This whole brain pattern comes from transcontextual thinking where seemingly unrelated thoughts and concepts are quickly blended and related in the brain, often resulting in extremely creative and often vastly entertaining output.  Those who are most likely to show this pattern have psychological preferences for extraverted intuition namely ENFPs and ENTPs and to a lesser extent, INTPs and INFPs.  Apart from any neuro data,  it is well-accepted that ENFP/ENTP types are adept at connecting elements that normally don’t go together and are energized by this.   They can also be major procrastinators with poor follow-through when the exciting suddenly becomes routine.

It may come as no surprise that many comedians, talk show hosts, journalists prefer extraverted intuition. Some of these types might be Dr. Suess,  Robin Willians, or Conan O’Brien.   Experiencing the creative output of one of these types can be both exhilarating and tiring.  Seriously, who doesn’t want Robin Williams to tone it down a notch sometimes?

While this brain state can be a decided  advantage in many areas of life, it can also lead to peaks and valleys in creative energy because the proverbial switch is either firing on all cylinders or it’s off because it is waiting for the next spark to set off new energy.  It can also be a  liability if no one is able to follow your line of thinking.  As an ENFP myself, I have experienced the benefits of this:  incredible creative energy, clever turn of phrase, and  spontaneously turning a mundane activity into an event.  I have also seen the glazed over look in people’s eyes when they don’t get what the hell I am saying or I can’t get inspired to do anything and procrastinate looking for that spark.

Fortunately, there are many strategies that one can use to ameliorate the downside to Christmas Tree Brain.  One of them is meditation.  Meditation is not a relaxation exercise.  It is training the brain to be aware of what it is doing and make gently make corrections.  If one is rigid in his thinking, meditative practice can make those patterns easy to detect in the moment.  Likewise, a mind that is distracted or wildly off topic can also be gently reigned in if it is trained to do so.

Meditation won’t change an individual’s personality, it will only enhance it giving a larger array of ways to behave given a particular situation.  If you have the gift of transcontextual thinking, at times, you have to know when to stop riffing and get to the point.  Or let someone else talk.  Or know when you haven’t been understood so you can circle back and clarify.  You have to know when you are distracted and not following through.  You won’t lose your yuletide mojo but you will know when it’s overdone.  Meditation leads to an enhanced state of awareness, something we all can use to maximize our strengths while managing our blind spots.

To try a sample 11-minute meditation led by Dr. Daniel Siegel, follow this link.

Despite being a highly accurate and validated tool, there are still some cases where individuals will have reported types that differ from their actual type. Or they may have different results each time they take the MBTI. Therefore, they may  require extra dialogue to arrive at a verified type.  Others  may have an accurate reported type but want to understand their type more thoroughly without having to spend too much time reading.   In other instances, particularly when trying to apply type to communication and relationships, an easy way to compare different types might be helpful.

Enter the Personality Puzzle, a multiple use card system to assist in all of the above tasks and more!  I became acquainted with Sue Blair, the developer of the cards, at the Association for Psychological Type International Conference in San Francisco in August 2011.   I was talking to another convention goer about her book The Eight Colors of Fitness , a book that uses psychological type to plan a fitness program.  After all, we are not all motivated by the same forces.  I had mentioned that psychological type might be a useful tool for planning effective rehab plans for brain injured people.  The problem was, that the standard MBTI might be too complicated for these individuals.

I was taken to Sue Blair’s table and introduced to her card system.  It was thorough yet simple in it’s design.  As I started to work with the cards, I began to see the enormous possibilities in using these cards in multiple situations. I also purchased a set for my daughter who is MBTI certified and a teacher.  She also saw the many possibilities for the Personality Puzzle.

So what are these cards?  They actually have 2 steps:

1.  There are pairs of cards representing each of the MBTI dichotomies (introversion v. extraversion, sensing v. intuition, thinking v. feeling and judging v. perceiving).  The client chooses which card of the two mostly fits their preference.  With this exercise, you can arrive at a possible type.

2. Next,  there are 16 cards that represent each of the MBTI types.  You can verify your type based on the above exercise or you can learn more about your type if you are fairly certain about what it is.  You can also compare several types either to clarify your own or to see how you might be different than another type.  You can also see your major strengths and blind spots on these cards.   If you are working with a certified type practitioner, these cards make it easy to clarify major points for the client during a dialogue.

Pretty elegant, eh?

Since that time, I have arranged to distribute these cards in the United States – my idea, because I was so impressed with their usefulness.  You may also like to know that Sue has other projects in the works using some of the same principles as her original product.  Stay tuned for that!

Meanwhile, if you would like more information about these cards or would like to purchase a set, please contact me  or email me at annholm@annholm.net

What do these macro brain states look like on EEG ? They are are either asynchronous one example being the Christmas Tree Brain (while engaged in transcontextual thinking), or synchronous where all regions of the brain are working in harmony and at maximum amplitude.  Nardi reports  6 colors that can appear on the EEG read out.  For example, a red macro state occurs when the neocortex is hyperstimulated, such as when we have  a moment of insight or see an attractive person.

