I’m not sure about you, but I’ve taken quite a few personality tests over the years. I fall under the “type A” personality, which Wikipedia describes as:
The theory describes a Type A individual as ambitious, rigidly organized, highly status conscious, can be sensitive, care for other people, are truthful, impatient, always try to help others, take on more than they can handle, want other people to get to the point, proactive, and obsessed with time management. People with Type A personalities are often high-achieving “workaholics” who multi-task, push themselves with deadlines, and hate both delays and ambivalence.
While this is a general description and no one fits descriptions perfectly, I think it’s revealing to see who falls under what grouping. What I want to talk about today is not type A and type B personalities, though, but another personality grouping: introverts and extroverts.
An Illustration
Currently in my job as an accountant I actually interact with people quite a bit. We switched to a new office with much more open cubes that essentially minimizes or eliminates any shred of privacy you had in the older building’s three-and-a-half walled cubicles. Combine that with some extroverted co-workers sitting close, and you can see why I oftentimes wear headphones when I’m trying to concentrate on tasks. Sometimes the interactions can be draining, and cause me to daydream about working from home where I am actually more productive (there’s a reason introverts support work-from-home more than extroverts!).
My wife, on the other hand, is without a doubt an extrovert and gets her energy from being around people. She is currently in the process of applying to PHD programs for psychology and works a couple part-time jobs. One of these is nannying, where she is around a 1-year-old for the better part of two days a week. While she certainly likes the child care field and has been in it for years now, being around no one but a baby for that long can be draining on her. When she told me this, I started getting excited about how awesome it would be to work all day without having to be around others all day. Go figure.
Consider Your Personality
The big question you need to answer is: Are you and introvert or an extrovert?
If you get your energy from being around people, you are an extrovert. If you get your energy from being alone, you are an introvert.
It really is that simple.
Finding a career or work that fits with your personality may be a little more difficult. While some career-personality match-ups may seem obvious – think salesperson/extrovert – others may be a bit more complicated. Within Finance there are both extroverts and introverts. Sometimes seeing extreme extroverts in accounting roles that do not require a lot of interaction can be painful; they interact because they personally need to, not because their work requires it. On the other hand, a CPA who does taxes for individuals and small businesses may thrive because it can require a lot of human interaction.
Next time you are looking for a new job, consider whether the work environment is conducive to your personality. If you are an extrovert and a recruiter or hiring manager tells you that the job can require very little human interaction and is primarily working on data pulls and management, there is almost guaranteed a job out there that fits your personality better. On the contrary, if you are looking at a management position that requires you to constantly talk to people, but really all you want to do is hide in your cube or office, it may be a good idea to keep looking.
Recognizing and Adjusting to your Personality
CF at the Outlier Model made a great point last week about how to take advantage of knowing that you are an introvert:
Financially, recognizing yourself as an introvert or an extrovert can help you make better decisions. For example, since I know that I am more creative when I’m alone and not under pressure from social considerations, I often come into work early in order to tackle the harder tasks that I have. This (hopefully) makes me a better employee and will one day be rewarded with raises and promotions. ;)
I shared my own strategies for introverts to avoid becoming drained, and my first tip was to find a career or job that gives you alone time. What CF said definitely rings true: if you are in a situation where you forced to be around others, it can benefit you greatly if you can find “alone time” to actually sit down and concentrate on complicated tasks. This also comes into play when looking at graduate programs. For example, there are different options for MBA: part-time, full-time, or online. An online program may work better for an introvert because they can do the classes from the comfort of their home versus having to constantly interact in-person for lecture and group work.
Getting into a career or a line of work that best fits with your personality can really help financially. It may be the difference between doing a good job or doing a great job. If you are already stuck in a career path, consider how you can move into a role that best matches your introversion or extroversion. As I said, I work in finance and there is certainly room for both introverts and extroverts. I recently asked my friend what part of finance he truly wanted to be working in, and he said “client-facing.” Smart choice, the guy is definitely an extrovert.
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Are you an introvert or an extrovert? How has this impacted or influenced your career?
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Photo by Karla Campos
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I am an introvert and was working sales for two years because I did great at the interview, but it was the worst job possible for my personality. I enjoy helping people and if I have to sell a product that will genuinely help them that is fine but pushy sales for add ons and financing plans, not my thing.
RFIndependence I think you definitely in the right area then, i.e. online content sites. I also think your real estate development will practically sell itself ;)
I am an introvert as well and a type A to boot. ;) Looking back on my past jobs I can definitely see how my personality type did or did not gel with the job I was in. Not surprisingly the ones I did best in were much more suited for my personality. I love helping people, but if I do not get time to myself it is too draining for me. My wife, though, is just like yours and is energized by being around people.
FrugalRules Haha seems like couples tend to marry opposites. It definitely can work but is a balancing game. We need to be around people enough for her, but we need to be away from people enough for me.
