ISTJ 3w4: (A Complete Guide)

In this article, we will describe a combination of ISTJ 3w4 personality type i.e. ISTJ personality from the MBTI types and the type 3w4 from enneagram types. We will be describing each personality separately followed up by giving an in-depth overview of a combination of both personalities i.e. ISTJ 3w4.

ISTJ 3w4

ISTJ 3w4 shares traits of both ISTJ and 3w4 personality. These people are ambitious, detail-oriented, and responsible. They base their self-esteem on the success of their work. So failure, pressure and mistakes frighten them.hey often criticize themselves as well for not doing things perfectly. They want to be known for their achievements and professional success. They are quiet people who are drawn to arts, creativity, and finer things in life.  

MBTI: Four Cognitive Functions

 Myer Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), based on Carl Jung’s 16 personality types, approaches personality to be composed of four cognitive functions that govern how people think, process, and make decisions. The top two cognitive functions play a dominant role in guiding a person’s personality. Whereas, the latter two play less of a role. However, they still have some impact or influence on how a person behaves in certain situations. ISTJ is one personality type out of the 16 types. 

ISTJ: The Inspector (Introverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging)

The ISTJ personality type from the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is based on Carl Jung’s 16 personality types. It describes people who are quiet, reserved, practical, and organized. They are traditionalists and value loyalty. 13% of people have an ISTJ personality type in the world.

Four Cognitive Functions of ISTJ

Four cognitive functions that guide how ISTJ personality type processes information includes:

Introverted Sensing

ISTJs are present-oriented and can take in information from their surroundings.  They have a good memory and can use prior experience to predict or expect what will happen in the future.

Extroverted Thinking

ISTJs are logical,  objective, and rational.  They focus on details and concrete information rather than abstract information.  They are efficient and productive people who appreciate knowledge with practical application.  They are also good decision-makers who use logic and evidence instead of feelings to guide their judgment. 

Introverted Feeling

ISTJs often have gut feelings about different situations.  Although they make decisions based on logic but their feelings inform them to trust their emotional instinct rather than just facts. 

  Extroverted Intuition

This is the weakest part of ISTJ’s personality. They enjoy new ideas and experiences which help them to have a more balanced personality. 

Enneagrams

Enneagrams are a map or typology of human personalities. It was developed by George Ivanovich Gurdjieff, Oscar Ichazo, and Claudio Naranjo.It is divided into nine personality types that are spread across 3 triads i.e. Feeling triad, Thinking Triad, or Instinctive Triad. It describes a person’s fundamental psychological orientation in the form of good or bad traits and sees which triad quality i.e. emotion, intellect or instincts is most characteristic of his or her personality.  The Basic Personality Type is the most characteristic of a person. Whereas wings add elements to the overall personality. Type 1 personality with wing 2 i.e. (3w4) from the instinct triad is one of its types.

Type 3w4: ‘The Professional’

Type 3w4 has basic traits of type 3 and secondary traits of type 4 personality. Type 3  influences this personality to be interpersonal but type 4  influences it to withdraw. As a result, people with this sub-type focus on achievement and less on being interpersonal and social. They are quiet, reserved, and have an artistic sense.  They can be emotionally vulnerable but are restrained in their self-expression. 

Healthy versions of this subtype are direct/ straight forward,  self-aware,  and able to grow emotionally.  They can be creative and express it through style in their homes and outlook.  Their focus is on intelligence over physical appearance in their self-image. They are drawn towards aesthetic and finer things in life.   Generally,  they are hard-working, strive to polish their skills, self-assured,  introspective, and sensitive.  

They can be competitive and often base their self-esteem on the success of their work. Accordingly, they also suppress their feelings, break under pressure upon making mistakes, and engage in self-critique. Failure scares them deeply. At times, people find them moody, aloof, narcissistic, arrogant, and exhibiting show-off behavior but in a subtle way. 

Unhealthy versions of this subtype alternate between self-doubt and inflated ego.  They can shut themselves out emotionally and physically.  Although they do come out of it with a new purpose but often fall back to it later. Such people can be self-destructive and suicidal when frustrated with life.

