When I first started at my current company, all of the new employees, including myself, took the MBTI® assessment to learn about ourselves and how better to communicate with colleagues. I had preferences for INFJ, and I remember thinking to myself as I read the type description and attributes, “This is almost creepy how well this type describes me.” Then we learned about the four mental processes that make up each MBTI type (these are different from your individual letter preferences, but more a...

In my previous post, we talked about how to write your career mission statement to help guide you as you explore potential career options or think about switching careers. MBTI personality type can’t explain everything about you, and it can’t tell you what your interests are or what you’re skilled at (there are other assessments out there that can help you discover those things). But MBTI type is a tool to help you see how the parts of your personality you’re born wi...

As they say, find something you love to do and you’ll never have to work a day in your life. If you’re like most people, no matter how much you love to do something, eventually it will feel like work on some days. But that doesn’t mean that it can’t be enjoyable most of the time. In the past few blogs we’ve dug into both inspiration and motivation—both topics that can be directly related to your career development. In addition, knowing your MBTI personality ty...

Setting and achieving goals is a cornerstone of meaningful accomplishment and a great way to transition your motivation into action. However, the MBTI® instrument shows that people go about setting and reaching goals in very different ways. Preferences for either judging (J) or perceiving (P) indicate how we like to organize our world: Js prefer to live in a planned orderly way, making decisions and coming to closure early on, and sticking to a plan while for Ps a lot of this sounds good in theo...

Certain parts of motivation are universal. To get someone to do a job, it’s usually necessary to pay them for their work. Achievement, recognition, and satisfaction with the work itself are motivating to almost everyone. As Maslow articulated (take a look at our first blog to learn more about Maslow), until basic needs like food, clothing, and shelter are sufficiently met, these needs will always be the first motivation before other needs like self-actualization and social needs become motivatin...

Thirty four percent of people employed in the United States are considered engaged in their work, according to a recent Gallup poll. In this survey, being engaged in their work means being fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about what they’re doing, and this person often takes positive action to help the organization move forward because of their mindset. Are you part of the 34%? While 34% is a new high in career engagement, it also means that 66% of people are not engaged. In other words,...

We’ve talked a good bit so far about inspiration, what that means and how you can use knowledge about your MBTI type to help you find inspiration and also find time for inspiration, but what about passion? Is passion different from inspiration? According to dictionary.com, the word inspire means “to fill with an animating, quickening or exalting influence, to fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.” Passion on the other hand (in the context we’re talking about) means “a strong or ...

I had a dream once where an animal reminded me to engage in “experiences that nourish the soul,” experiences that inspire me and remind me who I am. Great advise, but with so many things on our plate how do we find time to be inspired? MBTI® type preferences can give us a lot of insight into how we can make time to be inspired in a way that’s most comfortable and enjoyable for us. My type preferences play a big part in my actually finding time for inspirational recharge, and as I share below abo...

Now, last but not least, let’s explore the intuition functions. First I’ll cover what those with an ENFP or ENTP preference (those who prefer extraverted intuition) find inspiring followed by INFJ and INTJ (those who prefer introverted intuition). Extraverted intuition is the dominant function for those with an ENFP or ENTP preference. This is best described as noticing patterns as they emerge, exploring multiple options and seeking potential possibilities. If this is your dominant function y...

In my last post, we explored how those with an ESTJ and ENTJ preference are inspired. Now, let’s delve into what fuels inspiration for individuals with an ISTP and INTP preference. These two MBTI types share the dominant function of introverted thinking. You’ll see how these individuals also have a Thinking preference, yet are inspired very differently from someone with an ESTJ or ENTJ preference. Introverted thinking is best described as adhering to impersonal principles and analyzing a probl...