Myers-Briggs Personality Theories

My personality type according to the Myers-Briggs personality test is Extraverted, iNtuitive, Feeling, Judging (ENFJ) (Jung, & Myers-Briggs, 2016). This is important to note especially in careers like mine where I am consistently required to interact with others. There are various personality types within my company. Understanding the differences among the various personality types will be beneficial as I progress into greater leadership roles. By contextualizing the information, I am learning from the readings, websites and lecture, I am able to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of my specific personality type and determine the best way to listen, approach, and communicate with others. Utilizing the biblical idea of covenant as a

Jung says, “Judging means that a person organizes all of his life events and, as a rule, sticks to his plans (Jung & Myers-Briggs, 2015).” I tend to fit into this category in my work life, but not necessarily in my personal life. As a full time employee, college student and single mother with five children attending four different schools, all of whom participate in extracurricular activities, it is impossible to always stick to a plan. My work life is a different story. Here I am highly organized and believe there must always be a contingency plan. It is important to use the theories of mutual accountability, which is “the process of a healthy organization-participant decision making,” and federalism, which is “the structure of a healthy organization where power is shared (Fischer, 2012).” Without applying these two theories, judgers may “form and express judgements” without input from others, which could negatively affect attitudes within the work environment (Jung & Myers-Briggs, 2015).
Judgers are also prone to bringing “closure to an issue” in order to move forward (Jung & Myers-Briggs, 2015).” This is not necessarily a negative trait; nonetheless, closing an issue prior to resolving the problem may result in greater conflict among coworkers. In order to prevent this at my place of work, I need to be more flexible with my coworkers and allow time for employee participation and

In general, I have learned not only that there are many more personality types than I originally thought, but also that I need to be more forgiving of other types. According to Kroeger, Thuesen, & Rutledge, “the most significant source of interpersonal tension at work” is derived from whether you are a judger or a perceiver. (Kroeger, Thuesen, & Rutledge, 2002, p. 41) As a judger, I like to make specific plans and follow through on them to completion. I am annoyed by coworkers and subordinates who seem as though they are flying by the seat of their pants. I like to make decisions, while perceivers tend to perpetually stall for information, while carrying a “wait-and-see” attitude. I need to be conscious of the perceiver’s differences and attempt to be more patient with employees with differing personality types. It was interesting to read that although I feel as though my personality type is the most productive and fair, “your strength maximized becomes a liability (Kroeger et al., 2002, p. 46).” In other words, I need to be willing to step out of my comfort zone while being careful not to neglect my own