The Guardian – Understanding the ESTJ Personality Type
In the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator framework, personality types represent various approaches to life. Each one is a fascinating study with its own unique strengths and weaknesses. And people have succeeded immensely by understanding them better.
Most people take the MBTI in order to understand themselves. Understandably so. However, this tool is just as useful in understanding others, especially for managers and HR personnel.
There are 16 different MBTI personality types, which might seem like a daunting list to familiarize yourself with. Yet the benefits can be intense.
When we really know who we’re working with, we’re in a much better position to maximize their potential.
One such personality type, the ESTJ, carries the “nickname” of Guardian for its adherence to rules and regulations – that and the desire to see others respect systems and policies as well. Very purposeful people with very definite ideas of how to make things happen, they make up15% of the leaders, skewing more heavily toward men than women.
The ESTJ is a fairly straightforward personality type, yet it still bears a full-fledged writeup in order to truly appreciate…
An ESTJ’s Daily Life
An ESTJ individual operates from an externally centered mindset, handling things logically and sensibly more often than not. As with the ESTP personality type, they literally and concretely experience the world through their five senses.
The ESTJ universe is full of facts, figures, and tangible demands – all driven by their assessment of what’s going on in real time. They’re continually monitoring their immediate surroundings to ensure that everything is operating well and according to plan.
ESTJs tend to be natural leaders, and with good reason since they have such a clear idea of how things ought to be. They have a distinct set of norms and beliefs, and they respect customs and laws. This adherence cannot be understated.
Above all, security and social order are important to ESTJs; they feel compelled to take all necessary steps to advance and strengthen their objectives. In general, they will do all within their power to advance both social and personal security, including voting, joining the PTA, cutting the lawn, and attending Homeowners Association meetings.
This doesn’t make them boring people, however. ESTJs like to socialize and have fun. And they can be quite lively and enjoyable at social gatherings, particularly those centered around family, community, or work.
ESTJ Strengths
The ESTJ is typically a model citizen and even a pillar of the community. He or she adheres strictly to their own standards of “good citizenship” and takes their commitments seriously.
Moreover, they’re aggressive and full of confidence, incredibly skilled at creating action plans and processes as well as determining the necessary steps to finish a given assignment.
This personality type works incredibly hard at practically everything they do. They will invest significant energy in tasks they deem necessary for their community, their marriages, their families, their workplaces, and so on. And they’ll motivate others to do the same.
If there’s a practical task that needs to be done, they’re the men and women you want to have around. They simply won’t be satisfied until the objective is accomplished in full, no shortcuts or excuses allowed.
Trustworthy, realistic, practical, conscientious: When you meet an ESTJ, you’ve met the very model of a boy scout or girl scout.
Challenges Faced by ESTJs
ESTJs who are under significant stress will too easily believe their efforts are underappreciated and misunderstood. Under pressure, they’ll think they’re alone to deal with everything themselves. And, worse yet, they’ll have some reason to feel isolated.
This is because the more stress they’re under, the more their talkative and self-assured natures start to fail them. They’ll find it difficult to articulate their emotions, leaving loved ones and colleagues in the dark about how lost they really feel.
Their communication skills can fail them as well when they find themselves dealing with disappointing behavior in others. Because they hold such strong opinions and are prone to expressing them without hesitation…
If they believe someone isn’t living up to their expectations, they can become extremely demanding and critical. They have no patience or understanding for anyone who does not respect the established systems they hold dear. The same applies to rulebreakers – or those they perceive that way.
This can naturally lead to very hard feelings, misunderstandings, tense relationships, and similar negative consequences.
Coaching and Development for ESTJs
ESTJs want to see immediate results for their efforts and place a high emphasis on efficiency and competency. Therefore, they’re probably not suited for bureaucracy and will chafe at anything involving red tape.
It’s important to help ESTJ types understand their propensity toward becoming extremely meticulous and inflexible. This includes when it comes to considering and respecting others’ thoughts and ideas that might clash with their own. If you are uncertain how you approach people consider doing a HR Impact 360, to gain insight as to how others perceive you. We all need self-awareness.
Being filled with conviction is a good thing. But, as with most other personality traits, it can be taken too far.
Along the same lines, it must be noted that while ESTJs will diligently carry out all necessary steps to advance a specific cause or objective, they may not inherently recognize or appreciate the significance of objectives that fall outside their realm of practicality. Even so, you can bet that the ESTJ will make every effort to comprehend these ideals and apply them if they can only see how relevant they are to real-world issues.
This means that taking the time to explain a task’s true relevance to an ESTJ can be well worth the effort.
Also keep in mind that ESTJs need to recognize their emotional side, at least to some degree. Otherwise, they can find it difficult to meet others’ needs for closeness and comradery. They’ll apply reason to circumstances that call for greater emotional sensitivity; and this, in turn, can cause hurt and hard feelings.
ESTJs in the Workplace
Because of their regard for rules and their desire to make things happen, ESTJs are often very suitable for management positions. They’re natural commanders of attention and respect, and their ability to zone in on details opens up their ideal career choices even more.
Potential ESTJ job opportunities include:
- Military leader
- Manager and business administrator
- Detective and police work
- Judge
- Finance-related roles
- Instructor
- Sales representative.