Your Personality and Business

My early education and work experience was in engineering so it took me a while to recognize the importance of people skills. However, in business (and life) people skills are often the difference between success and failure.

There has been a lot of research in this field. The work I have found most useful (as well as fun and interesting) is base on the Myers-Briggs personality test. One specific work is by Otto Kroeger called “Type Talk at Work” and it’s at your library.

Here’s what it’s about. Our personality or temperament can be divided into 4 separate groupings.

The first is how we get our energy or focus our attention. In this group we either have extroversion (E) or introversion tendencies (I). E’s focus energy outward, act when they are in doubt, prefer to be around other people, and have a breadth of interests. I’s focus energy inward, prefer to be alone, have deep interests, and like a quiet atmosphere.

The second group is how we acquire information. Here we prefer sensing (S) or iNtuition (N). (I was taken). An S pays attention to facts, likes standard ways to solve problems, is patient with details, and enjoys using skills already learned. N’s talk about several things at once, like new solutions, are impatient with details, and enjoy using new skills.

Do you see yourself yet?

The third category is how we make decisions. Here we are either Thinking (T) or Feeling (F). T’s decide things logically, stay cool and calm, want justice, and don’t need harmony. F’s use personal feelings for decisions, prefer harmony, can put themselves in others’ shoes, and avoid conflicts.

Finally, you prefer either Judgment (J) or Perception (P). J’s like to plan, don’t like surprises, finish one project before starting another, and thrive on order. P’s like to be flexible, can deal easily with the unexpected, like starting many projects, like to keep options open, and thrive on spontaneity and creativity.

In order to find out whether you’re an E, I, S, N, T, F, J, or P you take a little test of 70 simple questions. The test is found in most references.

First of all let’s be clear. These are tendencies. Most people have some of each category. Also there is no right or wrong, no better or worse category.

Once you find out what type you are, you recognize how you do things. More importantly you recognize how others do things and it’s OK. It’s just how you are.

This can be used in business. Research has shown, for example, that a manager who is an S and a J has certain strengths. These include being a stabilizer, a great organizer, reliable, and a hard worker. But weaknesses include resistance to change, impatience, competitive, critical, and negative.

A manager who has N and F tendencies will be a democratic leader, be interested in people, charismatic, and patient with complexities. However, weaknesses include playing favorites, being overly helpful, not being able to handle criticism, and the avoiding of unpleasantness.

There are many combinations but what all this provides is a basis for knowing your strengths and weaknesses in dealing with people. Also, we need different types to solve problems, and run a good business. Creative people need those that are organized to get things done. Great organizers need creative people.

So, help your business and get to know yourself. Find out if you are an ISTJ, an INFP, or an ENTP.

This article was written by Seattle SCORE Chapter member Fred Parkinson for the Kitsap Sun in Bremerton.