We talk a lot here about how a growing understanding of yourself is the KEY to personal growth and greater success in reaching your goals. And learning your personality type is one tool that can help you do this. However, there are SO many different personality systems out there, so how does one know where to begin or which personality test is best for YOU?
In this post I’m going to introduce you to some common personality systems, compare the learning curves, and explain the purpose of each and what it specifically can help you to do or understand.
We will start with the personality systems that derive from The 4 Temperaments: DiSC, Color Code, and the Gary Smalley Personality Assessment. Then we’ll move to the 5 love languages, Gretchen Rubin’s The 4 Tendencies, the Enneagram, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and the Jungian Cognitive Types (similar to MBTI, but I’ll explain why I want to share about it separately).
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Before we begin, I must give some disclaimers…
None of these personality systems (nor even all of them combined) are the end all be all, but rather they are to be used as a tool for introspection, self-discovery, and personal development. It is not to box you in, but rather open up your mind to more possibilities and gain a better understanding of how we all differ as humans.
So many of our problems come from a misunderstanding of ourselves and others. My hope is that as you learn more about your personality, you will feel empowered to see how amazing you truly are and the strengths you possess. And may it spur you on to reaching even more of your full potential.
The Four Temperaments
I want to start off our journey with a quick history lesson on what many believe are the origins of Personality Psychology. So let’s hop into our TARDIS and travel back in time to before 370 BC.
A greek physician named Hippocrates theorized that the human body is made up of 4 substances (or “humors”)–blood, yellow bile, black bile, and phlegm. He believed that ideal health was obtained by a perfect balance of these 4 substances, while an imbalance is what caused sickness.
Let’s hop back into the TARDIS and travel to around 170 AD. Another greek physician named Galen expanded upon the ideas of Hippocrates and believed that it was the excess of a particular humor that affected a person’s actions, feelings, and thoughts, which caused a certain temperament. Let’s take a look at these 4 temperaments…
Choleric
An excess of yellow bile causes a “choleric” temperament that is fiery, dominant, decisive, and driven.
Sanguine
An excess of blood causes a “sanguine” temperament that is cheerful, optimistic, outgoing, and enthusiastic.
Phlegmatic
An excess of phlegm causes a “phlegmatic” temperament that is calm, content, kind, observant, and reliable.
Melancholic
An excess of black bile causes a “melancholic” temperament that is orderly, perfectionistic, reserved, and creative.
Though we’ve come a long way in medical science and the study of personality and now know temperaments are not caused by an excess of fluids, these 4 general categories are often still used today to describe people’s personalities. Some have also taken these general concepts and altered them to create their own new and improved systems of personality.
Let’s take a look at 3 of them…
Gary Smalley
If you are brand new to exploring your personality, the Gary Smalley Personality Assessment is a great 1st step with its clear and quick test, easy to understand descriptions, and animal representations that are helpful in remembering which type you are.
With any of these systems that have a smaller amount of different types, you will only get more general type descriptions that you may not fully find yourself relating to because only having 4 buckets in which to categorize the vastness of human personality means needing broader descriptions to hold them all.
But it’s a great way to get you thinking about your own personality, as well as a helpful tool for improving your relationships by understanding some general key differences between these different kinds of people.
Here are the 4 types (which might sound a bit familiar)…
Lion
Lions can be powerful, decisive, productive, strong-willed leaders, but they also can be blunt, impatient, and domineering.
Otter
Otters can be fun-loving, optimistic, outgoing, passionate, and inspirational, but they also can be unrealistic, impulsive, reactive, and undisciplined.
Golden Retriever
Golden Retrievers can be loyal, compassionate, easy-going, and diplomatic, but they also can be over-accommodating, indecisive, fearful, and avoiding of confrontation.
Beaver
Beavers can be detailed, accurate, self-disciplined, organized, and holders of high standards, but they also can be picky, overly critical, overly sensitive, and overly cautious.
Gary Smalley Resources:
Learn more & take a free 5 minute test
Color Code
Where the systems we’ve covered so far are more about temperaments, the Color Code focuses on your motivations and needs. Though you’ll see, once again, that there is a lot of crossover with this system.
(quotes taken from the Color Code’s website)
Red
Reds are motivated by power. They “need to look good technically, be right, and be respected. They are strong leaders and love challenges.”
Yellow
Yellows are motivated by fun. They “need to be noticed and have fun. They love life, social connections, and being positive and spontaneous.”
