Comparing Te Users: Masterminding Plans

Ryan and I were having an interesting conversation about Te the other day, so I thought I’d try to get some of the thoughts we produced into writing. I’m not exactly sure what I’m going to call this, but hopefully something adequate will come to me by the time I reach the end of this article.

Introduction

INTJs are known as the masterminds and the ultimate villains, but what happens when another Te user takes that role? What will the differences be? Sometimes people are too quick to label a villain as an INTJ simply due to the character’s long term strategic brilliance, but that doesn’t really seem fair. Aren’t the other Te users capable of an impressive villainous feat? What will it look like? How do the different Te users grasp and maintain control when forming and enacting plans?

There are four high Te users in total: ISTJ, INTJ, ESTJ, ENTJ. Most people know that Te is about control, or specifically, controlling the external, physical environment or system. However, how a Te user makes their decisions will be deeply affected by their perceiving function (Ni or Si). In addition, auxiliary Te will act differently than dominant Te. Let me share some thoughts on the differences in a way that hopefully makes sense. I’ll start with some general information, and then cover the individual types.

Dominant vs. Auxiliary Tendencies

Dominant Te: EXTJs

Te is very goal oriented, and thus anyone leading with Te will be eager to launch their plans into action. In addition, since Te is extraverted, the EXTJs will be more comfortable with acting in the extraverted world without thinking, ergo they may cultivate an ability to plan as they go, or while in action, making them appear impulsive at times. This impulsive tendency is not limited to the ENTJs, but applies to the ESTJs as well, but more on that later. Also, while Te dominants are known for being commanding, they do not always gather a group of people around them or appear extraverted in the classic social sense.

Auxiliary Te: IXTJs

Auxiliary Te is much more cautious than dominant Te, since anyone with aux Te has an inferior extraverted perceiving function (Ne/Se). The IXTJs will therefore rely heavily on their dominant function to form well thought out plans prior to taking any kind of action. The IXTJs as a whole will be less adaptable and will probably appear more calculated than the Te doms.

The Individual Types

ISTJ (Si-Te):

The ISTJ will be the biggest control freak out of all the Te users. (Sorry guys, I’m being blunt about it.) This is due to dominant Si and inferior Ne. When forming and launching their master plan, dominant Si will be very detail-oriented, making the ISTJs prone to micromanaging since they want everything done a very specific way. They won’t naturally want to trust others to do things correctly, and will maintain as much control as they can in spite of their underlings or allies. In some cases, they may just want to do a task themselves, rather than relying on others, because that’s the only real way to ensure that it’s done right. They’ll also probably give very specific, and detailed instructions. They’ll be more prone to sharing information/context so that those under them fully understand what they are trying to achieve, so there will usually be less confusion in regards to what the ISTJ is actually intending or thinking (unless the plan/mission requires a certain level of mystery to work).

As sensors, ISTJs won’t have a fear of physically acting within their plans, like an INTJ might (due to inferior Se). ISTJs will instead have inferior Ne which will cause them to carefully consider every possible way the plan or task might go wrong and plan accordingly, making them the most cautious of the Te users. Being both introverted and lacking any kind of Se, they’ll probably struggle the most with adapting to unexpected situations, hence their desire to account for all possibilities via their inferior Ne. This is where the line between INTJ and ISTJ might become blurred though, since an ISTJ can give the impression that he “foresaw” an event or occurrence. (Chances are that unexpected situation was already a part of the INTJ’s plan, versus the ISTJ just being prepared for the possibility.)

INTJ (Ni-Te):

The INTJ will be the second most cautious of the types. Some people seem to want to make them more impulsive than the ESTJs due to their Se, but that is NOT true, and doesn’t make any sense. INTJs are introverted, making them cautious by nature. Acting in the extraverted world will not often be their first impulse, which is in stark contrast to the ESTJ who will be more comfortable acting in the moment or planning as they go as a result of dom Te. INTJs specifically have inferior Se, which means that while they’ll maintain rigid control of their master plan, they’ll do so in a less hands on way. That may sound like a contradiction, but bear with me. Ni is not about the details like Si. Ni will be more about the key milestones. They probably won’t care how something was done, just as long as it got done. As a result, they’ll give less detailed instructions, and will probably only share what’s absolutely necessary, leaving them and their intentions as a whole shrouded in mystery. People usually struggle to understand what INTJs are thinking or planning due to this tendency to withhold information. INTJs may do this intentionally or subconsciously, assuming that others will be comfortable operating on a set of vague guidelines like they are.

