I always tell my children that it is very important for career success to find a place where you can use your superpower - a special feature that distinguishes you from others. This highly individual history requires very deep detailed consideration and is well clarified in career coaching. But there is another tool that helps a person understand who he is and what he is best suited for, so as not to become that notorious microscope, objects hammer nails. This is Myers-Briggs testing (MBTI-test), based on Jung's typology in the 40s of the last century. Today, this test has become widespread among HR specialists of Western and Russian corporations and participants quite widely.

The MBTI test identifies 16 types of personal preferences - 16 combinations, consisting of four parological types:

• extroverts (E) / introverts (I),
• sensorics (S) / intuitions (N),
• logic (T) / ethics (F),
• rationals (J) / irrationals (P).
These pairs of preferences characterize the style of action, personality traits and decision-making, comfort of the situation and stress.

Of course, people are very complex. Describing us with just 16 combinations is impossible. If we imagine that the MBTI typology is an alphabet, we can say that every person is a whole novel written in this alphabet.

Then why do we even undertake to divide a friend by type, does it make sense?

I can say with confidence: "Yes."

First, the study of what properties we relate to gives us a better understanding of ourselves, a closer and deeper look. Understanding your best self is always good, especially if we are looking for a place where we will be as effective and successful as possible.

Secondly, and much more importantly, studying the MBTI typology gives us a very visual idea of ​​how much people differ from each other. Sometimes for the cooperation and successful outcome of the entire team or project, such an understanding can be critical.

In this article, we will not look deep into the study of psychology, we will consider different personality types according to MBTI from the point of view of a professional environment. What is important for us at work? What opportunities for growth, what limitations do we have? Why is it sometimes so difficult to find a common language with one of your colleagues? And how to interact when there is a person from the "foreign camp" on the other side?

Extroverts and Introverts: Two Cases of Getting Energy and Distributing Attention
○ EXTRAVERTS

What are they about. Whatever extroverts do, communication will always be extremely important for them: to agree with everyone, to convey the exact meaning. They are happy to convey ideas to people, regardless of whether these are their ideas or someone else's. Extroverts get energy from the world to gain the importance of feeling part of it.

Their motto is: there is no time to think, it is necessary to act.
Terms. Extroverts love to travel, business trips and meetings, they enjoy thinking about others and constantly organize rallies and meet. They are well behaved soon in open space and most of all receive remotely. For extroverts, contact is very important, so if there is no opportunity to go to the office, the lack of communication can compensate for zooms and Skype conferences.

Tasks. If you need to brainstorm, invite extroverts and it will be incredibly productive. This also applies to them.

Extroverts easily and with pleasure take control of the relationships in the group.
It is very important for them to engage in active work, then this work will bring pleasure.

○ INTROVERTS

What are they about. Introverts draw energy from within themselves, discovering, comprehending, remembering.

Their motto is: measure twice, cut once.
Communication is not their forte, they are often displayed delayed and detached, appearing or late in reacting to the actions of other people. They do not take responsibility for the development of love, it is preferable that this part is controlled by someone else.

Terms. Introverts work well in small groups. They are very productive when they spend more time at their workplace, in the office or at home. Introverts are focused on expressing their big thoughts. They, like air, need silence and solitude. And also - pauses to emerge to the surface and reboot. In working relationships, it is good to appear as a subordinate if they are treated with due respect and do not restrict freedom.

Tasks. Introverts are good at tasks that do not need to be solved spontaneously and on the spot.

The thing is that an introvert first thinks, thinks, and then also thinks. And only then does it work.
High concentration gives introverts superpower - the ability to solve any serious problem. They work effectively in the field of research, analysis, and systematization of data.

Sensors and intuits: collection and processing of information
○ SENSORS

What are they about. Sensors are those people who are always here and now. They accumulate facts and possibilities, work with an emphasis on the external world or from their own memory. They are very specific, not generalized, unverified data and practice, practice 

yut real thinking.

Terms. It is very important for sensors to set the task: everything should be as transparent and understandable as possible, clearly stated. There must be clarity in everything, and first of all in the result.

Patience, attentiveness, accuracy, consistency, concentration on problems affect sensory implementers.
Tasks. Sensors are always looking for practical solutions and great detail capabilities. They detect little things that pass by. They say about them: trees do not grow behind trees. But give them dimensions with particulars, and they will do it with a bang. They are good tactics.

○ INTUITS

What are they about. Intuits are located on the other side of the "abstract-concrete" boundary. Their abstract thinking is developed, and they are good at the basis of non-obvious relationships, hidden meanings and contexts. If “birch” for sensorics is sap, bark, tree, earrings, then for intuition it is rather the very idea of ​​a forest or nostalgia, for example.

