Your Personality Type Is Not Your Identity

We humans love to know exactly who and what we are. Our brains love to put us in a neat, organized and linear category, because that’s what gives it a sense of safety. When our brain feels “safe”, our overall life experience is more enjoyable and full of ease.

This functioning happens in our subconscious, based on the information we take in from our conscious brain. This is why models such as astrology, Meyers-Briggs and Enneagram are so interesting and popular; they give us a sense of who we are and where we fit into the social world. While these types of personality tests have gained popularity in recent years, they can also have a harmful effect on our personal identites by impacting our self-concept and self-esteem. That is because these tests provide a limited view of an individual’s personality, and usually only focus on a few specific traits, which can result in an incomplete or inaccurate assessment of an individual’s overall personality.

Our thoughts, feelings and actions are the results of whatever conclusion we are focused on. Conclusions sound like, “my boss doesn’t like me anymore”, or, “I’m definitely the hardest working student in this lab”, or “Once I get that corner office with a raise, then I’ll be happy”. Once we generate a conclusion, we immediately start to gather evidence to prove it to be true. From there, we generate a feeling, which informs the action we choose to take.

Often, individuals take these tests and accept their results as absolute truths. They may begin to identify strongly with the traits or labels that the test provides, which can lead to a narrow self-concept. This can result in a lack of flexibility in one’s self-concept, making it harder to adapt to new situations or experiences.

Another harmful effect of personality tests is that they can lead to self-fulfilling prophecies. Once an individual identifies with the traits provided by the test, they may begin to behave in ways that align with those traits (see: conclusion, and gathering evidence to prove it to be true). This behavior can then reinforce the individual’s self-concept, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. This can be particularly damaging if the traits identified by the test are negative or limiting.

There is nothing wrong in the pursuit of gaining a deeper understanding of ourselves, our motivations and triggers, but overly identifying with a certain “type” of person is limiting, and a form of black and white thinking. Ultimately, one’s personal identity is best discovered through self-reflection, introspection, and lived experiences, not through a standardized test. It’s a much better use of energy and time to practice self acceptance, forgiveness and compassion around being a human (meaning: having reactions, bad days, getting excited, making mistakes, and everything in between). When you can remember that you’re here on earth having a human experience, and accept yourself for exactly who you are, you’ll notice that everyone else (in this species, at least) is having the same human experience as you are as well.

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