Personality Type Lenses and Life Influences

Since my introduction to type as a professional in 1992, knowledge about type has proven incredibly valuable in my home and work life. Using the multiple lenses of type (see Figure 1) my personality type code ENFJ, provides shorthand for capturing the following rich information.

Temperament Lens

The Systems theory of temperament provides valuable insight into WHY people do what they do. Temperament also connects with Type theory by the sharing of certain pairs of preferences. In assessing my best-fit temperament, I identify best with the driving forces of an Idealist/Catalyst (which also correlates to NF preferences in the Type code).

I enjoy developing people, want to feel special and need a purpose or meaning in my life. As an Idealist, my web of relationships is critical for my health and well-being. This was crystallized for me when, at age 29, my father died of a heart attack. At that time, he was the only other Idealist in my life. I was married to a Guardian and neither of my children were Idealists. I had a close network of friends but they also were from the other three temperaments. As a result, my sense of grief seemed to last a long time, as this critical relationship link was broken.

On the positive side, when I first became involved in training and development, it felt like I had found the role I was meant to do. This job really uses my passion for people and my ability to integrate concepts from various sources to make human development relevant for a variety of individuals. I had received positive feedback, on one of my first sales training programs, that one of my talents was in asking open-ended questions, using empathy and being able to present an acceptable point of view. Had I known my temperament at this time, I would have been able to self-diagnose this talent. It corresponds to the Idealist’s innate Diplomatic skill set: the ability to build bridges between disparate viewpoints.

Type Dynamics Lens

Jung’s cognitive processes give us great insight into how we think about the world around us: how we gather information and make decisions. Following the Beebe and Linda Berens model of hierarchy of functions, my Type code also provides the following information about me. (FYI, in Turning Team Performance Inside Out we identified names for each of the functions to make them more accessible to our business clients.)

Name	ENFJ Hierarchy	What this means to me
First Function (Adult) + Leading – Dominating	Fe: Extraverted Feeling – Harmonizing	I am able to create a safe learning environment when running training programs. I have the ability to read the group process really well and adapt delivery and content to optimize group learning.On the down side, If there is excessive conflict in the training room, I can become overly sensitive and emotional.
Second Function (Parent) + Supporting – Overprotective	Ni: Introverted iNtuiting – Visioning	When designing training programs I get a clear insight of the complete flow and outcome for the session.The challenge can be the time delay in waiting for the vision to become clear, and not understanding it when others do not see the outcome as clearly as I do.
Third Function (Child) + Relief – Unsettling	Se: Extraverted Sensing –Experiencing	I enjoy music and dancing for light relief. I also have a pretty good eye (better than my Guardian husband!) for whether an item will fit into a specific space.While I can enjoy using this in spurts, I find it difficult to sustain energy in this arena
Fourth Function (Balancing) + Aspirational – Projective	Ti: Introverted Thinking – Analyzing	I consciously use this function to balance my Extraverted Feeling – to step back and dissect what is really happening and why?Although throughout my life, the use of this function has provided me with a sense of inadequacy around logic: the classic “inferiority complex”.
Unconscious		Please note: Negative behaviors are described first as this is in the shadow side.
Fifth Function (Opposing) – Opposing – + Back up	Fi: Introverted Feeling –Valuing	When I receive poor customer service, this seems to cross my values about what is fair. As a result I tend to react aggressively to poor customer service. As is common with a function in the opposing position, this belief manifests itself in a confrontational way: the opposite of a productive Extraverted Feeling.On the positive side, this function enables me to stand up for what I want, rather than allowing the need for group consensus to dominate.
Sixth Function (Critical Parent)- Critical parent + Discovery	Ne: Extraverted iNtuiting – Brainstorming	When I am not able to accept new work (because I am booked or there is a conflict in dates) I observe Brainstorming making negative projections about the future: if I don’t respond to this piece of work, the client will never work with me again. A distorted reading of meaning as you can see!On the positive side moderating that voice can result in a more accurate assessment of the future picture.
Seventh Function (Trickster) – Deceiving + Comedic	Si: Introverted Sensing – Recalling	Dealing in practical realities has always been a struggle for me – tracking large amounts of sensory data causes me stress. I have learned to manage all the logistics at training programs – still the front table looks like a bomb has hit it by the end of the day!Conversely, I don’t remember the pain inherent in editing books, and so I continue the writing process – only my family remembers!
Eight Function (Demonic) – Devilish + Transformative	Te Extraverted Thinking –Systematizing	My worst job, which left me exhausted and depressed almost every day, was in managing inventory distribution for a calendar company. This job required me to use Systematizing and Recalling every day – my seventh and eighth functions – no wonder I struggled with this.On the positive side, when I feel overwhelmed, my way out, is to write everything down and organize it – a great example of how these unconscious functions can be used for positive results!

Interaction Styles Lens

The Interaction Styles is model helps to explain HOW we try to engage with others to meet our needs. I identify with the In Charge Interaction Style (which corresponds to ENJ in the Type Code). My perspective of my approach to life was that I was not a risk taker. After receiving feedback that moving to the US as a conscious life choice could be viewed as a risk (!) I reevaluated this presumption through the Interaction Style lens. I began to recognize my psycho physiological drive to take action in order to get an achievable result, supported by the belief that if things did not work, I would be able to change. This looks a lot like confidence and risk taking.

So using the three key type lenses has given me insights into talents I had that I was not aware of, so I could focus on these. In addition I could anticipate possible challenges to avoiding errors.