INTJs will also prefer to remain detached from their environment, so they may get others to fulfill the plan for them. This is why INTJs are known to be evil masterminds who subtly controls everyone from the shadows. They usually rely on their Ni perception to control or manipulate others, rather than physically doing things themselves. An ISTJ could certainly boss others around and issue commands, but you should see a general preference for Si perfectionism resulting in a more hands-on tendency. (In my experience, ISTJs struggle to standby and watch someone do something. They’ll get hyper frustrated at the person’s inadequacy and end up taking back control of the task.) With all that being said, the INTJ will be the second biggest control freak, even if it’s not in a direct, hands-on manner. This is because they too will struggle with improvising, since their extraverted perceiving function is inferior. They will probably begin to stress out when things aren’t going according to plan (due to some miscalculation or unexpected variable).

ESTJ (Te-Si):

The ESTJ will be more action oriented and impulsive than any of the types discussed thus far due to dom Te. An ESTJ will prefer to gather others together for the sake of expediting the master plan. They’ll naturally yield a bit more control to those under them, since that is a side effect of directly managing others. However, an ESTJ may choose to avoid involving others if they feel achieving the goal will be simpler and quicker that way. However, if achieving their goal can be expedited via gathering workers/helpers, they will not hesitate to do so. ESTJs will naturally appear bossier than any of the IXTJs when around others, feeling more of a need to command anyone that they’re forced to work with. Since ESTJs prefer Te over Si, they’ll allow some of the details to slide in an effort to complete their goal, however they’ll still possess a bit of that micromanaging tendency like the ISTJs and give very specific instructions. They’ll also be similar to the ISTJs when it comes to straightforwardness. Earlier, I mentioned that the ISTJs are more likely to share detailed information about the plan so as to eliminate any confusion. This tendency should hold true for the ESTJs as well, although obviously not to the same extent as the Si dominants since they’re only utilizing their Si in the auxiliary position. The ESTJs may forget to relay all of the information, may miss some of the details, or be generally less observant when compared to the ISTJs.

As an extraverted dominant, ESTJ’s will find it less difficult to improvise or think on their feet. Of course, tertiary Ne will be coming up from behind to help. Sure, Si is known for being cautious, but Si is not in the lead. Te is. I’ve also noticed that people like to tie Si and low Ne to being cowardly or fearful, and that is incorrect. A healthy ESTJ will use tertiary Ne to both improvise and account for all possible scenarios, allowing them to be well-prepared. Since ESTJs possess that hands-on tendency of Si and are leading with an extraverted function, they may prefer to be front and center in enacting their plan. Essentially, they may want to spearhead it, rather than just micromanaging from the background. Due to the desire to launch their plans into action, ESTJs may at times appear impatient or less calculated than either of the IXTJs.

ENTJ (Te-Ni):

ENTJs will be the most impulsive and adaptable of the Te users. With the ENTJs, you get dominant Te combined with tertiary Se, which may bring about a certain thrill in the moment when things don’t go exactly according to plan. ENTJs may find slight deviations from the plan (which then force them to improvise) to be amusing. Perhaps they’ll enjoy the challenge or the resulting adrenaline rush. ENTJs may find ways to be at the forefront of their plan, in the middle of all the action, similar to the ESTJs, due to the dominant Te and tertiary Se. However, they’ll also be the most prone to delegating. Detached Ni coupled with dominant Te will make them want to gather a group of people together in the effort to achieve their goal or vision. ENTJs will naturally appear bossier than any of the IXTJs when around others, feeling more of a need to command anyone that they’re forced to work with. Due to the desire to launch their plans into action, ENTJs may at times appear impatient or less calculated than either of the IXTJs.

Similar to the INTJs, the ENTJs will like to manipulate others into completing tasks for them due to the detached nature of Ni. This may mean barking a simple order, or manipulating behind-the-scenes, like the INTJs are known for. However, their manipulation will on average be more obvious and straightforward when compared to the INTJs. In other words, the person may at times be aware that they’re being manipulated, but have literally nothing they can do about it. In addition, while a INTJ is more likely to hide their true intentions, an ENTJ may make their ultimate goal or intentions fully clear, and simply leave the details shrouded in mystery. ENTJs won’t feel the need to micromanage like the STJs, and will let people complete tasks in whatever manner they see fit as long as the end goal is fulfilled or the key milestones are reached. ENTJs won’t tend to give super specific instructions because of this, and will be prone to withholding information, like the INTJs. They’ll share what is absolutely necessary, and may prefer to subject others to a more limited and vague understanding of what is actually going on.