What is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator?

A powerful and versatile indicator of personality type, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) is the most widely used personality instrument in the world. Over three and a half million administrations are registered each year.

According to ‘The MBTI Manual, A guide to the Development and Use of the MBTI’ (1998)

‘The essence of the theory is that much seemingly random variation in behavior is actually quite orderly and consistent, being due to basic differences in the way individuals prefer to use their perception and judgment.’

What it measures:

The MBTI instrument describes an individual’s preferences on four dimensions. The person is either:

Extraverted Prefers to draw energy from the outer world of activity, people and things	or	Introverted Prefers to draw energy from the inner world of reflections, feelings and ideas
Sensing Prefers to focus on information gained from the five senses and on practical applications	or	Intuitive Prefers to focus on patterns, connections and possible meanings
Thinking Prefers to base decisions on logic and objective analysis of cause and effect	or	Feeling Prefers to base decisions on a valuing process, considering what is important to people
Judging Likes a planned, organised approach to life and prefers to have things decided	or	Perceiving Likes a flexible, spontaneous approach and prefers to keep options open

The various combinations of these preferences result in 16 personality ‘types’, each associated with a unique set of behavioural characteristics and values, which provide a useful starting point for individual feedback, self-exploration or group discussion.

Team-building with MBTI®

MBTI® is an exceptional resource for developing high performing teams. Your team will participate in activities which reveal and explore type dynamics as they operate in your office to develop some, if not all of the following:

• Increased understanding of oneself and others

• Constructive use of individual differences

• Improved communication

• An objective view of most conflict situations

• Adaptability to different management styles

Coaching with MBTI

According to ‘Introduction to type’, 1998

‘The purpose of learning about type is to help you understand yourself better and to enhance your relationships with others.’

Understanding your own type enables you to examine your natural strengths and also explains why some aspects of your personality are not highly developed.

Executive Coaching with MBTI® focuses on how you can use your natural preferences to improve your performance and effectiveness both personally and professionally.

How is MBTI® administered?

The individual completes a self-report questionnaire to obtain their ‘reported type’. This is followed by a feedback meeting with an accredited MBTI provider who interviews the client to gain the ‘best fit type’.

MBTI® feedback can also be given in a group situation without using the questionnaire. Although this method is less exact, it is just as enlightening and acts as a persuasive introduction to the subject and its application to teams.