Member-only story
From ENTP to INTP to INFP
Flaws and Problems with Myers-Briggs
As most humans working for corporate America in the last several decades, I know my Myers-Briggs type. As a student of psychology, I also see its limits.
Even with its flaws, I'm still a fan.
In the early days of my first management position, a friend, who knew of my struggles with my new job, sent me information on Myers-Briggs. I think it saved me. Having an accepted language to talk about and begin to understand our team members' differences was immeasurable help — especially for me, a female INTP. According to Career Planner, only 1.7% of the female population is an INTP, so it was no wonder my team, and I were rubbing each other the wrong way — expectations were being disappointed.
As my exploration of psychology and sociology has expanded, my understanding of the limitations of the Myers-Briggs and other corporate-sponsored personality tests has increased, but I'm still a fan.
There is enormous value in a diverse workforce in providing a tool that helps co-workers understand their differences and similarities. Myers-Briggs provides a touchstone from which groups can discuss personality, learning, and working styles without assigning value; for the most part, its language is natural.
For lack of an "F."
My Myers-Briggs has changed over time. The first time I took it, in a Project Management Class, I was just over the line separating Introvert and Extrovert. Ten years later, I was solidly an Introvert. Another decade in, and I am just over the Feeling/Thinking line — something that is more about the lessons learned on my career path than who I am. As a woman, I am more acceptable if I Feel than if I Think.
I am a 'woman of a certain age' now, not that I ever imagined getting this far, and the slings and arrows mostly bounce off. But there was a time when being different was almost unbearable. I remember a devastating performance review for my first management position. I sat there, stunned for several minutes, my heart racing, trying to see my boss and team's points of view, trying to take it in, assimilate it, and provide a response that wasn't defensive.
