Leadership is not a one-size-fits-all quality.
Have you ever wondered why some leaders are naturally inspiring, while others focus more on planning and details?
The answer often comes down to their personality type. In this guide, you'll clearly understand how personality—including models like Myers-Briggs (MBTI)—affects leadership styles, strengths, and decision-making, helping you become a more effective leader.
Understanding your personality type can help you recognize your natural strengths and potential blind spots. This allows you to adapt your approach to different situations and team dynamics.
In this blog post, we'll explore how different personality types shape leadership styles and what that means for you. Whether you're a natural-born leader or someone who's had to work at it, understanding your personality type can offer valuable guidance.
So, let's dive in and discover how your personality influences the way you lead.
Personality determines how you naturally think, communicate, and make decisions, which strongly affects your leadership style.
Personality plays a big role in how we interact with others.
At its core, personality refers to the unique set of characteristics, behaviors, and thought patterns that define an individual. This extends to leadership as well. These traits significantly influence how a person interacts with others, makes decisions, and responds to challenges—all of which are key components of leadership.
Personality assessments, such as the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) or the Big Five personality traits help to understand an individual's inherent tendencies, such as whether they are more extroverted or introverted, or whether they prefer thinking over feeling in decision-making.
Certain traits, like extroversion or conscientiousness, can influence how a person leads, whether it’s through confident decision-making or careful planning.
For example, a leader with a high degree of extroversion is likely to be more charismatic and engaging, often excelling in roles that require public speaking or team motivation. In contrast, an introverted leader may adopt a more reserved approach, focusing on thoughtful decision-making and one-on-one interactions.
Five major personality traits—known as the Big Five—significantly impact leadership:
At the workplace:
These Big Five traits offer a framework for understanding how personality influences leadership.
For example, leaders high in openness often embrace new ideas and innovation. In contrast, leaders low in neuroticism are generally more stable and resilient under pressure. By applying the Big Five, you can better understand your instinctive tendencies and how they inform your leadership approach.
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) categorizes personality into 16 types based on four dimensions:
This model helps leaders understand their natural tendencies and adapt their leadership styles to become more effective.
For example, an INTJ (Introverted, Intuitive, Thinking, Judging) might focus on strategic planning, while an ESFP (Extroverted, Sensing, Feeling, Perceiving) might excel in motivating and engaging their team.
Leadership Style: Commanding and Strategic
ENTJs are often seen as natural-born leaders. Known for their strategic thinking and strong decision-making skills, they excel in planning and executing complex projects. They are commanding and assertive, which makes them effective in roles that require strong leadership and vision.
Team dynamic: ENTJs are usually very direct and have high expectations of their team members. They are good at setting clear goals and motivating their team to achieve them. However, their assertive nature can sometimes come across as overly harsh, so it's important for ENTJs to work on their communication skills to ensure they're motivating, not discouraging.
Leadership Style: Inspirational and Values-Driven
INFP leaders are empathetic and inspirational, creating environments that prioritize authenticity and harmony.
INFPs may not fit the traditional mold of a leader, but they bring a unique set of qualities that can be incredibly effective, especially in environments that value creativity and ethical considerations. Known for their strong personal values and belief in authenticity, INFPs lead by inspiring others to achieve a shared vision.
Team dynamic: INFPs excel in building strong, personal connections with their team members. They create an inclusive and supportive atmosphere, encouraging open dialogue and valuing each team member's input. This makes them particularly effective in roles that require team cohesion and morale-building.
Leadership Style: Methodical and Reliable
ISTJ leaders excel at carefully structured planning and consistency. Their dependability makes them highly trusted within teams.
ISTJs are often the pillars of any organization, known for their methodical approach and strong sense of duty. They excel in creating structured environments and are often the go-to leaders for projects that require careful planning and execution.
Team dynamic: ISTJs are clear and consistent in their expectations, making it easy for team members to know their roles and responsibilities. While they may not be as emotionally expressive as other types, their reliability earns them the respect and trust of their team.
Leadership Style: Charismatic and Visionary
ENFPs are known for their charismatic leadership style and ability to inspire others. They bring a lot of energy and creativity to their leadership style, often focusing on big-picture ideas and possibilities. This makes them excellent at motivating teams and fostering an environment of innovation.
Team dynamic: ENFPs excel at building strong, personal relationships with their team members. They are supportive and encouraging, allowing team members to explore new ideas and take creative risks. However, their tendency to focus on the big picture can sometimes lead to a lack of attention to detail, so they benefit from having team members who can help keep projects on track.
There is no single "best" personality type for leadership, as effectiveness varies by context. However, personality types like ENTJ, ENFJ, ESTJ, and INTJ often naturally excel in leadership roles due to qualities such as strategic vision, strong communication, and organizational abilities.
Understanding personality types can significantly improve leadership development programs. Here’s how:
By learning about their personality type, leaders can gain insights into their natural strengths and areas for improvement. This self-awareness is the first step in effective leadership development.
Programs can use personality types to tailor strategies that align with an individual’s natural tendencies. For example, an introverted leader might learn techniques for effective one-on-one communication, while an extroverted leader might focus on managing group dynamics.
Understanding personality types also helps leaders manage diverse teams more effectively. They can adapt their leadership style to meet the needs of different team members, fostering a more inclusive and supportive work environment.
By recognizing how personality influences decision-making, leaders can develop strategies to balance their natural tendencies. For instance, a leader who is naturally risk-averse can learn to incorporate more innovative thinking into their decision-making process.
Personality type insights can also aid in conflict resolution by helping leaders understand the root causes of disagreements and find solutions that work for different personality types.
Understanding your personality helps identify your leadership strengths, uncover blind spots, improve team relationships, developing your leadership skills and personalized strategies for growth.
Once you know your strengths and weaknesses, you can adapt your approach to be more effective.
6 min read
Michelle Bennett : Mar 7, 2023 5:00:00 AM
When you need to convince people, overcome resistance, or inspire action, there’s one leadership style that stands out among the rest: charismatic...
7 min read
Gavin Brown : Feb 27, 2025 10:19:44 AM
Have you ever wondered why some people seem to just naturally know how to lead and inspire others? It turns out that there are scientific theories...
8 min read
Michelle Bennett : May 13, 2021 5:30:00 AM
No two managers are exactly the same. Our personalities, experiences, and access to leadership development opportunities shape how we choose to...
Gavin Brown