We’ve
all heard the phrase “It takes all kinds (to make the world go ‘round’).” Even
though the world’s population exceeds seven billion, each of us is unique (even
identical twins/triplets/ quadruplets). Our real differences reside in our
personalities and whom we are, whether quiet or boisterous, meek or brave,
obnoxious or kind, social or introverted. Our personalities engender what
attracts and rebuffs us.
Despite
the “infiniteness” of human capacity and personality, Cherry (n.d.) shared that
Isabel Myers and Katherine Briggs categorized 16 basic personality types via
their Myers-Briggs type indicator (MBTI) “test” which bases its tenets on Carl
Jung’s theory of personality types. The MBTI is the most widely used evaluation
to define personalities. Cherry stated the MBTI is a “self-inventory designed to identify a person's personality type, strengths,
and preferences.”
Further, the MBTI is simply an
indicator of personality which does not judge any one personality better or
preferred than another. Cherry (n.d.) intimated MBTI empowers individuals to
understand and explore their personalities such as likes, dislikes, career
options, and compatibility with others. The assessment suggests personalities
are based upon four scales:
·
Extraversion
(E) vs. Introversion (I)
·
Sensing
(S) vs Intuition (N)· Thinking (T) vs. Feeling (F)
· Judging (J) vs. Perceiving (P)
The
evaluation is somewhat valid, but not fully reliable. Cherry (n.d.) offered
studies reflecting 40-75 percent of respondents received different results when
taking the “test” a second time.
For
me, taking the “HumanMetrics” evaluation reinforced a self-perception with
respect to my preferences and actions. My personality “graded” as I(ntrovert)
S(ensing)T(hinking) J(udging) which described me as “…reserved, practical and quiet. They (ISTJ)
enjoy order and organization in all areas of their lives including their home,
work, family and projects. ISTJs value loyalty in themselves and others, and
place an emphasis on traditions.” (Cherry, n.d.) ISTJ correctly indicates my
personality.
The
personalitypage.com website described
ISTJ as a “Duty Fulfiller.” Explanation focused on ISTJ personalities as quiet,
reserved, holding a sense of duty, and a commitment to complete tasks via being
organized and methodical. ISTJ have high expectations of themselves and others
which originate from a strong sense of duty which may result in working long
hours to complete a job. Alternatively, ISTJs tend to display reserved emotion,
but place great emphasis on family and friends. Personalitypage.com concluded that ISTJ types boast tremendous
potential and success for achieving their goals.
Personalitypage.com shared ISTJ
characteristics supported challenging, rewarding careers which rely on
commitment and thoroughness. ISTJ careers included military leaders, judges, law
enforcement, business executives, and medical doctors. As ISTJ, I am reserved,
yet committed to “finish the job.” As a matter of fact, most of my careers have
been serving as a military leader and commander. Military demands and rigors
match my personality type because I focus on mission while soliciting the
followership of subordinates. I operate best in orderliness, but can adapt as
necessary to overcome unforeseen challenges and opportunities.
My
25 years of military service was marked by 25 years of military leadership
whether supervising 2-3 Airmen or commanding 300-Airmen squadrons. In addition
to knowing and leveraging my strengths, I knew the personalities and
strengths/improvements of my squadrons. I assigned people to missions and
responsibilities based upon what their skills made possible. If I mismatched
personalities, mission degradation ensued. In fact, I supervised two senior
enlisted who suffered personality clashes and didn’t “get along” even when
disciplinary action was considered. These men had to work together because
their specialties and organizational requirements supported the mission.
However, after a few months, it was clear the workplace had become toxic. Their
subordinates “picked sides” of who they supported. I finally had asked one of
the members to leave. The work environment improved following his departure.
Knowing personalities in my units enabled me to assign aggressive leaders in
roles where they assertively, yet deliberately mentored their charges. In fact,
there were a couple of times I had to pull a couple of junior officers from leadership
roles because they just “weren’t prepared” to lead.
The
MBTI and HumanMetrics assessments posed circumstances and choices I experienced
everyday which made it easy for me to respond and build a personality pattern.
Now I’ve confirmed my strengths as well as my improvement areas enabling me to
strengthen both. My profession requires me to be thorough, detail-oriented, as
well as reflective and realistic. I plan unit movements and military exercises.
I frequently research how many forces will be positioned and where. I need to
determine how the HQ will feed and house forces as well as how it provides
re-supplies. These efforts require me to plan, coordinate, and collaborate with
dozens of other planners at headquarters and subordinate agencies.
Although
I’m reserved, my roles encourage me to engage with professional counterparts at
headquarters and subordinate units as well as with those internal to my unit.
Every year, I attend three command planning conferences as well as weekly
internal planning meetings to identify, coordinate, collaborate, and firm
requirements and support for a 4,000-person deployment and exercise. I cannot
afford to be reserved or let events get beyond my control. My ISTJ traits
demonstrate that I work outside of my “comfort zone” to complete the
job…otherwise, mayhem ensues with 4,000 people wondering where they’ll sleep,
work, or eat. I understand my reserved nature and its limitations in my job…and
simply focus on the end result (what has to get done) and not on the path to
get there (which is not reserved). It’s more important for me to complete my
mission in a thorough manner than to remain comfortable in my reserved nature.
I
enjoy the opportunities of leadership and mentorship more than I am comfortable
in my ISTJ traits. As a result, understanding my tendencies and then acting out
to oppose them in appropriate circumstances enables me to assertively lead and
plan major events. Additionally, I’m pursuing additional education and assertively
searching for training opportunities to bolster my professional resume. ISTJ is
who I am comfortable being, but not necessarily who I need to be if I’m going
to lead…and that’s fine by me.
References
Brown, D.
(2011). An experiential approach to organization development. Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Careers for ISTJ Personality Types. Retrieved from http://www.personalitypage.com/html/ISTJ_car.html
Cherry, K. The
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. About.com Psychology. http://psychology.about.com/od/psychologicaltesting/a/myers-briggs-type-indicator.htm
Portrait of an ISTJ. (n.d.) The Duty Fulfiller. Retrieved from http://www.personalitypage.com/ISTJ.html
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