According to many tests, I’m a harmony-seeking idealist.
Harmony-seeking idealists are:
- Warm-hearted
- Sympathetic
- Introverted
These three things don’t necessarily “fit” in today’s business world.
You constantly hear of successful entrepreneurs being ruthless, unforgiving, and extremely extroverted.
However, I’m here to tell you not to give up.
If you identify with the words above or think you’re a harmony-seeking idealist, keep reading!
Traits Of A Harmony-Seeking Idealist
One of (many) business personality tests I’ve taken comes from iPersonic.
It’s been taken by millions of people to help with their career or personal life. And the best part is, it’s free!
A harmony-seeking idealist is also known as INFJ (Introversion, Intuition, Feeling, Judging), the rarest of the 16 Myers-Briggs personality types.
Traits include:
- Theoretical
- Emotional
- Conscientious
- Dogged
- Complex
- Imaginative
- Inspiring
- Demanding
- Communicative
- Reserved
- Vulnerable
Here’s the career overview of a harmony-seeking idealist from iPersonic.
“As a Harmony-seeking Idealist you are one of the introverted personality types. Therefore you prefer a quiet work environment where you can intensively deal with your responsibilities and are not disturbed by too many people and repeated distractions. You need a lot of time to dwell on your thoughts, to put them into words and let your ideas take shape.”
Admittedly, I can tell you that as social media entrepreneur this clashes with my set up.
Things happen at a rapid-fire pace, there are constant notifications, and since I choose to be heavily involved in our client accounts, I’m needed on several occasions throughout the day.
Still, there are both pros and cons that come along with this personality type.
Harmony-Seeking Idealist Career Pros & Cons
PRO: This personality type thrives with structure and order.
CON: Adversely, that means we like to take things one at a time. Multitasking is not our “bag.”
PRO: Given that we love to delve deeply into one project, harmony-seeking idealists have a keen ability to concentrate.
CON: Again, this means we become totally engrossed in our work and often forget what’s going on around us. (Thank goodness for Google Calendar alerts!)
PRO: Harmony-seeking idealists have a true desire to understand the motives of others and see them succeed. We see the best in everyone and want to contribute to their well-being.
CON: Unfortunately, people can and will take advantage of your kind nature. In my short six years in business, I’ve had the carpet pulled out from under me a number of times.
PRO: Harmony-seeking idealists are extremely sensitive. This helps us be sensitive to the needs of others and have gobs of empathy when problem-solving.
CON: As a result, you may find you have problems dealing with those who are insensitive, show thoughtlessness, or are superficial.
As you can see, most of the traits of harmony-seeking idealists can be seen as a boom or bust in business.
Play To Your Strengths
Most noteworthy, the whole point of taking these tests is to learn how to use them to your advantage in business.
When it comes to your career or business, make sure you …
- Have enough independence in your role
- Require downtime or alone time to recharge
- Ensure your role has you helping others succeed
- Play to both your inner creative and inner scientist
When it comes to INFJ careers, 16 Personalities sums it up perfectly.
“INFJs are clever, and can function in any of these fields, but to be truly happy, they need to be able to exercise their insightfulness and independence, learn and grow alongside the people they are helping, and contribute to the well-being of humanity on a personal level.”
Resources For Testing Your Personality Type
Perhaps you’re reading this and thinking, “that’s me … I think?!”
There are several places where you can nail down your personality type (for career or otherwise).
- iPersonic — which I mentioned I used to find out I was a harmony-seeking idealist. iPersonic was developed by Felicitas Heyne, a well-known psychologist, and best-selling book-author.
- Myers Briggs — probably the most recognized personality test, noting 16 different personality types.
- DiSC — which I’ve also taken (I’m an “i” for both primary and secondary!), and is a non-judgemental tool used for discussion of people’s behavioral differences.
- 16 Personalities — their personality types are based on five independent spectrums, with all letters in the type code (e.g. INFJ-A) referring to one of the two sides of the corresponding spectrum.
- StrengthsFinder — I’ve also taken this one (my strengths are: Input, Intellection, Learner, Restorative, Adaptability). This assessment measures your natural patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving, so when you’re done you’ll have discovered your talents.
Know Thyself
Lastly, the most important factor in taking these tests is understanding who you are (and how you operate) so you can better interact with those around you.
Self-awareness is such a key component in business.
Therefore, there’s no harm in knowing yourself better so you can deal with all of the other personalities the world has to offer.
Do you know your personality type? Post it below so we can assess how we’d work together!
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