The personality test that’s steering you wrong

Myers-Briggs feels helpful. But it might be holding your team back.

Author

Ryan Ray
June 13, 2025

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Here’s the problem: typing someone doesn’t mean you understand them. And the Myers-Briggs test? It gives you a label, but not a solution.

Let’s break it down.

Part 1: It makes you feel smart, but it’s not that useful

Myers-Briggs sounds official. Four letters. Fancy chart. Looks like science.

But it’s not science.

The test comes from Carl Jung’s ideas, not research. Two women with no background in psychology turned that into a quiz. Then companies started using it to run meetings, hire people, and build org charts.

But just because something feels smart doesn’t mean it works.

You wouldn’t treat back pain with a BuzzFeed quiz. So why trust your hiring or leadership to one?

Prompt of the Day

Give me an SEO strategy for my site based on these three things: 

1) who I serve
2) what problem I solve
3) what people are already searching for. Break it into action steps.

Part 2: It locks people in

Let’s say someone tests as an “INFP.” That means they’re introverted, intuitive, feeling, and perceiving.

What happens next?

They say things like:

  • “I’m just not a details person.”

  • “I’m more of a big-picture thinker.”

  • “That’s not my strength.”

It’s not always an excuse. But it becomes a cage.

You stop asking “How do I grow?” and start saying “That’s just who I am.”

That’s dangerous. For them, for you, and for the team.

Real growth comes from stretching, not staying in type.

Part 3: It’s not consistent

If you take Myers-Briggs twice in a year, there’s a good chance you’ll get different results.

Research shows up to 50% of people get a different result within months.

That’s not how traits work. Imagine going to the doctor and being told you’re diabetic on Tuesday, but not diabetic by Friday.

That’s not a test. That’s a guessing game.

And if your hiring, leadership, or team-building depends on a shaky system, you’ll keep solving the wrong problem.

Part 4: It doesn’t predict job success

Let’s say your best employee is an “ESTJ.” Do you go out and find more ESTJs?

Not a good idea.

Studies show Myers-Briggs has no connection to job performance. None.

An “INTP” might crush it in sales. An “ESFJ” might be a terrible manager. There’s no clear pattern.

You don’t need letters. You need clarity on what the job takes and what habits help someone win.

Part 5: It creates lazy leadership

Here’s what happens with a lot of leaders:

They learn their team's “types”
They print a chart
They color-code their org
And then they stop actually managing.

That’s not leadership. That’s outsourcing hard conversations to a quiz.

Good leadership means real talk. Real observation. Real feedback.

Not just, “Well, he’s a J, so that’s why he micromanages.”

That’s lazy. And it’s unfair to the team.

So what should you do instead?

You don’t need personality profiles.

You need to know:

  • What your business needs to win

  • What each seat on your team needs to deliver

  • What habits, mindset, and systems support that

And then you need to help your people grow into those roles. Or find new people who can.

Personality typing won’t tell you who can scale your company. But clear expectations, real conversations, and ownership will.

Real-world fix: Build roles around outcomes, not types

If you’re hiring or leading, skip the types. Instead:

  1. Define the outcome.
    What does this person need to do every 90 days?

  2. Break it into actions.
    What do they need to do weekly to get there?

  3. Look at behavior, not personality.
    Are they consistent? Are they getting results?

  4. Coach the behavior.
    Help them get sharper. Not more "aligned with their type."

The bigger truth

Labels feel safe. But business doesn’t run on safety. It runs on truth.

Here’s the truth: Most teams are underperforming because no one’s clear on what “good” looks like.

Not because they’re the wrong type.
Not because they’re introverts or extroverts.
Because no one set a clear target.

Once you do that, things start to move.

Want to get clearer?

If your team feels off or your business feels stuck, it might not be about the people. It might be about how you’re organizing the work.

Let’s fix that.

Ryan