Burning MBTI Questions Answered #1
I’m ENTJ, E and J very borderline, N and T very pronounced. What difference does the relative strength of tendencies make?
It is very common for people to refer to the “strength” of a preference. In fact the MBTI manual talks about this interpretation of having “more “ or “less” of a preference as “the most presuasive source of misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the MBTI.” In the official version of the Myers Briggs Type Indicator there is a Preference Clarity Index which has been designed to illustrated how sure a person is that they prefer one pole of a preference pair over the other. It does not refer to “amount” of a preference.
One of the preliminary steps when you take the MBTI with a certified practitioner is to identify which type is the “best fit” for you. This is done by an investigation of what you know about yourself outside of the inventory. Those whose results show a clear or very clear preference are consistent in their responses to which of the pairs they prefer when forced to chose on the inventory. This level of clarity does not indicate that they have excellence in using this preference however. Those who have a slight level of clarity were not as consistent in their responses but they will be able to get clearer on which of the preference pairs is a better fit for them with help from the practitioner.
In your particular situation, the Step 2 version of the MBTI can help you get a clearer picture on the Extraversion/Intraversion pair as well as the Judging/Perceiving pair. The MBTI code ENTJ indicates through the J at the end that what you show to the world is the Judging preference of Thinking. If your preference is for Extraversion (ENTJ as opposed to INTJ) it will mean that Thinking is your dominant function – that is that Thinking that is most often in the driver’s seat. However if your prefernce is for Intraversion (INTJ) the Dominant function is Intuition. Your dominant function will really influence how you process and how you consequently show up to others.
Gaining full benefit from knowing your type is much larger than reading a type description. Understanding the interplay of the functions will help you to see what is behind the description and the way you think, act and communicate. The ultimate goal is to help you understand how to utilize the dynamics of the MBTI to function in the best way in your life.