Examples of Type 3w4: Sting, Meryl Streep, Tom Cruise

A Combination of ISTJ 3w4

Personality: ISTJ 3w4

ISTJ 3w4 are ambitious, logical,  detail-oriented,  and rational individuals.  They fear failure, and not being loved. To avoid this, they work hard to succeed in their career to be validated for being worthy of love. They desire to be successful and valued by others for their hard work and success. So, they act according to their audience and communicate effectively in order to be liked.  However, they are often misunderstood. They are also traditionalists with a strong sense of loyalty and duty. They like to work according to plan and do not take risks that easily. For them, knowing what to expect is really important. 

Workstyle: ISTJ 3w4

In the workplace, these individuals are very professional and efficient. They fulfill their objectives down to the dot in a steady manner. They plan and execute each task perfectly and are quite concerned about making mistakes. They pay attention to details and follow rules and regulations. They dislike being controlled or managed. They are quiet, reserved, and hardworking individuals. They base their self-esteem on the success of their work. So making mistakes and pressure upsets them greatly. They can also be creative, reflective, authentic, and charismatic. They prefer to work in jobs that allow them to succeed and grow e.g. architects, politicians, investment bankers, doctors, lawyers, etc.

Emotional Orientation and Defenses of ISTJ 3w4

These personalities are often stressed by engaging in self-doubt. Failure and disappointing others are frightening for them. They are quite concerned about their bad image, especially at the professional level. Often feeling disconnected from others brings them stress.They try to be effective communicators but are often misunderstood by other people. They shut other people out and keep their emotions bottled up. They also struggle in opening up to others and use indirect means to express themselves.

Conflict: ISTJ 3w4

ISTJs struggle with conflict as they find it difficult to express themselves. So, they try to keep to themselves.  They have a good sense of right and wrong and can communicate factually.Yet, they dislike disagreements and prefer things to be simple. They try to be fair in their management.  

Interpersonal Skills: ISTJ 3w4

These personalities are quiet, aloof, and often detached from others. They struggle with emotions and expressing themself. They are private people who do not share their feelings openly and are emotionally vulnerable.  Social interaction drains their energy. They are mostly self-aware and can go grow but are restrained. They try to be straightforward in their interaction with other people. They like fine things and are drawn to arts and creativity. They are always looking to improve their skills and are introspective, and sensitive. Occasionally, they engage in self-doubt. 

Strengths of ISTJ 3w4

• They are efficient workers
• They always strive to improve
• They are aware of personal areas needing growth
• They can connect with other people
• They are detail-oriented
• They are realistic
• They are focused on the present
• They have good observational skills
• They like practicality, organization, and order in their life.

Weakness of ISTJ 3w4

• They are overly-concerned about professional success
• They engage in self-doubt
• They struggle to accept disappointment
• They dislike being perceived as over-confident by others
• They can often be Insensitive and judgmental

If you’re facing this, it may be a good idea to seek the help of a therapist or other mental health professional. You can find a therapist at BetterHelp who can help you learn how to cope and address it.

If you’ve enjoyed the ”ISTJ 3w4” mentioned above, I would recommend you to take a look at ”ISTJ 3w2” and ”ISTJ 4w3” too.

 FAQs: ISTJ 3w4

Conclusion

In this article, we discussed ISTJ 3w4 personality.  We found that ISTJ 3w4 shares traits of both ISTJ and 3w4 personality. These people are ambitious, detail-oriented, and responsible. They base their self-esteem on the success of their work. So failure, pressure, and mistakes frighten them.hey often criticize themselves as well for not doing things perfectly. They want to be known for their achievements and professional success. They are quiet people who are drawn to arts, creativity and finer things in life. 

I hope you found this article interesting. If you have any queries or comments, please state them in the comment section 😊

Citations

https://www.verywellmind.com/istj-introversion-sensing-thinking-judgment-2795992

https://www.crystalknows.com/enneagram/type-3-wing-4

Personality Types – Using the Enneagram for Self-Discovery by Don Richard Riso with Russ Hudson

The Wisdom of the Enneagram by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson