As we continue discussing personality style and leadership, using the four paired opposites of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator as our launching point: introversion-extroversion; intuition-sensing; thinking-feeling; and judging-perceiving today we look at thinking-feeling. This pair refers to how we tend to process the information we have received. While no one is either one or the other in any of these pairs, the dominant aspect colors how we respond. When it comes to thinking or feeling, the way we process information is from a primarily analytical perspective or primarily from our emotions.
I am a strong feeler when it comes to my natural tendency. I prefer to “go with my gut” when it comes to making decisions. When we’re calling/hiring a new staff member at New Life, I’m more concerned about how I feel about the person, what Bill Hybels will refer to as the chemistry, than I am about the persons qualifications. While this is neither right nor wrong, I have found over the years that my feelings can lead me astray. This is also true for those who are primarily thinkers when it comes to analyzing a situation. While it is good to consider the metrics, the numbers, of a a situation, at times one can think through the entire situation, make a decision based on the numbers and find out the decision was still wrong.
Thus, we find what is true of every set of paired opposites: one is not to be preferred over the other. They are simply different. The best case scenario comes when a leadership team is comprised of folks whose personalities cover all the perspectives. I have often said over the years, when Nancy and I are making a decision and we both agree, it is usually the right decision, because we come at life from totally opposite perspectives, she being an ISTJ and me being an ENFP. I also generally add, when we disagree about a decision Nancy is usually right, because she is the analytical one, the one who looks at the facts of the situation. The exception to this is when a decision can’t be made based on the facts alone. In those instances the intuitive feeling aspects of my personality come into play.
To be sure, everything can’t be boiled down to components of our personalities, when it comes to decision-making and other leadership tasks. Nancy and I have discovered that at times the Holy Spirit has guided us to decisions neither of us would have come to through our personalities. At times even with “all the facts,” we don’t have enough information to make a decision, because of intangibles involved. Yet, understanding our personalities and particularly the way we process information is quite helpful when it comes to leadership.
For example, when we’re in a leadership discussion and someone says, “I think we ought to do _____,” the question is “Is the person actually thinking at the moment or is it merely a feeling?” Nancy and I have learned to make sure when we say, “I think…” or “I feel…” that we are, indeed, either thinking or feeling. While it seems obvious, a great deal of confusion can result when a person who is naturally a feeler expresses a feeling as if it were an analytical evaluation. The opposite is true as well when a thinker says, “I feel…” and then expresses a well-thought out idea without an ounce of feeling.
As leaders the key is to understand one another’s personalities and then to let the strengths of those personalities produce a greater overall benefit for the organization. This takes time and energy, but produces tremendous benefits in the way of relational and organizational unity, as well as greater overall productivity for everyone.
Here’s to leading better by making sure we know when we’re leading through our minds or our hearts–today!