Myers Briggs Reexamined.

Madeline: ENFP
Jesse: ESTJ
Raquel: ESTJ
Drew: ENFJ
Carolyn: ISFJ

Before fully examining and discussing personality in class, the Myers Briggs typologies just appear to be random sets of four letters. You definitely ask yourself, “So I know my typology, but what exactly does that mean?” Well we can definitely say that the four letters mean a lot more than they appear.

We believe that most people assume that personality is the “end all, be all” when it comes to a person, or that because someone has a certain personality, their behavior will be consistent across all situations. As we learned in class, however, personality really more describes preferences and tendencies for how that person may engage with their environment and with peers.

As you can see from the list above, groups can have many different personality types. Because the types can vary, it is important, especially in the business world, to understand that people have differences in the way they work not only on tasks, but also with their coworkers. In order to be a valuable team member and/or leader, it is imperative that you recognize these differences so that you can utilize them in the proper way and create the most comfortable environment for the team member. If the person is comfortable, they are likely to be more efficient and productive in their work.

Check out Drew’s firsthand experience with this from the summer…

“During my summer work experience I observed the extent in which personality affected the way my co-workers performed their job.  My position as the manager of a retail complex meant I often had to instruct employees on how to perform certain tasks and duties.  Most of my time was spent working with two employees who were very different from each other in the way they learned.  By recognizing the differences in their learning preferences I was able to more efficiently develop their knowledge of the daily business activities. 

The first individual took immense care in performing her duties properly.  If she ever had any doubts about the correct way of conducting business she would simply ask questions.  I found that giving straightforward verbal instructions allowed her to quickly grasp what was required of her.  This allowed her to immediately ask follow up questions that were appropriate and often predicted what I was planning to explain next.  The exchange of information through a balanced verbal conversation was not only the way she was accustomed to learning but also the way in which she learned most effectively. 

The second individual was more independent then the first and preferred figuring things out on his own.  He was exceptional at observing and often learned how to perform certain duties without asking but by merely watching me perform them.  Although this meant he needed less instruction, he still recognized when it was appropriate to ask for help.  I found that with this employee explaining duties verbally was more inefficient than quickly demonstrating them.  His keen sense of observation allowed him to instantly learn the details of an activity by merely watching its execution. 

Examining the two workers under the Myers-Briggs framework also helps to explain their differences in learning preferences.  The first individual was most definitely and extrovert, sensor, feeler, and perceiver.  Her attention to detail, concern for emotions of those she engages with and willingness to examine all options helps explain her learning preference of thorough verbal communication.  The second individual was also an extrovert but differed in the remaining areas and was an intuitive, thinking, judger.  His concern for functionality and logic combined with his fast decision making explains why he preferred learning by quickly observing what was required of him. 

Although the verbal learner and the observational learner had different ways in which they preferred to be trained, both developed into valuable employees.  As extroverts, they both displayed great skill in customer relations which was the focus of their responsibilities.  They simply had vastly differing learning tendencies that can be explained by the remaining differences of their Myers-Briggs typology.  As a manager, recognizing and supporting these tendencies on an individual basis allowed for the business to run at its optimal level both in terms of efficiency and employee culture.”