Knowing your personality type, as measured through the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator^® instrument, can help you with career planning at every stage: from your choices of subjects and majors in school to choosing your first career, to advancing in your organization or changing careers later in life.

People often find difficulty defining what kind of work they want to do or why a given field makes them comfortable or uncomfortable. Personality type is a practical tool for investigating what works for you, then looking for and recognizing work that satisfies your preferences. Knowing your MBTI^® type may, for example, prove helpful in deciding what specific areas of law, medicine, education, or business a person prefers. A person with a preference for Introversion may find he or she is happier doing research, while a person who prefers Extraversion may favor a field with more interaction with people.

Work environments influence how comfortable you are at your job. Someone with a preference for Introversion, for example, who is required to do a lot of detail work or think through a problem, may find it disruptive to be in an environment that is too loud or where a lot of interaction is required. When you know this about yourself, you can make arrangements to do your work in a more suitable location or at a time when there is less activity and interference.

Even when circumstances make it necessary for you to do work that you have not chosen or which you must do as part of your overall job description, knowledge and understanding of type can help you discover and use your strengths to accomplish the work. When you find an unsatisfactory job fit, you can examine the reasons and seek solutions based on your preferences.

When you do have an opportunity to take a new path in your work, type can help you analyze the fit of your type with your past work and consider what new direction can best fit with your preferences.

Resources

Introduction to Type^® and Careers by Allen L. Hammer (CPP 1993)

Looking at Type^®: Your Career by Charles R. Martin (CAPT 2010)

MBTI Type Tables for Occupations by Nancy A. Schaubhut and Richard C. Thompson (CPP 2008)

What's Your Type of Career? Unlock the Secrets of Your Personality to Find Your Perfect Career Path by Donna Dunning (Davies-Black 2001)