ESTJ

The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.

Ronald Reagan

Overview of “the Supervisor”

ESTJs are Extroverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging.

  • Extroverted because they are energized by time spent with others and connect most with the outer world.
  • Sensing because they explore practical details of the physical world and focus primarily on the past and present.
  • Thinking because they prioritize objective data and logic when making decisions.
  • Judging because they prefer to have things organized and like control in their outer environment.

ESTJs are responsible, structured individuals. They have a strong sense of honor and duty and wish to live their lives in accordance with their deeply ingrained value system. They are highly dependable types who can be trusted to follow through on the projects they start. ESTJs love schedules and are skilled at sticking to them. They are extremely hard workers and are well known in their communities for their diligence and their work ethic.

Because ESTJs are not afraid of hard work, they notoriously climb the ladder of success without skipping a step along the way. They enjoy achieving success within the boundaries of hierarchical systems. They are good at both following the rules and enforcing them and they naturally rise to positions of leadership because of this natural ability. ESTJs understand the tasks of a given job and are able to delegate responsibilities effectively. These types are organized, driven, conscientious, and respectable.

Cognitive Functions

In the Myers-Briggs personality system there are eight cognitive functions. Your unique personality is a road map pointing to the four cognitive functions that you access consciously. Every personality will have two extroverted functions and two introverted functions. Every personality will also have one feeling function, one thinking function, one intuitive function, and one sensing function. For more help and practice identifying cognitive functions for the sixteen Myers-Briggs personality types check out this worksheet. All eight functions are as follows:

  • Extroverted Intuition
  • Introverted Intuition
  • Extroverted Sensing
  • Introverted Sensing
  • Extroverted Feeling
  • Introverted Feeling
  • Extroverted Thinking
  • Introverted Thinking

Te (Extroverted Thinking) – Dominant

An ESTJ’s dominant cognitive function is Extroverted Thinking, abbreviated as Te. Dominant cognitive functions are used approximately 80% of the time by an individual and are hardly noticed by the user. This function will feel like second nature and “drives” an ESTJ.

10 Signs You’re Te-dominant

  1. You naturally delegate work
  2. Fairness is very important to you
  3. You like your outer world to be organized
  4. You enjoy planning
  5. Structure is comforting
  6. You may feel that others around you are incompetent
  7. You value credentials
  8. You enjoy reading and gaining knowledge
  9. You want others to think well of you
  10. You can be very sensitive in public settings (when made to feel small or embarrassed)

Positives of Being Te-dominant

  • Organizing your outer world
  • Having high standards and valuing credentials
  • Reading and gaining knowledge
  • Valuing fairness and justice

Struggles of Being Te-dominant

  • Considering others incompetent
  • Sensitivity to personal feedback or criticism
  • Being subconsciously susceptible to “group think”
  • Needing the approval of others (knowingly or unknowingly)

A note to the ESTJs reading…

Ever wonder why you need to verbally share your thoughts/opinions with others? That’s Te. Ever find yourself naturally leading a group and finding others trusting your decisiveness? That’s Te. Ever start organizing your desk space or office area before you can concentrate properly? That’s Te.

Extroverted Thinking is the reason why you like strategy games and excel sheets. It’s the tool that helps you piece apart data, come up with effective plans, schedule your time well, and learn new information quickly. It can be your secret weapon and your Achilles heel if it isn’t properly balanced with the other cognitive functions.

Si (Introverted Sensing) – Auxiliary

An ESTJ’s secondary function is Introverted Sensing/Si. If someone is an extrovert, their dominant function will be extroverted and their auxiliary function will always be introverted. Balance is necessary — especially in the brain! Si helps process the information brought to it by Te.

10 Signs You’re Si-auxiliary

  1. You enjoy reliving past experiences
  2. You learn quickly from your mistakes
  3. You notice when something’s “off”
  4. Trust facts over inspiration
  5. Probably have a good sense of humor
  6. Comfortable with traditions
  7. You pay attention to detail
  8. Often fairly resourceful
  9. Dislike being pushed outside your comfort zone
  10. You compare and contrast a lot

Si takes a backseat to Te. Because Te is the driver, Si responds to the information after Te has already lived the experience. This is why ESTJs are drawn to conventional methods and might relate a past experience to help them navigate a present one. Te interacts with thoughts and strategies in the moment while Si looks to the past to process the information and later present it to the ESTJ as a refined opinion and/or action-step.

ESTJs are fairly extroverted and will likely identify themselves as such. Even so, they are not necessarily extroverted in the typical “people person” sense. Because of their forceful, authoritarian nature they can often rub people the wrong way and may feel as though they don’t understand where others are coming from. It is not boldness or confidence they lack, but a certain finesse within relationships.

Ne (Extroverted Intuition) – Tertiary

An ESTJ’s tertiary cognitive function is Extroverted Intuition/Ne. This position as third in the “cognitive stack” means that TeSi is running the show the vast majority of the time. Because of this, Ne is a bit underdeveloped and usually starts to show up in an ESTJ’s mid-20s. Tertiary functions usually have the maturity level of a ten-year-old child — they can serve as a strength or a weakness depending on how the user responds to it.

Tertiary Ne is why ESTJs have fun new ideas and want to act on them. It explains why they are fascinated by other points of view as they try to learn more about the world around them. Extroverted Intuition/Ne occasionally pushes an ESTJ out of their comfort zone simply for the thrill of it: whether it’s a new trip, restaurant, sport, or date idea… Ne encourages them to try new things so they don’t get stuck in old habits.

Fi (Introverted Feeling) – Inferior

An ESTJ’s inferior cognitive function is Introverted Feeling/Fi. This function is typically concerned with authenticity, empathy, and subjective experiences. Inferior functions usually develop in midlife. Because of this late-blooming, there will be many times Fi pops up in uncomfortable, weak, and even self-destructive ways.

Healthy Fi-inferior looks like

  • Acknowledging emotions
  • Affirming emotional reactions in others
  • Holding space for differing opinions
  • Acknowledging one’s own opinion as subjective
  • Engaging in empathy and using personal antidotes to advise others

Unhealthy Fi-inferior looks like

  • Rejecting or distrusting emotions
  • Disgust with emotional displays
  • Insensitive comments directed at friends and family
  • Distrusting subjective experiences when used as arguments
  • Viewing one’s own opinion as objective and unbiased