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When it comes to work and life decisions, most advice focuses on what to do: set clearer goals, build better habits, make smarter choices. Yet what actually plays out for people is often something else.
Often, the difference isn’t effort. It’s alignment. Far less attention is given to how we naturally operate as human beings, and how our personality preferences shape the way we show up at work and in life.
Decades of psychological research, beginning with Carl Jung and later developed through the work of Katherine Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers, suggests that sustainable success is less about trying harder and more about understanding how we are wired to think, decide, and engage with the world. What is often overlooked is how we naturally relate to others, where we draw our energy from, how we take in information, how we make decisions, and how we plan. ¹ ²
Together, these four preference areas combine to form one of 16 personality types, each reflecting a distinct pattern in how people think, decide, interact, and organise their world.
Why personality preferences matter
Understanding your personality preferences can be incredibly powerful. It helps explain why you approach situations the way you do, how you tend to make decisions, and why certain environments or ways of working feel more natural than others.
In everyday life, this awareness can improve communication with colleagues, friends, and family, support better decisions by recognising different perspectives, and help teams understand where friction can arise and how to work through it more constructively.
When people feel overwhelmed, unproductive, or out of sync, they often assume something is wrong with them. More often, it’s simply a mismatch between how they’re operating and how they naturally function. When there’s better alignment, people tend to feel more energised, effective, and at ease.
Personality preferences don’t explain everything about who we are, but they do influence how we communicate, make decisions, and respond to the world around us. These preferences are largely innate, much like being right- or left-handed. While we adapt over time, our natural tendencies tend to remain fairly consistent.¹ ² ³
As you read on, notice which side of each preference you naturally lean towards. If you’re curious to go deeper, there’s a free online personality assessment at the end you can use to explore your profile further.
1. Energy: Where you recharge
Introversion (I) and Extraversion (E)
This preference isn’t about how social you are. It’s about where you naturally draw your energy from and how you recharge.¹
Those who lean towards Extraversion (E) tend to gain energy through interaction, conversation, and engagement with the world around them. Those who lean towards Introversion (I) restore energy through reflection, focus, and quieter environments.¹ ²
This difference explains why two people can experience the same workday very differently, energising for one, draining for the other.
It has nothing to do with confidence, capability, or leadership potential. Highly effective leaders span both preferences. The difference lies simply in how energy is replenished.²
2. Information: How you take things in
Sensing (S) and Intuition (N)
This preference describes how you naturally take in information and what you tend to trust first.
People who lean towards Sensing (S) focus on what is concrete and observable. They tend to trust present facts, details, and real-life experience, and often prefer practical, step-by-step information.
Those who lean towards Intuition (N) are more drawn to patterns, connections, and possibilities. They focus on the bigger picture, future potential, and what something could become.
This difference often shows up when one person wants detail and examples, while another is focused on big direction and meaning. When recognised, communication improves quickly.
3. Decisions: How you evaluate choices
Thinking (T) and Feeling (F)
This preference describes how you tend to make decisions once information has been gathered.
Those who lean towards Thinking (T) usually prioritise logic, consistency, and objective reasoning. Those who lean towards Feeling (F) tend to prioritise values and the impact decisions have on people.
Both approaches are rational. The difference lies in which tends to come first, particularly under pressure. This preference often shapes how feedback is given, how conflict is handled, and how decisions land in teams and relationships.
4. Structure: How you approach planning and action
Judging (J) and Perceiving (P)
This preference reflects how you organise your time and relate to structure.
Those who lean towards Judging (J) prefer clarity, plans, and a sense of closure. Those who lean towards Perceiving (P) prefer flexibility, adaptability, and keeping options open.
This difference commonly shows up around deadlines, planning, and follow-through. When understood, frustration often gives way to empathy.
Putting it all together
None of these preferences are better or worse than another. They simply reflect different, equally valid ways of engaging with the world.
Together, they form a consistent pattern in how people take in information, make decisions, relate to others, and organise their lives.¹ ² Rather than boxing you in, this insight helps you make more intentional choices about how you work, lead, communicate, and build effective teams.
From insight to action
Self-awareness only becomes valuable when it’s applied.
People often struggle not because they’re broken or unmotivated, but because they’re working in ways that don’t align with how they naturally function. When preferences are understood and used well, they provide a practical guide for navigating decisions, pressure, and complexity with greater ease.
The goal isn’t to change who you are. It’s to work with your natural preferences, while developing flexibility where life or work requires it.
What to do next
Now that you have a rough sense of your preferences, you can explore them further if you’re curious. A great place to start is the free 16Personalities assessment at www.16personalities.com
Once you’ve confirmed your type, share it with the people around you. It’s genuinely fun to learn more about yourself and each other, and the real value comes from understanding where others differ from you and using that insight to broaden perspective and improve decisions.
Knowing yourself is the starting point. Learning from difference is where growth really happens.
Signing off from a fellow ENFJ, who believes that when people understand themselves and each other, it creates better leaders, businesses, relationships, futures, and lives. Enjoy!
References
¹ Jung, C. G. (1921). Psychological Types.
² Myers, I. B., McCaulley, M. H., Quenk, N. L., & Hammer, A. L. (1998). MBTI Manual.
³ Myers, I. B., & Myers, P. B. (1995). Gifts Differing.
The Money & Life website is operated by the Financial Advice Association (FAAA). The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not those of the FAAA. The FAAA does not endorse or otherwise assume responsibility for any financial product advice which may be contained in the article. Nor does it endorse or assume responsibility for the information.
