although, over time, they might (I drink a lot of coffee. One might say I’m a caffeine addict. What’s one more cup?).

But some days, we face bigger, more significant decisions. As with any industry, writers face a variety of unique challenges and decisions: with the writing process, the publication process, marketing, and so many other things. Some are small and inconsequential while others are enormous and profound and could change the trajectory of a career.

Over the years, I’ve taken a variety of personality assessments: Enneagram (7), Insights Discovery™ (26: Motivating Inspirer), CliftonStrengths® (formerly StrengthsFinder), even Love Languages®, although I always return to MBTI for guidance and validation. I believe that learning about myself and how I process the world around me has made me a better person and a better writer–and helped me make important decisions along the way. 


What about you? Have you taken any of these personality assessments? Do you find them helpful?

"Just My Type" ~ Saint Motel