Why Don’t I Fit My Personality Type Description?

Someone typed me as an (insert Myers-Briggs personality type here), but I just don’t feel like I fit the personality type description. Did they mess up? Could I actually be that personality type or was I mistyped?

Ryan and I have seen people complain about this time and time again. No matter which of the 16 personality types (ENTJ, INTJ, ESTJ, ISTJ, ENFJ, INFJ, ESFJ, ISFJ, ENFP, INFP, ESFP, ISFP, ESTP, ISTP, ENTP, INTP), no one type seems immune to this problem. Of course, to the most extreme degree, there are the people who not only don’t fit their personality type description, but also can’t seem to fit any of the type descriptions out there.

The internet is rife with personality type descriptions. Every site has their own version of what each of the 16 types are like, although many overlap or seem remarkably similar. Of course, the quality of the content varies from site to site, based on a few different factors, but that is not the specific subject of this article. In this article, I’m going to focus on answering the basic question that we see so many people asking: “Why don’t I fit my personality type description?”

There are a few reasons that people don’t fit their personality type. It’s not necessarily their fault for misunderstanding or mistyping, and it’s not necessarily the fault of the site. People are just complex. It’s a tall order for any one type description to fit every single individual of that personality type that exists. However, with that being said, those aforementioned issues can be factors. After thinking over this subject, I’ve managed to produce 4 primary reasons why people don’t fit their personality type description. I hope that this will clear up some confusion, and help further you in your journey of self-discovery.

5 Reasons You Don’t Fit Your Personality Type Description

1. You’re mistyped

I’ve got to start with the most obvious and basic reasons, the first of which being that you’re mistyped, whether that means you mistyped yourself or someone else mistyped you. (For the record, be prepared for the possibility that any typing service, no matter how good, may mistype you. Typologists are human and prone to mistakes like anyone else, and they can only work off of the information you give them. It’s ultimately up to you to figure out what fits best given your life and history.)

Obviously, if you’re mistyped, you will not fit your personality type description. However, with that being said, bear in mind that you are not guaranteed to to fit your type description either way. The reasons for that will be covered in later points. Ultimately, to figure out if your struggle revolves around mistyping, you need to gain a deeper understanding of the cognitive functions, and the actual thought processes behind each one. Some people are overeager to declare themselves mistyped because they don’t like the type descriptions associated with their type; they don’t like the idea of being that personality type. Unfortunately, that is the definition of bias, and it gets in the way of true self-discovery.

2. The type description is written from a different perspective

Oftentimes, the reason a type description doesn’t ring true is not because it’s completely wrong, but because it was written by someone who’s coming from a different perspective. This can be due to a couple of different reasons. (1) The author might have far too little exposure to that personality type, causing them to publish information that’s been derived from only one or two samples. (In that situation, they’re essentially describing a hyper-specific version of the type.) (2) The author might be misinterpreting the personality type in question, or not describing the type in a relatable way.

We all see the 16 types differently. While the goal should always be to present an unbiased, and balanced perspective of each type, it’s easy to let one’s own personal perspective influence the description in such a way that a reader of that type might not feel like they can relate.

Of course, you may wish to point out right about now that you don’t relate to any of the type descriptions for your type, no matter what website you’re on. How can every single description still be unrelatable? Well, that’s actually quite simple. The 16 types are not equally distributed throughout the typology community. Have you ever heard people talk about the “intuitive bias”? Well, the reason that exists is because it’s primarily intuitives writing the information, so most of what’s been written is from their perspective. It’s essentially a wide-reaching bias (or difference of perspective) that has effected a large portion of the material out there. It’s not malicious or intentional, but it has caused some confusion and propagated some misinformation. Similarly, there’s a much lesser known “introversion bias”, since introverts tend to have the majority within the typology community.

3. You’re not a stereotype

Each personality type has it’s own set of stereotypes. I’m sure you’ve heard a bunch of them before. For instance, all INFPs are weepy and dramatic. ISTPs are the mechanics. INFJs are psychic. ISTJs are worker bees. Etcetera. While some stereotypes are more true than others, all of them in some form or another have been derived from a tendency that someone noticed within that personality type, or perhaps a renowned version of that personality type that drew a lot of attention at one point. However, regardless of the stereotype’s origin, no one is guaranteed to adhere to all of the stereotypes, or possess all of the same behavioral tendencies. The 16 personality types are based on the cognitive functions, which describe cognition, not behavior. If you don’t relate to your type description, it could simply be because you are not a stereotypical version of your personality type. Remember, the key is to relate to the reasoning process associated with your type’s cognitive function stack.

4. You’re in a loop or a grip

A loop is when you’re skipping over your auxiliary, or second, function and leaning too heavily on your third, while a grip is when you’re dominant function has been over-stressed to the point that you’ve fallen back onto your inferior, or fourth, function. In either situation, you don’t possess the function balance typical for your personality type, and you will likely not fit the descriptions as well, unless they account for this state.

If you’re in either of these states, it should be fairly easy to tell, because the unhealthy state should be pretty obvious to you. For instance, an introvert in a loop will be far too introverted, struggling to act or make decisions in the real world at all, constantly stuck in a state of analysis. An extravert in a loop will be too extraverted, never stopping to think things through or introspect.

People are usually aware when they’re not in a good place, and if that’s the case for you, you need to explore the possibility of being in one of these states. On the other hand, a good approach might be to think back to a time when you were in a better place, and analyze your personality type with that period of your life in mind. What type did you fit best when you were healthy?

5. You’ve matured

If I’m being completely honest, this is the point I’ve been itching to discuss, because it’s something few people seem to realize. Most type descriptions describe an imbalanced version of each personality type. Honestly, it would actually be quite challenging to describe a balanced version, because people who are really balanced blur the lines between other types, especially within their quadra. Now, don’t get me wrong. As an ISTP (Ti-Se-Ni-Fe), I will never stop being an ISTP, but I will (hopefully) learn to use my lower two functions well enough to balance out and/or diminish the weaknesses associated with my type’s function stack. People who learn to do this effectively are harder to type accurately, because they are no longer leaning heavily on their top two functions. For instance, a thinker with a developed feeling function might display the warmth and empathy that you typically associate with a feeler.

When it comes to type descriptions, I actually have one piece of advice to give you, which may sound a bit weird, but it’s this: Think about how you were as a teenager.

I’ve seen people say that kids can’t be typed. While I agree that young kids can’t be typed, teenagers can be, because by the time one reaches their teenage years, they are actively using their top two functions (unless unhealthy). Teenagers are the most likely to fit a type description because they have yet to mature enough to balance out those more common/extreme tendencies being described within the type descriptions.

I’ll leave you with one last example. INFPs (Fi-Ne-Si-Te) are often described as highly idealistic, essentially living in a fantasy dream world (Fi-Ne). I was talking with an INFP once, who told me that while she used to fit the INFP description to a T, she actually no longer related heavily to those descriptions. To me, that made perfect sense. Once an INFP has spent a significant amount of time living in the real world, gaining life experience, the lower Si and Te should start developing, allowing them to pick up some pseudo ISTJ qualities. Their idealistic perspective should get balanced out by what (amongst their dreams and ideals) is actually achievable and actionable.

In conclusion…

I hope this made sense. I’ve gone on the occasional rant about type descriptions before (like in Be Wary of Type Descriptions), but I realized one day that I’ve never really expounded upon what can cause them to be problematic. I’m certainly not saying that there’s no value in type descriptions. However, if you’re going to use them as a tool to aid in determining your personality type, it’s important to be aware of the potential pitfalls so that you have a greater likelihood of assessing yourself accurately in reference to those descriptions.