ISTJ

About ISTJ

ISTJs are generally practical, responsible, stable and often quiet and serious. They focus their energy inward and reenergize through spending time on their own. ISTJs are typically very private and generally share their thoughts and acquired information with close friends. They can be sociable in situations where they are familiar with their ‘role’ but prefer private conversation to large group settings. They follow set rules and regulations and value tradition, community involvement, and hard work. An ISTJ will likely think things through before sharing their insights and as such, their ideas are usually well thought out. They want to be accurate and are often perfectionists. Their natural focus is on common sense and they see the practical and realistic side to any situation. They are also often financially responsible.

ISTJs generally observe their environment through their five senses, and all observations are detailed and specific. They usually look for realistic and practical facts, and data that can be effectively handled and systematically understood. They prefer order and the sequential processing of information. They tend to use categorized criteria to support their objective approach to gathering information. These categories are often used to further organize the information. An ISTJ usually stores specific details in their memory and are subsequently accurate and precise in their comments and actions. An ISTJ also naturally looks at the immediate situation but when required, does ‘big picture’ thinking by incorporating the facts.

The ISTJ is usually a hard worker and is orientated to completing all tasks on or before the deadline. They are motivated by tasks that they understand and resist jobs that do not make sense to them. They are generally very reliable and expect others to exemplify their own personal commitment to responsibility and competence. Since their focus is on work, personal needs are considered once all obligations have been met. In their interactions with people, the ISTJ may not consider emotions and is often more focused on the task. The ISTJ also prefers stability and does not like change. As such, an ISTJ tends to make modifications when current procedures no longer work or when evidence supports the possibility of improved results and greater efficiency.

ISTJ and School

Learning

The ISTJ student will often…

• Construct a plan to organize their learning
• Use a sequential process for compiling facts and practical information
• Create generalized themes from their gathered information
• Only use theory when it can be incorporated in a real and practical way
• Work best in a quiet environment
• Consistently work hard and persevere
• Need to focus on the main points instead of memorizing all data and information

Writing

An ISTJ often prefers to write on detailed and factual data through a step-by-step process. They have a good descriptive writing style due to their focus on details and their ability to recall specific information. In their writing, an ISTJ may need to be cautious that they do not become overwhelmed with the details and data.

In the writing process, the ISTJ will often…

• Use an efficient and well organized writing process
• Reflect on past experiences and create a plan based on previously successful outlines
• Need to consider the impact their writing has on their audience
• Clarify the objective and obtain clear instructions and expectations
• Write a first draft and then revise writing to omit unnecessary details and include generalizations
• Incorporate headings, graphs, charts and tables in order to highlight key points

Procrastination

An ISTJ’s work ethic often leads them to thoroughly complete each assignment, paper and report. However, it can be difficult for a student to have enough time to complete each assigned task at their optimal level. An ISTJ may procrastinate or leave a project undone if they are not able to meet their own high standards or when they feel overwhelmed with the information and data they have compiled. To overcome this, an ISTJ should try stepping back and looking at the big picture.

ISTJ and Career Exploration

An ISTJ tends to find career satisfaction with careers that have the following characteristics:

• Uses technical skills to work with facts and details
• Produces a real product or service
• Are governed by rules and regulations
• Provides an opportunity for long term security
• Offers a stable and traditional work environment
• Uses an organizational reporting structure
• Requires a minimal amount of risk taking and limited change
• Allows independent work to be completed in an adequate time frame
• Provides an opportunity for greater responsibility and compensation through promotion and performance evaluation

When exploring career options, an ISTJ will often…

• Perform thorough research on currently available careers
• Logically and realistically assess each career option
• Need to intentionally consider options that would require change
• Need to include their personal values as part of the selection criteria
• Benefit from weighing out all their options to avoid making a hasty career decision

Careers to Consider

The following is a list of suggested occupations that fit the qualities of an ISTJ or are careers that other ISTJs have found to be satisfying. Use this list as a starting point for further investigation but do not limit your options to only this list.

Career	Career
Manager/Supervisor	Law Researcher
Legal Secretary	School Broker
School Principal	School Bus Driver
Teacher: Technical/ Math/ Physical Education	Purchasing Agent
Military Officer	Government Employee
Insurance Underwriter	Credit Analyst
Bank Examiner	Tax Examiner
Accountant	Financial Officers
Stock Broker	Technical Writer
Bank Employees	Pollution Control
Electrician	Lab Technician
Word Processing Specialist	Estate Planner
Steelworker	Pharmacist
Librarian	Administrator
Police Officer	Detective
Corrections Officer	Auditor
General Surgeon	Veterinarian
Judge	Engineer
Mechanic	Medical Doctor
Dentist	Health Care Administrator
Nursing Administrator	Computer Programmer

Job Search

During their job search, an ISTJ will often…

• Do thorough research on all prospective fields
• Accept the job search process and length
• Need to intentionally investigate jobs through avenues that they do not commonly use
• Network with a small number of individuals that they feel personally connected to
• Accurately prepares their job search documents
• Need to include their achievements in their applications
• Meet the job application deadline
• Need an extra reminder to follow up with an employer through a thank you note

