MBTI and me.

What is MBTI?

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure how people perceive the world and make decisions. Based on the theories of Swiss psychiatrist, Carl G. Jung, in the 1920s, it was developed (in the 1940s) and published (in the 1960s) by a mother/daughter team, Katharine Cook Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers, with the aim of understanding the normal differences between healthy people.

“Whatever the circumstances of your life, the understanding of type can make your perceptions clearer, your judgments sounder, and your life closer to your heart’s desire” – Isabel Briggs Myers

Why would I take MBTI?

The MBTI helps you to explore and understand how you view the world and how you handle different situations. It helps you identify your motivations, your natural strengths and your potential areas for growth. It allows you to recognise the different ways that you and others process information and come to decisions and can be especially useful in building self-awareness, improving communication and dealing with stress.

How credible is it?

The best reason to choose the MBTI instrument to discover your personality type is that hundreds of studies over the past 40 years have proven the instrument to be both valid and reliable. In other words, it measures what it says it does (validity) and produces the same results when given more than once (reliability).

MBTI is recognised as the world’s most widely used personality tool with as many as 3.5 million questionnaires administered annually. It often forms part of personal and professional development programmes within organisations and can be used both individually and in groups.

So how does it work?

Based on the observation that differences in people’s behaviour results from their inborn tendencies to use their minds in different ways, the MBTI is structured along four pairs of opposites designed to sort you according to your main preferences:

• Energy: where you focus your attention – on the outer world (Extroversion) or on the inner world (Introversion)
• Information: how you gather information – through facts and figures (Sending) or through interpretation and connections (Intuition)
• Decisions: how you make decisions – based on logic and rationale (Thinking) or based on values and the impact on self and others (Feeling)
• Life Structure: how you deal with the outside world – coming quickly to decisions (Judging) or leaving options open (Perceiving)

When you decide on your preference in each category (using the questionnaire and a feedback session from a qualified practitioner), you have your own personality type expressed as a code with four letters. Your type indicates your preferences

How do I take it?

If you’re interested in using MBTI for yourself or your organisation, drop me a line or check out the MBTI page for details and rates (individual session). MBTI team workshops are also available.