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Yeah, OK, so anyone who has ever met me, let alone taken the time to get to know me, will have a pretty good idea that I am much more of an introvert than extrovert. There just has never been any question of that! Other aspects of my personality, though, apparently can be a little less obvious...
This has come to my attention as a result of some personality profiling we recently participated in at work. Apparently, there are some "communication issues" in our team, so the powers-that-be decided that personality profiling may help us to learn to communicate better with each other.... (the members of my team are in agreement: we all get along great, and work together quite well. It's the communication with the team leader that is problematic!)
Never-the-less, we all took the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator. Tell me if you agree with what M-B says about me:
- Insightful, conceptual, and creative (creative?)
- rational, detached, and objectively critical
- likely to have a clear vision of future possibilities (not sure about that one!)
- apt to enjoy complex challenges
- likely to value knowledge and competence; apply high standards to themselves and others
- independent; trust their own judgements and perceptions more than those of others
- usually seen by others as private, reserved, and hard to know
I won't argue with that last descriptor - I've been accused in the past of acting "snobbish". A lot of people never realized that I was actually painfully shy, and just didn't know how to act around people I didn't know. (you know, your classic introvert!)
I was actually surprised to hear from my Mom that the M-B type I wound up with was just like hers, the first time she did the M-B. I have always thought that my personality was very much like my father's, with the main difference being that he's a total extrovert. But, I guess the more I think about it, the more similarities I see between me and my Mom.
I had to question some of the results of this "testing", though. When they went through the descriptions of the various aspects of the profiles (ie. extrovert vs introvert, sensing vs. intuitive, thinking vs feeling, judging vs perceiving), there were times when I couldn't decide which I should be, because I had strong tendencies on both sides. For example, Judgers like a planned, organized, structured environment, something which I thrive in, but Perceivers take a long time to make decisions because they weigh every option, and look at every possibility, which is certainly one of my characteristics. Hmmm..... (M-B has me listed as a Judger)
I guess what it all boils down to, there are ranges and variations within the personality types, and no one "test" is going to get everything 100% correct. (I mean, come on, the M-B had one of the most introverted members of our team listed as an extrovert!!) It does help, though, to give some insight as to why some people react certain ways in certain situations, and helps us to understand them better, if we're willing to make the effort to understand them. All this is for naught, if we've got a personality trait like, "Trusts their own judgements and perceptions more than those of others"! I know only too many people who use the excuse of, "that's just the way I am, and I'm not going to change!" argh.
One thing I know I've done over the years, is I've learned to encorporate aspects (preferrably the positive ones) of other personality types. I've learned not to criticize so much, and to do my best to pick out the positive as well as the negative when giving someone feedback. I've learned to temper the way I say things, so as not to be offensive in my delivery. I've also learned to be a little more out-going.
Some things will never change, though. Let's face it! Deep down, I'll always be a classic, stubborn introvert, who thrives on structure and routine, and who will always be her own worst critic!!
This has come to my attention as a result of some personality profiling we recently participated in at work. Apparently, there are some "communication issues" in our team, so the powers-that-be decided that personality profiling may help us to learn to communicate better with each other.... (the members of my team are in agreement: we all get along great, and work together quite well. It's the communication with the team leader that is problematic!)
Never-the-less, we all took the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator. Tell me if you agree with what M-B says about me:
- Insightful, conceptual, and creative (creative?)
- rational, detached, and objectively critical
- likely to have a clear vision of future possibilities (not sure about that one!)
- apt to enjoy complex challenges
- likely to value knowledge and competence; apply high standards to themselves and others
- independent; trust their own judgements and perceptions more than those of others
- usually seen by others as private, reserved, and hard to know
I won't argue with that last descriptor - I've been accused in the past of acting "snobbish". A lot of people never realized that I was actually painfully shy, and just didn't know how to act around people I didn't know. (you know, your classic introvert!)
I was actually surprised to hear from my Mom that the M-B type I wound up with was just like hers, the first time she did the M-B. I have always thought that my personality was very much like my father's, with the main difference being that he's a total extrovert. But, I guess the more I think about it, the more similarities I see between me and my Mom.
I had to question some of the results of this "testing", though. When they went through the descriptions of the various aspects of the profiles (ie. extrovert vs introvert, sensing vs. intuitive, thinking vs feeling, judging vs perceiving), there were times when I couldn't decide which I should be, because I had strong tendencies on both sides. For example, Judgers like a planned, organized, structured environment, something which I thrive in, but Perceivers take a long time to make decisions because they weigh every option, and look at every possibility, which is certainly one of my characteristics. Hmmm..... (M-B has me listed as a Judger)
I guess what it all boils down to, there are ranges and variations within the personality types, and no one "test" is going to get everything 100% correct. (I mean, come on, the M-B had one of the most introverted members of our team listed as an extrovert!!) It does help, though, to give some insight as to why some people react certain ways in certain situations, and helps us to understand them better, if we're willing to make the effort to understand them. All this is for naught, if we've got a personality trait like, "Trusts their own judgements and perceptions more than those of others"! I know only too many people who use the excuse of, "that's just the way I am, and I'm not going to change!" argh.
One thing I know I've done over the years, is I've learned to encorporate aspects (preferrably the positive ones) of other personality types. I've learned not to criticize so much, and to do my best to pick out the positive as well as the negative when giving someone feedback. I've learned to temper the way I say things, so as not to be offensive in my delivery. I've also learned to be a little more out-going.
Some things will never change, though. Let's face it! Deep down, I'll always be a classic, stubborn introvert, who thrives on structure and routine, and who will always be her own worst critic!!
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