ISTP 3w4: (A Complete Guide)

In this article, we will describe a combination of ISTP 3w4 personality type i.e. ISTP 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. ISTP 3w4.

ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w4 shares traits of both ISTP and 3w4 personality. These people are driven to be a success in life. This is because they are afraid of failing and being unloved by others. So, through their hard work and professional accomplishments, they look for validation for being worthy of love. These people love solving complex and challenging problems quietly in the background. They avoid the limelight and use their knowledge and skills to understand and solve different ideas. They seek stimulation by doing this and can get easily bored if they spend a lot of time on one challenge.   

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. ISTP is one personality type out of the 16 types. 

ISTP: The Crafter (Introverted, Sensing, Thinking, Perceiving)

The ISTP personality type from the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is based on Carl Jung’s 16 personality types. It describes people who are independent, action-oriented, prefers freedom and flexibility in their life. They are open to new experiences and like engaging in practical activities. Logic,  rationality,  concrete information, and practical application of things appeal to them more than abstract ideas.  They dislike routine and prefer newness in their life. 5.4% of people have an ISTP personality type in the world.

Four Cognitive Functions of ISTP

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

Introverted Thinking

ISTPs spend most of their time thinking and processing information which they rarely express to others.  Consequently, they prefer being quiet most of the time. Their actions are based on their strong observational and thinking skills.  You could say they are rational and logical people who like to engage in practical activities.  Furthermore, while analyzing situations,  they can put their emotions aside and see things objectively.  Such personalities are hard to get to know for other people due to their action-oriented and reserved nature.

Extroverted Sensing

ISTPs are present-oriented who do not think about the past or future excessively.  They are logical and enjoy learning about how things function and operate.  They love the practical application of concepts. So they learn more by doing than from reading theories or abstract ideas. 

Introverted Intuition

ISTPs often have gut feelings about different situations especially before making a decision. They can turn abstract concepts into actions or practical ideas.  Due to their intuitive function,  they are also able to have moments of insight about themselves and others. 

Extroverted Feeling

This is the weakest part of ISTP’s personality. They are usually calm and logical.  However,  in stressful situations, they can have emotional outbursts and lash out at others.  This is because they usually ignore their feelings till they reach a breaking point. 

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 3w4 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 ISTP 3w4

Personality: ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w2 are afraid of failing in life and being rejected by others due to it. They work hard to seek validation for their success and to be deemed worthy of love. They are people who are usually engaged in solving complex issues and challenges quietly without calling attention to themself. They get stimulated by new ideas and use their knowledge and skills to understand and fix things if required. 

Workstyle: ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w4 are hardworking people who are authentic and creative in their job. They contribute their knowledge, skills, experience, and problem-solving skills to their team. They are reflective, creative, and good at crisis management. However, they dislike being controlled or told what to do. Rather, they prefer independence and flexibility in their work. They pay attention to details and concrete information and get the job done. They prefer to work in jobs that allow them to succeed and grow e.g. architects, politicians, investment bankers, video game designers, pilots, scientists, etc.

Emotional stressors of ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w4 are often stressed by thoughts around self-doubt. They get really concerned if something affects their image in a negative way. Additionally, disappointing others and failure distresses them greatly. Similarly, feeling disconnected from others also acts as a source of stress for them.

Conflict: ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w4 can engage in conflict and work to resolve it at formal level. However, their priority is to avoid it if possible. They have difficulty in expressing their views. Yet, they make an effort to resolve matters in a practical, quick, and logical way. Whereas they find it difficult to understand the feeling component in disagreements. Nonetheless, their focus is on resolving matters as soon as possible. 

Interpersonal Skills: ISTP 3w4

ISTP 3w4 are friendly in their interpersonal interactions but restrained in their emotional expression. They value practicality in their relationships and view them more from a professional point of view than as a chance to form a friendship. They also struggle with understanding emotions. Furthermore, they are quiet and reserved people who do not express themself openly with everyone. However, they do try to seek new experiences at an interpersonal level from time to time.  

Strengths of ISTP 3w4

• They are detail-oriented
• They are practical and efficient workers
• They always strive to improve
• They are aware of personal areas needing growth
• They can connect with other people
• They are logical
• They learn by experience
• They are action-oriented
• They are realistic in their approach
• They enjoy new things
• They are self-confident and easy-going

Weakness of ISTP 3w4

• They are overly-concerned about professional success
• They often engage in self-doubt
• They struggle to accept disappointment
• They dislike being perceived as over-confident by others
• They are difficult to get to know
• They can be insensitive at times
• They get bored easily
• They are risk-takers
• They do not like commitment

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.

 FAQs: ISTP 3w4

Conclusion

In this article, we discussed ISTP 3w4 personality.  We found that ISTP 3w4 shares traits of both ISTP and 3w4 personality. These people are driven to be a success in life. This is because they are afraid of failing and being unloved by others. So, through their hard work and professional accomplishments, they look for validation for being worthy of love. These people love solving complex and challenging problems quietly in the background. They avoid the limelight and use their knowledge and skills to understand and solve different ideas. They seek stimulation by doing this and can get easily bored if they spend a lot of time on one challenge.   

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/istp-introverted-sensing-thinking-perceiving-2795993

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