Your Personality Affects How You Run Your Business
We've all met that person who runs their business completely differently to how we would do it...
...And we usually sit there questioning something along the lines of 'How can they get work done like that?' or 'Why do they need so many procedures?' etc.
The truth is, there's no right or wrong way to run a business (other than the obvious legal/moral/financial stuff!), and when us humans are all so different it's no wonder all our businesses are too.
How Myers Briggs can help your understanding
I've grown up in a family who swear by the Myers Briggs Type Indicator test, and as I've looked into it myself in recent years, it's totally opened my eyes - not only to the way I work, but the way others work too (and why!).
Once you fully understand why you behave the way you do (and why others do the things they do), it makes you a more empathetic person, and it gives you the ability to 'hack' into your own productivity and actions. It's also great from a management perspective, as you can gain great insight into how to make people happy and fulfilled at work.
How your 'type' can affect your business
I'm going to show you an example or my own Myers Briggs type, INFJ, and how it can affect the way I do business.
Introvert
Being an introvert means I feel exhausted from social interaction, and generally prefer being by myself. This means that I don't do well working in groups or going to large networking events, so instead I focus on networking online and in small, select groups to connect with people.
iNtuitive
Being intuitive (rather than sensing) means I tend to focus on the future, which can be good for business planning, but can means I can get lost in my own imagination sometimes and get 'analysis paralysis'.
Feeling
If you're a feeling type (rather than thinking) it means you base your decisions on subjective values over logic, and you're incredibly people-focused. For me, this means I'm obsessed with making everyone like me! This means I really have to muster up strength to tell people 'no' or stand up for myself to more demanding clients.
Judging
This is my favourite trait, but it's also a bit of a curse. Judging people take a planned/organised approach to life, whereas Perceiving people tend to be more spontaneous and flexible. This means I have epic time management skills, but I also stress out if my schedule is messed up...
Are You a risk-averse or risk-tolerant?
This is something that may or may not be related to the types mentioned above, but has a very dramatic effect on your business and you as an entrepreneur.
A risk-averse person might take longer to quit their job to go self-employed than a risk-tolerant person, and a risk-averse person might not make the same investment or strategy decisions as a risk-tolerant person. In that way, the risk-tolerant person may have an advantage.
However, a risk-tolerant person may make a decision that ends badly because they may take less time to plan and consider decisions. Obviously you may feel you land somewhere in the middle of these, but it's important to note what you are!
Are you trying to escape or create?
This may be less about your personality and more about your overall life goals and ambitions, but ask yourself; what is the goal of your business?
Are you trying escape the every day 9 to 5 and create a life of freedom and interest? Are you planning to become location independent and travel, or work from home to have a family and free time?
Or are you trying create and build a business that will grow and become an empire? Do you want to employ and manage people, and create an amazing environment and workplace you wish you could have had when you were employed?
Evidently, the answers to these questions will have an impact in your strategy and how you run your company.
