Personality Types and the "God Experience"
By Peter Mirus ( bio - articles - email ) | Oct 16, 2009
I am a big proponent of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and recently provided a lecture to our junior staff on the history of the MBTI (including how it relates to the classic temperaments) and the merits of determining your personality type by this system.
The MBTI results (and resulting type descriptions/personal roadmaps) do not answer all questions. My criticism is that, to my knowledge, the subject of building virtues/character is never properly addressed. True, you might get your "reminders for personal growth", but they are presented with an agnostic viewpoint. There is no inclusion of the "God experience".
Part of the MBTI is determining the individual's preferred cognitive function. The best thing that the Catholic in Business (CIB) can do to live the Faith in business is to allow his encounter with the "God experience" to inform his cognitive process.
That doesn't necessarily mean a WWJD type of moment before every thought, every action, every decision--just like one doesn't say to oneself, "OK, I am now going to engage my Sensing/Thinking function." Becoming habituated in virtue forms your Developed Self to respond, think, and act in certain ways. Once you have achieved a certain measure of success through repeated deliberate practice, your process becomes less deliberate and more automatic. This allows your Faith to transcend your business behavior in all of the ordinary aspects of work -- not just the major decisions. It is how your work becomes your constant prayer.
The MBTI is an extremely helpful tool (among many) for increasing your self-awareness and helping to build skills within roles and relationships. I recommend it. Integrating the Keirsey Temperament Sorter (KTS) and Interaction Styles, as does the workbook I own? Terrific.
However, be sure to inform this material with books such as The Temperament God Gave You (see below). This will help you to understand how to integrate the "God experience" with the psychometric questionnaire. Without it, you are depriving yourself of an opportunity to grow both personally and professionally that is not afforded you by the MBTI.
Peter Mirus is a business, marketing, and technology consultant with more than 20 years of experience working with companies and nonprofits, ranging from start-ups to large international organizations. From 2004-2014 he contributed articles on the Catholic Faith, culture, and business to the CatholicCulture.org website.
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