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Using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator as a Personal Productivity Tool

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The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

A conversation started this weekend about the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. I promised to continue it, but before I do, some background might help. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator outlines our preferences for four categories of focus:

  1. Favorite World: Introvert or Extrovert — Do you prefer to focus on your inner world, or do you prefer to focus on the outer world?

  2. Information: Sensing or Intuitiion — Do you prefer to focus on basic information, or do you prefer to focus on adding value and interpretation?

  3. Decisions: Thinking or Feeling — Do you prefer to focus on logic and consistency first, or do you prefer to focus first on people and circumstances?

  4. Structure: Judging or Perceiving — Do you prefer to get things decided and to closure, or do you prefer to keep room for new information and possibilities?

All of us can do all eight. The indicator only points to our preferences — where we go first and where we would rather focus.

Finding our preferences adds to our self-awareness. It’s one more way to help manage our life and our business. If we know our preferences, we can keep our energy up and our stress level down — making opportunities for things we prefer does just that.

An introvert, who has a day of meetings, can schedule private time to regroup. An extrovert, who has a day of paperwork to get through, can schedule in a break to touch base with clients or colleagues.

More energy and less stress just by using what we know about ourselves. That makes the Myers-Briggs a personal productivity tool.

How might you change your work day based only on what you know about you?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Related articles
Who’s Talking about the Myers Briggs Tonight?

Other resources
If you want to seriously take the MBTI, the Myers & Briggs Foundation recommends Capt.org. It’s US$150 via email. If you want a taste of what the test measures, you might go to Humanmetrics. com
Keirsey.com They carried on the research.
Google Directory for Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
Type Logic Resources and software