Temperament and Me

God created people in his image and in billions of combinations of personalities! Theories to understand them and tools to discover our own also abound. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator offers a breakthrough in the 1950s that identified sixteen patterns in our temperament. Both David Keirsey’s Temperament Sorter and the online 16Personalities.com tests built on the Myers-Briggs system but modified with their own approaches. Why is it important to understand our temperament? The presumption here is that we are already well formed at birth with a predisposition for certain preferences for communications, time management, people interaction, things we value, our thought process, and so on. These preferences make us unique as an individual. And when we can live, work, and love to the fullest expression of our God-given temperament, life is easy and free. But this is not the reality, nor is it the most optimal way for us to live together as a society.

Learning about your personal temperament and increasing your awareness of the different temperaments have these benefits: 1. It helps to improve our communication and interaction with others. When we can appreciate the differences in people, we can learn to accept and respect them as they are, and even adapt our interaction with them for a more harmonious and productive outcome. Don’t we all want to be accepted as we are? But do we do the same for others? Not always. Imagine a world where we can offer empathy and kindness to each other, without passing critical judgments. Think of the people you are close to or with whom you work together frequently. Do you suffer because they don’t understand you or because you can’t accept them? Temperament studies help us not to define who or what is better or worse, but to appreciate the beauty and strength in our differences.

2. It helps us to reach our potential. Unfortunately, many of us have a distorted view of ourselves that others have made us believe. The authentic you is buried underneath a set of self-images and behaviors you have adopted over the years. Acknowledging and accepting your own temperament is the first step towards restoring your true identity. As we take steps together in your journey to reach your fullest potential, understanding your temperament will help improve your relationships and give you more confidence in making decisions.

We praise you because we are fearfully and wonderfully made; your works (that is, every one of us) are wonderful, I know that full well.       Psalm 139: 14 adapted