ISTJ / INTJ
I’m a mixed I-S/N-T-J personality type based on Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) classification. This is not purely scientific theory but it’s practical and useful, so take it as a heuristic.
Knowing one’s preferred way to experience and interact with the world – as well as being aware of your own ways – is a key to effectiveness and cooperation.
I discovered that awareness of one’s strengths, and conscious work on developing of once weak traits adds layers of complexity in the character. I feel (and know) that my traits, quite polar at first, are now being balanced by the consciously created habits.
The Transition
Before
ISTJ
Introvert (67%) Sensing (1%) Thinking (50%) Judging (44%)
- You have distinctive preference of Introversion over Extraversion (67%)
- You have marginal or no preference of Sensing over Intuition (1%)
- You have moderate preference of Thinking over Feeling (50%)
- You have moderate preference of Judging over Perceiving (44%)
After
INTJ
Introvert (31%) iNtuitive (31%) Thinking (25%) Judging (12%)
- You have moderate preference of Introversion over Extraversion (31%)
- You have moderate preference of Intuition over Sensing (31%)
- You have moderate preference of Thinking over Feeling (25%)
- You have slight preference of Judging over Perceiving (12%)
Summary*
* See references for the text source
Retained Strengths / Developed Strengths
- ISTJs have a strongly-felt internal sense of duty, which lends them a serious air and the motivation to follow through on tasks. Organized and methodical in their approach, they can generally succeed at any task which they undertake.
- INTJs live in the world of ideas and strategic planning. They value intelligence, knowledge, and competence, and typically have high standards in these regards, which they continuously strive to fulfill.
- ISTJs are very loyal, faithful, and dependable. They place great importance on honesty and integrity.
- INTJs focus their energy on observing the world, and generating ideas and possibilities. Their primary interest is not understanding a concept, but rather applying that concept in a useful way.
- The ISTJ will work for long periods of time and put tremendous amounts of energy into doing any task which they see as important to fulfilling a goal. However, they will resist putting energy into things which don’t make sense to them, or for which they can’t see a practical application. They prefer to work alone, but work well in teams when the situation demands it.
- INTJs are natural leaders, although they usually choose to remain in the background until they see a real need to take over the lead. When they are in leadership roles, they are quite effective, because they are able to objectively see the reality of a situation, and are adaptable enough to change things which aren’t working well. They are the supreme strategists – always scanning available ideas and concepts and weighing them against their current strategy, to plan for every conceivable contingency.
- ISTJs may have difficulty picking up on emotional needs immediately, as they are presented. They have a tendency to take other people’s efforts for granted, like they take their own efforts for granted. They need to remember to pat people on the back once in a while.
- The INTJ who practices tolerances and puts effort into effectively communicating with others is likely to give as much praise or positive support as others may need or desire. The INTJ is usually quite open to hearing an alternative way of doing something.
- ISTJs are likely to be uncomfortable expressing affection and emotion to others. However, their strong sense of duty and the ability to see what needs to be done in any situation usually allows them to overcome their natural reservations, and they are usually quite supporting and caring individuals with the people that they love. Once the ISTJ realizes the emotional needs of those who are close to them, they put forth effort to meet those needs.
- INTJs tremendous value and need for systems and organization, combined with their natural insightfulness, makes them excellent scientists. An INTJ scientist gives a gift to society by putting their ideas into a useful form for others to follow.
- ISTJs have an excellent ability to take any task and define it, organize it, plan it, and implement it through to completion. They are very hard workers, who do not allow obstacles to get in the way of performing their duties.
- INTJs have a tremendous amount of ability to accomplish great things. They have insight into the Big Picture, and are driven to synthesize their concepts into solid plans of action. Their reasoning skills gives them the means to accomplish that.