I love helping people. Working in that way gets me excited and energized and makes time fly. But other personal interactions can get to be draining and I definitely need time to myself. I’d probably put myself more in the introvert category, but I do think it can be context-dependent. I think you’re spot-on though that understanding your personality is very important to finding an enjoyable career.
momanddadmoney It certainly can be context-dependent, but overall I think most people lean one way or another. It’s all about where you get your energy from!
I’m an odd mix of introvert and extrovert. I enjoy being alone, writing, and reflecting. I also enjoy helping people and interacting with them. What I hate is feeling forced to sell or make a pitch when I don’t believe in the product!
CashCowCouple Hmmm but where do you get your energy from? That’s the key question ;)
I’m an introvert which is very handy since I work from home alone. :) Even before when I worked in an office my job is pretty solo and I could easily go hours locked in my edit bay without seeing anyone. Oddly enough though one of my dream type jobs would be working with people in some sort of preventative medicine way. But I think that’s dealing with people more one on one…which still is in line with an introvert’s personality.
Beachbudget One-on-one is definitely the best way for introverts to deal with people, at least from my own personal experience. Interested to hear more about what you would like to do within preventative medicine.
I consider myself a hybrid when it comes to the workplace. I love being around people that I know, but I do my best work when I am alone. I can work well with people, but I can get into a groove when on my own.
DebtRoundUp I like being around people I know too. I get drained more so around people I don’t know well, but overall I am definitely an introvert.
I’m defnitely an extrovert and it fits pretty well with my job most of the time. I say most of the time becasue there are times where I need to just put my nose to the grindstone to finish a tedious task that doesn’t require socializing anyone else. I really enjoy working with groups and learning about what everyone else is working on.
CommonCentsWealth It’s definitely interesting to see how introverts and extroverts interact at work.
While CF might be an introvert, I (Brian) have both introverted and extroverted tendancies. CF would probably say I’m an extrovert, but over time I think I’ve developed more introverted tendancies. I like interacting with co-workers and friends but sometimes wish I had a door on my cubicle…
OutlierModel I wish I had a door for sure! We only have three walls on our cubicles now, and two of them only go about 5 feet up…maybe less than that. No real privacy and the extroverts always feel free to walk right into your personal space and start talking, even if you have headphones on….
I am 100% an introvert. Let me tell you that being an introvert is not always a great fit for advancing your career! The good thing for me is that I work in technology and even though I am an introvert, I am far less of one than a lot of my peers.
Excellent post DC!! I can picture you with your headset on trying to
get work done. I really like what you talk about on how people should
consider if they
are an introvert or not when applying for jobs. I bet many do not until
it is too late.
I found cubicle living very difficult.
While
I do enjoy chit chatting with people occasionally, I found that when I
worked in an office full of cubicles I rarely got much done. I can’t
deal with interruptions. If I am focused on something, even just reading
something, and I get distracted, I pretty much have to start all over
again. I often ended up bringing my work home and doing it quietly in
the evenings.
TacklingOurDebt I can’t deal with interruptions (for the most part) either. The worst is when I am really trying to get something complicated finished, I have my headphones on, music on loud to drain out noise, and STILL people feel free to step right up and start talking or bug me about something.
I imagine if I was in an IT project management role (I believe this was you in a former life?) I would have to do work at night at home. There would just be no way I could finish it all with the constant questions, distractions, etc.
I am an introvert and type A, but really do well with one on one type situations. Get to the point already should be my motto! I’ve learned over the years to make due in crowed social situations, but I’d never say it’s easy. I always hated group projects when I was in school as well. My worst nightmare would be having a job in sales. I think I picked pretty well.
Eyesonthedollar You definitely picked the right career if you do well in one-on-one situations!
I am definitely a Type A personality…. but I am introverted mostly because I loathe group projects. I absolutely hate it when I have to work with other people because I end up doing their work as well which just aggravates me.
I am 100% introverted. However, my job requires me to act like an extrovert. It’s not quite as hard for me as it once was though.
I agree that people should do what they feel comfortable with. However, having a job that’s polar opposite from my personality has helped me to become a bit more extroverted.
Great point! I definitely see this issue in the finance world. I would say that finance has more introverts in general than sales or large group consulting. I would consider myself an introvert however, I am an auditor and interact with client contacts and co-workers regularly. This requires at least a bit more ‘extrovert’ skills. I have seen wonderful accountants struggle at auditing because they lack the outgoing social skills needed. Finding your fit within your industry is also a very important thing to consider.
I am without a doubt an introvert, but I am in a profession that demands a lot of interaction with people. Collaborating with my colleagues is enjoyable, but draining. I understand now why I seek quiet moments throughout the day and why I am my most creative, productive self when I work at home.