Terms. It is very difficult for intuitives to be here and now - they quickly pay attention and interest, get confused in the details. They have an extraordinary imagination and do not recognize the framework. Formalities, procedures, order limit them. They open up when they get freedom in creativity and self-expression.

Freedom is generally the best fuel for which the intuitive works, for which he produces amazing, rare things.
Tasks. Intuition takes information from associations, relationships, experience and composition from this mixture of interacting, the situation is always pleasant from above. They look to the future and are good at forecasting. They are always looking for new ideas, think conceptually, risky.

Logic and ethics: different ways of making decisions
○ LOGIC

What are they about. This is the type of people for whom objective and logical characteristics are important, they do not recognize the voice of the heart and other arguments of a psycho-emotional nature. Impartial. Critical. They make decisions from a “true or not true” position.

Terms. Not very good at dealing with emotions and managing relationships. It is easy for them with numbers, facts, programs.

Tasks. They are good at analyzing information, reaching out to objectivity as a result of decision making. In general, they solve problems very well, live from task to task.

They have a high density of thinking, while their criticism is personal, so it is well perceived by emotions. It's always about finding weaknesses, about improvement that will lead to a solution.
They delve into the problem and are always looking for cause and effect.

○ ETHICS

What are they about. Ethics are connoisseurs of the soul complex, people with innate empathy. They have a highly developed emotional intelligence, they are good at revealing the reasons for the behavior of different people, they easily fit into someone else's skin and detect conflict on the side. They perceive very well different positions, different attitudes to problems, different points of view. For them, harmony in relationships is important, and not truth-truth. In valuation decisions, they are always based on valuable values. They make decisions from a “good or bad” position.

Terms. Ethics are very good at social connections, they are great at dealing with conflicts and managing people.

Tasks. Their forte is communication between people, and at a deep level.

They know how to give and sympathy quickly, they know how to praise and thank.
Often they come to them with requests for help and complaints. People seek their friendship and feel unaccountable sympathy for them, easily enter into intimacy.

Rationals and irrationals: organization of activities
○ RATIONALS

What are they about. Ordinary type people are glider people. They behave predictably, adore schemes and algorithms. They like to think and calculate everything in advance. Their solutions are always busy and closed.

They draw energy, bringing any business to the end. Rationalists say: if you do not know where you are going, you can get lost.
Terms. Stability is very important for them: chaos, spontaneity, unexpected changes kill them. They adore a measured, calm life and bypass adventure. Control is important to them.

Tasks. They are great at setting goals and making plans. In general, their common goal is order in everything. They are adept at tracking charts and moving towards a pursued sequence. You can hear from them: if you want to do everything, plan on time.

○ IRRATIONALS

What are they about. These are people who are ready to act as they go, very flexible. They draw energy from the last freedom, do everything in love in the moment, live spontaneously, try to experience everything and not looking for control over life.

They say seize the moment. And consider that if you don’t know where you are going, then amazing things can happen along the way.
Terms. Irrationals excel at working on tight deadlines, with a passion for project work. Don't panic when things go wrong and are ready for any change. They are highly sensitive and rigid in formal rules and procedures.

Tasks. People of this type perceive a lot of information at once, by feeling the channels. They are extremely multitasking. No restrictions, so as not to miss opportunities. They know a lot about pleasure. Good in prospects where uh

You need flexibility and responsiveness.

Successful teams are mixed teams
how strange and impossible we can be to each other. The introvert sees the extrovert as a plug in every barrel. On the other hand, for an extrovert, an introvert is slow and abstruse. The logician cannot explain the arguments of the ethicist and considers him too concerned about the opinions of others. The ethics of the human logician seems cold and unfeeling, extremely critical. The rational looks with horror at its irrationality, unattractive randomness, unpredictability. "He doesn't finish anything!" the rational says. And the irrational will see in the main tediousness and the desire to control everything around. Sensorik writes intuition into dreamers, far from reality. The intuitive will see limitations and usefulness in sensorics, which does not allow seeing the beauty of the idea as such.

Although there are obvious differences between us, most of the research: Collaborating with those who arrange distributions from us in a way, we collect by covering a larger range of possibilities, we find more options, including more voluminous, complete models.

There is only one thing left: to find a way to negotiate. And here I can advise you to learn to see and understand these differences. Do not consider your way of thinking, evaluating, choosing. See the success of a variety of cultures. Learn from others by expanding your own toolkit. Remember that by recognizing the otherness of each other, we do not put ourselves in a fight with our world, but become bigger and richer.