Blue
Blues are motivated by intimacy. They “need to have integrity and be appreciated. They are focused on quality and creating strong relationships.”
White
Whites are motivated by peace. They “need to be accepted and treated with kindness. They are logical, objective, and tolerant of others.”
Color Code Resources:
You can take a free test on their site for some insight into your top colors or pay for the full assessment and analysis. They also have a ton of resources on relationships among different types, personal development, and more.
DiSC
DiSC takes these 4 temperaments and explores them as styles in work settings. How can we better our work and working relationships through improving our communication, productivity, and teamwork?
For this reason, many companies use DiSC with their employees. Here are the 4 types..
(quotes taken from discprofile.com)
D(ominance)
“People with D personalities tend to be confident and place an emphasis on accomplishing bottom-line results.”
i(nfluence)
“People with i personalities tend to be more open and place an emphasis on relationships and influencing or persuading others.”
S(teadiness)
“People with S personalities tend to be dependable and place the emphasis on cooperation and sincerity.”
C(onscientiousness)
“People with C personalities tend to place the emphasis on quality, accuracy, expertise, and competency.”
DiSC Resources:
The official DiSC profiling test costs money, which you can find in the above site. Or you can find a coach who’s a certified DiSC facilitator. I highly recommend Andy Mort, who is certified in DiSC and also implements it into his coaching.
The 5 Love Languages
Now let’s make a shift from temperaments to personal preferences. The premise of the 5 Love Languages by Dr. Gary Chapman is that we all give and receive love in different ways. Knowing your own primary love languages and the love languages of those around you (i.e. your spouse, friends, mother, coworker, etc.) can help you to strengthen your relationships and love each individual more effectively.
Here are the 5 love languages…
Gifts
This person feels most loved by receiving a heartfelt gift. It makes them feel well-known, thought of, and cared about.
Quality Time
This person feels most loved when you give them your undivided attention. Some love doing activities with you, while others may prefer quality conversation.
Physical Touch
This person feels most loved by appropriate physical touch. This may include a hand on the shoulder or a hug. From a significant other it may include cuddling, holding hands, or intimacy.
Acts of Service
This person feels most loved when you notice their needs and do something for them or offer help. Actions speak louder than words for this person.
Words of Affirmation
This person feels most loved when you communicate your affection, appreciation, pride, friendship, etc. through your words. They are deeply encouraged and feel loved by written or verbal encouragement, comforting, praise, and expressions of love.
Love Language Resources:
My introduction to the 5 love languages & book review
Rubin’s 4 Tendencies
Gretchen Rubin discovered 4 main tendencies in how readily we meet inner vs outer expectations–inner expectations being things like our own personal goals and outer expectations being things like work deadlines or a request from a friend. I love using this test with my coaching clients because it helps them (and me as their coach) better understand their own tendencies and responses to internal vs external goals, which we can then use to help them find what course of actions will work best for THEM.
Here are the 4 tendencies…
(quotes from Gretchen Rubin)
Upholders
“Upholders respond readily to both outer expectations and inner expectations.” (“Discipline is my freedom”)
Questioners
“Questioners question all expectations; they meet an expectation only if they believe it’s justified, so in effect they respond only to inner expectations.” (“I’ll comply–if you convince me why”)
Obligers
“Obligers respond readily to outer expectations but struggle to meet inner expectations.” (“You can count on me, and I’m counting on you to count on me”)
Rebels
“Rebels resist all expectations, outer and inner alike.” (“You can’t make me, and neither can I”)
4 Tendencies Resources:
Read my blog post about the 4 tendencies
Enneagram
The enneagram is a tool for self-discovery and personal growth with 9 types based on your core fears and motivations. It can also help you see the coping mechanisms you developed since childhood and still carry with you as an adult.
Because of the nature of this kind of personality system, it can make you feel quite vulnerable to discover your type and explore it more. As with any of these, please be kind to yourself and give yourself breaks if it ever becomes too difficult. You also don’t have to go through this process alone. Perhaps partner up with a friend to go through it together or bring it up to your mentor or therapist if you have one.