During an interview, an ISTJ will often…

• Use supporting evidence and examples to market their knowledge
• Appear uninterested in a position due to their quiet disposition
• Need to present their enthusiasm for the position

ISTJ and Work

At work, the ISTJ will often…

• Be hardworking, organized, efficient, and productive
• Set tangible goals
• Devise action plans to meet their established goals
• Consistently complete tasks on schedule and follow through with commitments
• Follow the established policies, procedures and routines
• Desire clear and predictable expectations
• Prefer independent work but be comfortable with teamwork
• Take limited or no risks
• Reliably complete work without supervision
• Excel in areas they understand and practice

At work, the ISTJ should be aware that they may…

• Experience difficulty in adapting to unexpected events or unscheduled opportunities
• Resist change and be reluctant to incorporate ideas that have not been tested
• Need to intentionally stay open to innovative ideas in order to prevent rigidity
• Focus on daily processes and neglect future needs and possibilities
• Have an eye for what is wrong or incorrect and miss what has been done correctly
• Need to remember the positive accomplishments of others
• Have a difficult time turning down work or delegating tasks to coworkers
• Focus on policies and procedures and become critical or judgmental if they feel unappreciated or unable to use their abilities
• Miss good opportunities when relying too heavily on proven experiences and dismiss new, untested processes

Teamwork

On a team, the ISTJ will often…

• Work on their assigned task until completion
• Work best in a team when all members have designated tasks and each member completes their duties
• Use logical ideas to influence their team members and solve problems through applying common sense
• Dislike personal issues that get in the way of the task
• Disclose little about their personal lives

On a team, the ISTJ should be aware that they may…

• Be viewed as a ‘picky’ team member
• Need to place more emphasis on understanding and building rapport with their team members
• Become irritated when team members do not complete agreed upon tasks and do not cooperate with the group
• Become frustrated when team members interrupt or are excessively talkative
• Need to make a concentrated effort to provide their opinion in a timely manner and maintain a fun attitude
• Be more effective by focusing on the development of their interpersonal skills

Leadership

The ISTJ is likely in a leadership position because of promotions and advancements that were based on their commitment to the task or job. As a leader, the ISTJ will often…

• Be fair, consistent and have clear expectations
• Focus on the organizational needs
• Make decisions based on what they have learned through past experiences and gathering facts
• Lean towards the traditional and hierarchical approach to leadership
• Usually reward those who have consistently completed the assigned task and followed the rules

ISTJ and Life

Communication

The ISTJ will often…

• Communicate in a clear and straightforward manner
• Take a no-nonsense approach to expressing themselves and providing direction
• Break down complicated information into specific, detailed sections
• Want to hear the information relating to expectations and procedures
• Establish evidence as credible when it is logical, factual, accurate and organized
• Listen to others and deal with conflict without being overwhelmed with emotion
• Articulate their thoughts in conversations
• Provide consequences or criticism when necessary

The ISTJ should be aware that they may need to…

• Work on communicating and sharing information about themselves and their viewpoint
• Communicate and build relationships with their friends, family and co-workers
• Make a conscious effort to observe the feelings of other people when providing feedback
• Vocalize their appreciation of other peoples’ accomplishments

Decision Making

When it comes to decision making, the ISTJ will often…

• Make sensible and logical decisions
• Objectively gather and analyze the facts
• Weigh information against their perception of what is realistic
• Need to consider the impact their decisions have on people
• Benefit from considering additional options and incorporating their values
• Need to slow down their decision making process in order to consider all information

Playing

An ISTJ will often complete work before they participate in any extracurricular or ‘fun’ activity. For an ISTJ who has difficulty in balancing work and life, they may need to plan additional time for fun and relaxation. When selecting activities, their preference is often for projects that require independent, hands on work. When it comes to dating, the ISTJ student has reported to be too busy or will tend to date once a month.

Stress

An ISTJ often experiences stress when…

• Others inadequate work has a negative impact on their own work
• Required to make a significant deviation from their routine
• Given information that is too broad
• Others disregard common sense
• Their work habits lead them to deny their personal needs
• They feel rushed and develop a perceived inability to complete the task
• Forced to make irrational, unexplainable, or immediate changes to their work
• Required to complete a task using an inefficient process

An ISTJ will often have a calm approach to handling a stressful situation. However, when they are affected by stress, an ISTJ will often…

• Pay even closer attention to the detail
• Begin to form solutions to problematic situations based on their past experiences
• Become overwhelmed with the amount of data obtained and lose control of all the details
• Become impulsive or compulsively worry about the future
• With great stress, abandon their typical approach and start to imagine all the negative possibilities through ‘catastrophizing’

An ISTJ can reduce stress by…

• Imagining the worst case scenario and planning accordingly
• Looking to the big picture and putting their stress into perspective
• Realistically determine what will matter in the future
• Leaving the situation and trying something uncharacteristic in order to realign their perspective