Whilst the test may not have much psychological merit and therefore should probably be taken with a grain of salt, I do find it a useful self assessment tool. There is also a wealth of reading online about how to work with a certain MBTI type. If I am aware of these potential negative behaviours and make my team aware them, they are more likely to be spotted and mitigated before they become an issue.

May be intolerant of weaknesses in others.

May have unrealistic and/or unreasonable expectations of others.

May look at external ideas and people with the primary purpose of finding fault.

May quickly dismiss input from others without really considering it.

May be unaware (and sometimes uncaring) of how they come across to others.

For example, some problem areas associated with INTJ types which I can definitely see in myself are: I find that the problem areas associated with a particular type is the most informative and helpful part, if acknowledged with an open mind and an intent to improve.

I tend to fluctuate between an INTJ and an ISTJ and I perceive that this is quite an accurate depiction of my working style. The fun part is reading through the description of your MBTI type and determining how much you agree or disagree with. Your preferences then make up your MBTI type. You complete a questionnaire designed to reveal your preference towards each of these contrasts. It is premised on the basis of four pairs of contrasts, in which you have a preference for one or the other in each pair. The MBTI describes people’s preferences for interacting with others, gathering information, making decisions and organizing their lives.

I do find that some of my results have changed over the years and that this is largely to do with the type of role I am and the types of responsibilities I am required to carry out at the time of testing. I emphasise that these tests are not personality tests, but rather preference tests, in that they identify your preference in the way you interact with others, make decisions, etc. I’m going to discuss two types of preference testing which we undertook as part of team building activities in the introductory week of my MBA. I have never been personality profiled as part of the employment screening process, however have definitely participated in one form of testing or another for the purposes of team building.

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