As an Introvert, do you find it challenging to share your ideas or thoughts with your boss or team? Have you ever wished that there was an app or guide to help Introverts navigate a relationship with an extraverted boss?
There’s an ebb and flow to navigating a relationship with your boss. However, work has the potential to become more complicated when the boss has an opposite style from yours.
I learned this the hard way.
Professional communication is vital in the business world. Sensing-Judging types -- the SJs of the 16-type personality system -- are adept at communicating important information clearly and concisely, and use it as a tool to move tasks along or educate others. Analyzing the overall goals of projects, we are quick to spot and fill in any gaps in information and use it to make sound, quick decisions.
Many of the ideals of achieving success in the business world are based on extraverted tendencies. The outgoing, sometimes brash individual that knows everyone and is constantly on-the-go is admired almost to the point of worship. Pursuing this extraverted ideal, however, can be exhausting for Introverts.
Everyone likes the security of being in control of their time and their environment, but some people like predictability more than others. Guardian personalities (ESFJ, ISFJ, ESTJ and ISTJ) are hard wired to seek out situations they can control, where they do not feel any risk and where "business as usual" reigns supreme. This preference sounds great on the surface, but it has a habit of binding Sensing-Judgers in imaginary shackles that prevent them from taking on any challenge that might not be successfully overcome.
You’re telling the room: any type can do anything. Personality theory is about understanding yourself better, playing to your strengths and broadening your horizons. It was never intended to pigeonhole anyone.
On the inside, you’re thinking. How can I, someone with a preference for Introversion, train groups of people as my job? My energy comes from in-depth, one-on-one conversations, not noise-filled, overstimulating group work. I’m much happier working and spending time alone.
Ah, the open plan office. It's to the 21st century what the cubicle farm was to the 1980s - everywhere. Today's employers are tearing down walls as a business imperative and with them, the barriers to communication and idea flow. Even freelancers are leaving their solitary kitchens and coffee shops. Formal co-working spaces, which offer pay-per-desk access to a community of like-minded individuals, are a mega-trend among the self-employed.
There's a myth that some people are creative and others aren't. This myth is perpetuated everywhere, from the world of art and literature to big business. Marketing departments employ "creatives" to come up with new ideas. Governments rely on "creative consultants" for fresh insights. Yet there's no reason why creativity should be limited to a type or a job description.
When asked to describe a great leader, which type of person springs to mind? The all-guns-blazing, exuberant networker? Or how about the dominant visionary who flips tradition on its head? Certainly not the understated loner who listens more than they speak, right?
In the terminology of personality type, sensors are hands-on people who prefer to process information about the world in terms of what they can see, hear, feel, touch, and taste. Intuitives, on the other hand, prefer to assimilate information about the world around them and process the data in an abstract, big-picture way. When they work together in an office, sensors and intuitives might find their working relationships rife with misunderstandings unless they can try to mutually understand and respect one another's differences. By doing so, they'll contribute to harmony in the workplace, fostering on office politics that are based on cooperation, not conflict.
Categories:
Personality At Work,
INFJ,
INFP,
ENFP,
ENFJ,
INTJ,
INTP,
ENTP,
ENTJ,
ISTJ,
ISTP,
ESTP,
ESTJ,
ISFJ,
ISFP,
ESFP,
ESFJ
Office politics is an umbrella term that encompasses many things. On one hand, it can refer to behavior whereby coworkers step on their colleagues in the interest of getting ahead at all costs. On the other hand, office politics at its best can describe a dynamic of cooperation, not competition. When colleagues vary in their personality types, understanding and empathy are the keys to cooperation, which enhances office productivity. Introverts and extroverts differ starkly in how they communicate and resolve disputes. Learning about personality typology can be a solid step toward promoting a greater sense of team spirit in an office environment.
Categories:
Personality At Work,
INFJ,
INFP,
ENFP,
ENFJ,
INTJ,
INTP,
ENTP,
ENTJ,
ISTJ,
ISTP,
ESTP,
ESTJ,
ISFJ,
ISFP,
ESFP,
ESFJ
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