I’m sure most of you have at least heard of something called the Myers-Briggs personality test. For those who aren’t entirely familiar with what that is, the Myers-Briggs personality test is a questionnaire based on Carl Jung and Isabel Briggs Myers’ personality type theory that helps you pinpoint which of the 16 groups you fall into. Analysis of your results can help you better understand which careers and occupations are typically most suitable for your individuality; recognize famous and fictional personas who share the same defining characteristics; and assess your compatibility with other types.
The way the test works is as follows: you answer a series of questions meant to assess what dominant qualities you possess and then given a unique combination of four letters representing your personality type:
1. How do you interact with your environment?
a. Introverted (I): your main source of energy is your internal world. b. Extroverted (E): your source and direction of energy is in the external world.
2. How do you perceive information?
a. Intuitive (N): you tend to focus on what is possible rather than what is real, favouring ideas, possibilities, and abstract thought. b. Observant (S): you focus on what is in front of you and prefer to deal in facts as opposed to theories.
3. How do you process information?
a. Thinking (T): you make your decisions mainly through logic. b. Feeling (F): you make your decisions based on emotions and are known to have rather strong values and beliefs
4. How do you implement information you have processed?
a. Judging (J): you enjoy strict organization and sticking to the plan over going with the flow b. Perceiving (P): you are inclined to improvise and always explore alternative options
As someone who’s been scored as INFJ, the rarest personality type making up less than 1% of the population, the Myers-Briggs test was an incredibly interesting way of reading a psychological evaluation of my key traits. It is definitely a wonderful thing to feel understood, and many people who have been sorted into a category that they identify with have claimed to find their results startlingly accurate.
Although taking a personality test can be both fun and enlightening, at the end of the day, it is important to keep in mind that no test will ever be complex enough to truly capture every part of who you are. Human beings are far too dynamic and multifaceted to be compartmentalized in a neat little category or made to sit on a clearly labeled shelf. So, embrace every opportunity to discover more about who you are but never rely on any metric to know you better than you know yourself.
Take the test here: https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test