1. Connecting Personality Type, Career, & Leadership

2. Facts About Worklife
The typical American may spend between 80,000 and 100,000 hours in a lifetime performing work-related duties. OUCH!
Our personal identity is very closely tied to our work.
I work to help people find an occupation that will help make those thousands of hours more enjoyable
When we meet new people for the first time, the first question asked is usually, “So…what do you do?”
How many people know someone who has been laid off after working for a company for many years? What affect did that experience have on their lives and their self-confidence?
How many people have worked in a job that they hated? How did that affect your quality of life when you were not at work?
Job satisfaction affects quality of life in and out of the workplace

3. Considering the number of hours we spend at work, how closely our careers are tied to our identity, and how work affects our personal life, achieving good job-fit is very important.

4. Knowing Yourself
In order to know whether or not a job or a volunteer activity suits you, you must know yourself.
Learning about your personality type is a great way to learn more about you.

5. What is Personality?
A set of personal characteristics that explain why people do what they do.
We consider personality when trying to understand ourselves and others.
Everyone (at varying times) can be like all other people, like some other people, and like no other person.

6. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
A personality assessment developed by mother-daughter team, Katharine Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers in the 1940s
Based on Carl Jung’s theory of personality type that was introduced in the 1920s
Very popular—over 2 million people take the MBTI every year

7. But I didn’t take the MBTI!
The assessment you took was free and easy to administer for the purpose of today’s retreat.
If, at some point, you would like to take the actual MBTI, contact Career Services.
To help you find your personality type easily and at no cost, we had you take an assessment that tests you on the same elements as the MBTI.

8. Not just for Career Choice
In addition to career development, awareness of personality type and the use of the MBTI can enrich our knowledge about the following aspects of our lives:
Learning
Providing professional service through work
Personal relationships
Personal growth
Many employers have job candidates take the MBTI as part of the interviewing process to see what kind of personality they have and whether it will work with the profession and the corporate culture.
Knowing what your personality type is and what others’ might be can help you interact more successfully with friends, family, acquaintances, and co-workers.

9. The MBTI Preferences Extraversion ---------------------- Introversion
Sensing iNtuition
Thinking Feeling
Judging Perceiving
Just take a minute and look at each of these preferences. You will learn their meanings shortly.

10. The MBTI Preferences
The MBTI assesses participants on 4 sets of preferences. There are 8 preferences, combining to make 16 personality types.
The names of the 8 preferences have a meaning in psychology that is different from the way they are used in everyday language.
Remember that these are PREFERENCES. You can behave both ways on each continuum, but you naturally prefer to act one way when you can.
Note also that these are continuums. You can have a clear, moderate, or slight score on each line. Someone who has a slight score may find that they can more easily behave in the way opposite of their preference when required.
Judging does not mean “judgmental” and Thinking does not imply that someone is more intelligent.

11. The MBTI Preferences Extraversion ---------------------- Introversion
Sensing iNtuition
Thinking Feeling
Judging Perceiving
EXTRAVERSION VS. INTROVERSION

12. Breaking Down the Preferences
Where do you direct your attention and where do you get your energy?
Extraversion Introversion
Prefers to get energy from active involvement in events and having a lot of different activities. Gets excited when around people and likes to energize others. Enjoys moving into action and making things happen. Generally feels at home in the world. Often understands a problem better when he or she can talk out loud about it and hear what others have to say.
Prefers getting energy from dealing with the ideas, pictures, memories, and reactions that are inside one’s head, in one’s inner world. Often prefers doing things alone or with one or two people with whom one feels comfortable. Takes time to reflect before acting or saying something. Sometimes likes the idea of something better than the real thing.
Descriptions from

13. The MBTI Preferences Extraversion --------------------- Introversion
Sensing iNtuition
Thinking Feeling
Judging Perceiving

14. Breaking Down the Preferences
How do you intake and process information?
Sensing iNtuition
Prefers to focus attention on impressions or the meaning and patterns of the information one receives. Would rather learn by thinking a problem through than by hands-on experience. Interested in new things and what might be possible. Thinks more about the future than the past. Enjoys working with symbols or abstract theories, even if it is not known how one will use them. Remembers events more as an impression of what it was like than as actual facts or details of what happened.
Prefers to focus attention on physical reality, what one sees, hears, touches, tastes, and smells. Concerned with what is actual, present, current, and real. Notices facts and remembers details that one thinks are important. Likes to see the practical use of things and learns best when sees how to use what one is learning. Experience speaks louder than words.
Descriptions from

15. The MBTI Preferences Extraversion --------------------- Introversion
Sensing iNtuition
Thinking Feeling
Judging Perceiving