Here are the 9 enneagram types and their basic core fears and desires:
Type One
“The Reformer”
Core Fear: Being bad/evil/wrong
Core Desire: Being good/virtuous/right
Type Two
“The Helper”
Core Fear: Being unloved/unwanted/unappreciated
Core Desire: To feel loved/wanted/appreciated
Type Three
“The Achiever”
Core Fear: Being worthless
Core Desire: To be thought of as successful and valuable
Type Four
“The Individualist”
Core Fear: Being insignificant
Core Desire: Being unique and having identity
Type Five
“The Investigator”
Core Fear: Being incompetent or useless
Core Desire: Being competent and capable
Type Six
“The Loyalist”
Core Fear: Having no support
Core Desire: Having security, guidance, and support
Type Seven
“The Enthusiast”
Core Fear: Feeling limited or trapped in their pain
Core Desire: To feel satisfied and happy
Type Eight
“The Challenger”
Core Fear: Being weak, powerless, or controlled by others
Core Desire: To protect themselves and those in their inner circle
Type Nine
“The Peacemaker”
Core Fear: Conflict or losing connection with others
Core Desire: To feel inner stability/peace
Enneagram Resources:
Read Abi Robins’ Introduction to the Enneagram on my blog.
Read a more in depth explanation here.
Type Descriptions from the Enneagram Institute
I highly recommend the book, The Essential Enneagram: The Definitive Personality Test and Self-Discovery Guide, for those who want to figure out their type for themselves. It will walk you through how to narrow down and confirm your type.
Abbi Rodriguez has a free test if you join her email list and also offers profiling sessions.
MBTI
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) shows you your brain’s preferred ways for observing the world, processing information, and making decisions. This understanding can help you become more aware of your strengths as well as your blindspots.
Introversion (I) or Extroversion (E)
Do you have a preference for your inner world or the outer world?
Sensing (S) or Intuition (N)
Do you prefer to focus on the facts and basic information or do you prefer to look for the deeper meaning behind things?
Thinking (T) or Feeling (F)
Do you prefer to make decisions in a more detached, logical way or do you prefer to give more weight to your values and how it might affect other people?
Judging (J) or Perceiving (P)
Do you prefer structure, planning, and closure or do you prefer to adapt in the moment and keep your options open?
MBTI Resources:
The official Myers & Briggs Foundation website
MBTI Practitioners I recommend:
Jungian Cognitive Types
Like Myers-Briggs, this system is based off of the work of Carl Jung. However, where MBTI looks at the dichotomies (I vs E, S vs N, F vs T, and J vs P), this system looks at what are called “cognitive functions.”
You have your Intuition, Sensing, Thinking, and Feeling, but there is an extroverted or introverted energy to each of them. For example, Extroverted Feeling (“Fe” for short) and Introverted Feeling (“Fi” for short). This creates 8 cognitive functions.
We have all 8, but our brains have a preference for some cognitive functions over others. A preferred way for observing the world and a preferred way for making decisions. The top 4 preferred cognitive functions determine your type (and the letters you see in MBTI).
For example, I am an INFJ. The top 4 cognitive functions my brain prefers as an INFJ are Introverted Intuition (Ni), Extroverted Feeling (Fe), Introverted Thinking (Ti), and Extroverted Sensing (Se).
I’m sure you can already see that the learning curve for this personality system is much greater than most of the others we talked about. It is complex because humans are complex. And this system alone still doesn’t begin to cover the depths of YOU and your personality. But, just like the others, it can provide a helpful tool in learning more about yourself, your tendencies, your strengths, your blindspots, and a general path for your personal development. This one happens to be my personal favorite for its accuracy and how much it has helped me in my own journey of growth.
Cognitive Type Resources:
Because of the complexity of this system, I discourage taking online tests (you can to perhaps get an idea, but be open to it being wrong), and instead I recommend diving into learning the system yourself and/or having a professional do a profiling session with you.
I will offer this service in the near future, but until then, I recommend Joyce Meng who offers profiling services (click here). She does her sessions with a 2nd profiler to ensure better accuracy.
Or if you think you might know your type or have it narrowed down but need some confirmation, Personality Hacker also has accredited profilers who offer consultation here: Personality Type Consultation
Susan Storm of Psychology Junkie has a great list of additional resources here
Some final notes…
We’ve covered a lot! Congratulations on making it through! Don’t forget to grab your free concise cheat sheet to help you keep all these different personality systems straight. You can get it by joining my email list.
If you have any questions about any of this, comment down below or send me a message!
And if you’d like a personal guide through learning more about your personality and some help in knowing how to apply what you learn to have a more successful life, I would LOVE to help you. Click here to check out my coaching packages.
Comment Below:
Which of these personality systems are you most interested in learning more about?
I love personality tests and I try as many as I can! ;-P Thank you for this article and the insights you provided. I will certainly read other posts on your blog. Regards