Just to throw in a bit of a reframe right from the start – imagine how much further ahead you are in making any work decision because you actually have more distinctions through your MBTI Step 2 results.

I am not certain if career counsellors use the Step II but let’s play a little for a moment shall we?

The Step 2 subdivides every preference pair into 5 sub-pairs. These sub pairs are called facets and these additional distinctions help to clarify something as complex as personality. There may be a facet or two that are on the other side of the dichotomy from your type preference. These are called “oops” or “out-of-preference” facets.

Where you have a number of out-of-preference choices is on the Sensing/Intuition dichotomy.

• Concrete vs Abstract
• Realistic vs Imaginative
• Practical vs Conceptual
• Experiential vs Theoretical
• Traditional vs Original

When making a decision about what type of work to do or when redesigning how you do your work to align with your preferences, you have to look at what is required by that particular job or role.

• Concrete vs Abstract -
  Do you need to be able to work in a very concrete, literal way with facts and figures? or Does this job require you to be able to deal with what is symbolic and figurative?  In my life as a painter, there was such relief when I realized that I could paint abstracts and could stop trying to hobble together “still life” and floral reference material. In my role as a coach, I need to delegate the aspects of my practice that have to do with the details demanded by accounting for instance. Perhaps you can guess that my preference is for ”Abstract” and details often make me cringe. What is your preference on this and what how does that influence good work for you?
• Realistic vs Imaginative –
  Do you tend to be sensible and matter of fact or are you inventive and always seeking what is new and novel? An RN responsible for dispensing medication would benefit if they had developed some capacity with their “Sensing” function. As in a number of these dichotomies, I can imagine many jobs that would benefit from having facility with both. An architect with Imagination may design truly unique buildings, but would also need utilize the “Realistic” function in order to make the building liveable. I’m not certain that I would hire an architect that didn’t have Imagination or an engineer who didn’t have depth in the facet “Realistic”
• Practical vs Conceptual

Do you tend to be results oriented and like to apply what to you “on the ground”? Some folks who prefer a more theoretical approach can stay in the world of ideas for a long time. What kind of work comes to mind that would suit your preference?

• Experiential vs Theoretical

Do you trust what you know from past experience and like to work “hands on”? Perhaps your approach is to look for the patterns and make a hypothesis. I recently have started to work with a kinesiologist and chiropractor and truly appreciate that they are grounded in a depth of experience and skill in working “hands on”…that would go double for a diving instructor. As in many of these dichotomies getting the job done requires both aspects. The question is which role do you wish to play that won’t rob your energy?

• Traditional vs Original

Conventional vs new, different, unusual. I have a very clear preference here – you wouldn’t want me selling Ashley China or being a tour guide on Parliament Hill in Ottawa! Where do you land on this dichotomy? Can you imagine specific jobs and work environments that would correspond to either pole that would align with the way you like to work?

Just a note: I can also imagine career counsellors holding their head in their hands with my response. I was playing a lot of “what if” here but I truly believe that we can use our knowledge of our preferences to guide how we design our work and the choices we make around how and what we do.