16. Breaking Down the Preferences
How do you make decisions?
Thinking Feeling
Prefers to find the basic truth or principle to be applied when making a decision, regardless of the specific situation involved. Likes to analyze pros and cons, and then be consistent and logical in deciding. Tries to be impersonal, so one won’t let personal wishes--or other people’s wishes—influence him or her.
Believes one makes best decisions by weighing what people care about and the points-of-view of persons involved in a situation. Concerned with values and what is the best for the people involved. Likes to do whatever will establish or maintain harmony. In relationships, one tries to appear caring, warm, and tactful.
Descriptions from

17. The MBTI Preferences Extraversion --------------------- Introversion
Sensing iNtuition
Thinking Feeling
Judging Perceiving

18. Breaking Down the Preferences
What environments / lifestyle do you prefer?
Judging Perceiving
Prefers a planned or orderly way of life and likes to have things settled and organized. Feels more comfortable when decisions are made and likes to bring life under control as much as possible. People who prefer judging lifestyles like to tie-up loose ends and have closure.
Prefers a flexible and spontaneous way of life, and likes to understand and adapt to the world rather than organize it. Others see Perceivers staying open to new experiences and information. People who prefer perceiving environments feel uncomfortable when things are set it in stone. They enjoy starting projects but might not always finish them.
Descriptions from

19. Your Type
The four preferences in which you scored highest work together to create your personality type
ESTJ
ESTP
ESFJ
ESFP
ENTJ
ENTP
ENFJ
ENFP
ISTJ
ISTP
ISFJ
ISFP
INTJ
INTP
INFJ
INFP

20. What is Your Type? Look at your scores
Are your scores clear, moderate, or slight?
Do you agree with all four preferences?
If you do not agree with one or more of the preference scores, I encourage you to make an appointment with me. We can sit down and flesh out your results to come up with the most fitting type for you.
Does your current job fit your type? What about volunteer programs in which you are involved? How about your academic program?

21. Remember
We all must change our personality a little to make it through our daily lives…
But! When you work in a job that requires you to change your personality too much or too often, that is when that job becomes dissatisfying.
We have to get along with the boss. We have to not hurt others’ feelings, etc.
I score higher on the introversion preference, but my job sometimes requires me to be more extroverted. I can act extroverted and do a pretty good job at it, but it zaps my energy and I have to make a concerted effort to act in an extroverted way. It is not natural.
Remember that one job within the same occupation is not going to be the same. For example, I like creative, quiet activities best. The director of Career Services has allowed me to focus more on web design, graphic design, and writing for Career Services. Other career counselors who work at different campuses are better suited for other sub-duties such as event planning, employer relations, and marketing. Our director allows each person to stick with what they do best.
“Dropping your personality at the door” is no way to spend your worklife.

22. Leadership & Personality
Let’s take a look at how personality type and leadership styles might intermingle.
There are many different types of leaders. Some styles do not reflect what many think of as traditional leadership. See this example from the Strong Interest Inventory
The Strong Interest Inventory is another assessment career counselors use to help people choose occupations that fit them.
Notice how you do not have to tell people what to do and still be considered a leader? Example: If I come to work on time and maintain a professional rapport with clients, others will follow suit. The red diamond signifies this person’s score on the leadership continuum. This person’s style is a mix of these two with a slight preference for leading by example more often than directing others.

23. Leadership Styles
Different sets and theories regarding leadership styles abound. Let’s focus on this simple collection.
Directive Leadership
Achievement-oriented Leadership
Participative Leadership
Supportive Leadership

24. Leadership Styles
Directive- Leaders who use a Directive style tell subordinates what to do, how to do it and when.
Achievement-oriented- Leaders who use an Achievement-oriented style favor setting challenging goals. They care about excellence and performance levels, and motivate others by demonstrating confidence in others’ ability to achieve.
Participative- Leaders who use a Participative style prefer to confer with subordinates before making decisions.
Supportive- Leaders who use a Supportive style are most concerned with the well-being of subordinates and maintaining a friendly work environment.

25. Trash or Treasure?
What are the pros and cons of the leadership style you typically use?
Does your style work for everyone?
Do you think you should have to change your leadership style when working with different individuals?

26. Making the Connection Think about your personality type.
Can you see a connection of why you prefer to lead the way you do related to your type?
Think about this. How would an ESTJ probably prefer to lead others?
How would an INFP go about leading people?
There probably won’t be a perfect match always here, but I believe personality type can suggest what kind of leadership style one might take on.

27. Quiz Time! INFP ESTJ ISFP ESFJ Directive Achievement-oriented
Draw a line to match personality types to the likely favorite leadership style
INFP
ESTJ
ISFP
ESFJ
Directive
Achievement-oriented
Participatory
Supportive
Opinions may differ on these.

28. www.cpcc.edu/career alisa.notte@cpcc.edu
Next Steps
To further discuss and explore how personality type and leadership style affect your professional and career development, contact Career Services.