The Value in Understanding Typology

As humans, we seem very similar. Our bodies work in similar ways, and we all have the same basic needs in order to survive. However, the way in which we prioritize those needs and our cognitive preferences are somewhat different. 

When working with others, many of us assume that we know the other person’s motives. We may find ourselves in unnecessary conflicts if we assume that everyone thinks the same way as we do, or notices the same things around them. 

Resolve Conflicts

These difference sometimes cause us to misjudge people, or create the wrong impression of ourselves and therefore get misjudged by others. Nobody likes feeling misunderstood or out of place, and everyone has something unique and valuable to offer. If the people around you don’t understand your personality, it can be difficult for them to appreciate your way of doing things. They might question your motives, ignore your ideas, criticize them, or even try to get you to change.

Find Your Place In The World 

By understanding your own personality type, you get to discover how your brain works, you discover that you are not alone, and that you are not completely flawed. You get to learn how to develop and leverage your unique strengths, and you learn to accept and work around your natural weaknesses. For example, you might be someone who is future-oriented, innovative and a big picture thinker - but get easily bored doing the more routined and detailed day-to-day tasks that are also necessary for your success. By understanding this about yourself - you can pick the right career that is suitable for you, or you can hire other personality types to help you get those mundane tasks done quicker. 

Self-Acceptance

Once you discover your personality type, you can begin to connect with like-minded people, and stop trying to change people who are different to you. You might feel relieved to discover that you are not crazy, and that there are places and careers in which your talents and skills are much needed. You can finally stop being so harsh on yourself about the struggles you face that other people perceive as petty or inconsequential and give yourself a break. Before I discovered my type, I thought that my need to express emotion or tears in front of people made me weak and vulnerable, and whenever I did so, I would beat myself up about it. Knowing now that that is a part of my personality and talking to other Feeler types like myself - I now see how this trait can be useful as well, in the right context. 

Appreciating Others

Knowing your personality can make you much more patient and understanding when dealing with other people. You begin to notice that people are not the way they are because they are trying to hurt you in any way, but because that is part of their personality. You then start to appreciate people for their unique strengths and can offer more compassion and forgiveness for their weaknesses. Knowing other people’s personality types can enable you to learn from others, encourage them to be their best, and delegate the right tasks to the right workers. It enables you to choose your interactions and relationships wisely, in a way that is beneficial to all parties involved.

Build Better Relationships

Knowing your personality type can help resolve conflicts in relationships, it can help us communicate better with one another and better understand our partners needs and values. You can learn to understand your partners perspectives and why they do what they do. Instead of viewing the other’s personality traits that differ from yours as problems they need to work on,you can learn to accept those traits, and forgive their actions with greater ease. 

By becoming aware of your differences, you become much more appreciative of them as a person. Once you have accepted your own personality, it also becomes easy to relate with people from all walks of life, it can make you feel more confident, accepted, understood and empowered to share who you are, and to let the world see you.

Your Map For Personal Growth

Your personality type can enable you to create a personalized plan for your personal development journey. You learn how your brain is wired, what your most natural state of being is, and which of your cognitive functions you need to develop. If you choose to go deeper in your research, you will discover your cognitive functions stack and how each affects your life and relationships. This can serve as a tailored map for your personal growth, as it can show you where you are, and what you need to work on in what order. You get to learn what you will most likely enjoy, as well as what to avoid by listening to advice from other people in similar situations who share the same personality as you.

The personality test that I recommend the most, is the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, which is one of the most popular and widespread personality assessment tools available today. It was first developed by Carl Jung and later perfected by Isabel Myers Briggs and is used in  many different fields and areas of psychology, sociology, career, team-building and personal development. 

You can take a free test now, to discover your 4 letter code that makes up your personality here. 

Undestand Yourself and Others 

Understanding interpersonal relationships is easy when a person understands himself or herself and the people that they motivate, manage, develop or help. Looking at one’s personality traits and temperament is the key to unlocking human qualities such as leadership, motivation and empathy.