Another such synchronized state features a blue colored EEG read-out and is associated with being alert and calm or performing an activity in which we have creative expertise. While technically not called The Blue Zen Brain,  it does capture the essence of a calm mind.  Dominant introverted intuitive personality types, specifically the INFJ and INTJ are the most likely to achieve this state.  Not only do they achieve this state when they engage in an area of expertise, they also show this pattern when tackling an unfamiliar, novel problem and or envisioning the future.  All areas of the neocortex are called to action to realize an answer.  The answer is often complex and difficult to explain.

Indeed, omplexity and perfectionism are often byproducts of  this elegant and visionary style of problem solving. However, seeing a material world that often does not match what the mind can see can be a source of stress for INTJ and INFJ  types.  There will always be an ideal that lies just out of reach when the mind is capable of conceiving such a thing.   Still, knowing the general tendencies of one’s mind as well as realizing that those tendencies represent one perspective out of many, is a useful point of personal insight. In this case, it can lead to strategies to accept  a less than perfect outcome when the ideal is not possible.

In the coming months, look for more articles on the neuroscience of personality.  I will report the findings then offer a practical application of these concepts.  As always, I appreciate questions, comments, and feedback on what I have written.

From a cognitive standpoint, this pattern is called trans-contextual thinking.  According to UCLA professor Dr. Dario Nardi in his newly released book, , “Regardless what kind of stimulus enters the brain – be it sight, sound, smell sensation- the brain responds by rapidly processing that stimulus in multiple regions, including regions seemingly not applicable to the stimulus.”  Responses to the stimuli tend to be fast, creative, and sometimes seemingly contradictory except to the originator of these thoughts!

Indeed, these are the brain patterns of the ultimate brain stormers in the psychological type world, the ENTP and the ENFP and to a lesser extent, INTP and the INFP.  Another name for these types are the extraverted intuitives. In the case of the ENFP and the ENTP, this extraverted  intuition is a dominant psychological function, occupying half of all of the brain energy these types use every day.

Doesn’t this sound wonderful?  It IS except that with this highly energized state goes creative burn-out.  Another hallmark characteristic of the ENFP/ENTP type is the tendency to work in fits and starts, waiting for the moment of inspiration to hit and set off this powerful pattern all over again.  This pattern of thinking long described in extraverted intuitive personality types scan now be supported by EEG findings.

Recently I was at a brain conference on managing bad habits and addictions. The presenter remarked that, “Nowadays, there has to be some sort of neural correlates as measured by fMRI or other type of scanning or imaging device to lend support to psychological and cognitive theories.”  The Neuroscience of Personality and the work of Dario Nardi is an important first step toward providing supporting evidence via EEG scans.  The Christmas Tree Brain is only one of  the many EEG patterns he has identified that correlate with various psychological types profiles.

On 11-11-11, I will be presenting some of Dario Nardi’s  findings along with a framework describing the challenges that psychologists have today to provide neuroscientific data to support their behavioral theories. In addition, I will offer some insight as to how this can be used in coaching and in uncovering personal potential.

If you would like more details about this upcoming presentation, please contact me at annholm@annholm.net

• One being a caricature of one’s type
• Lack of awareness of one’s type blind spots
• The tendency to blame others for shortcomings
• Life stress and dissatisfaction
• Reduced competency and performance

He also listed possible factors that can detour type development including:

• Lack of faith in one’s type ( not seeing one’s type as being as valuable as another
• Lack of acceptance by others of one’s type
• Lack of opportunity to develop one’s type gifts
• Lack of challenge to develop one’s type especially the 3^rd and 4^th functions

The MBTI Step III overview was a 3-hour presentation that covered the essence of the MBTI Step III instrument.  Allen Hammer and Sondra Von Sant, who teach the certification course, presided.  A panel of Step III practitioners including Charles Martin, Laurie Hillis, Sydney Courtice, and me added to the discussion by sharing case stories about how the this tool led to personal examination  of type development for various clients.  Through the discussion of the assessment findings, a release of psychic energy (similar to an “aha moment”) to address life’s challenges and goals is made possible.   Sometimes even one statement on the report can trigger a flood of insight! The panelists shared cases from both counseling and coaching perspective as the MBTI Step III is meant to address both scenarios.

According to Dr. Hammer, healthy type development has these 3 characteristics:

• The dominant function is developed and used effectively.
• A developed auxiliary functioning leading to a balance of perception and judgment
• Awareness and comfort with the tertiary and inferior functions (Knowing when to non-preferred functions best suit a situation)

The MBTI Step III does provide the awareness piece that is so critical to making changes in one’s life.  After all, if you are blind to what may be holding you back from a greater and more satisfying life, it is difficult to decide what to change or how to do it!

For those who did not attend the APTI 2011 conference but would like to experience the Step III, there are several ways to get more information.

1. Contact the Center of  Application of Psychological Type capt.org
2. Join the LinkedIn Step III Group to join in a discussion, ask a question, or start a new discussion.
3. Contact an MBTI Step III practitioner to learn more about it or even experience it yourself.

• Dominant judging personality types tend to use the left prefrontal cortex/Perceiving personality types tend to use the right prefrontal cortex.
• Sensors use less brain activity to write their names with the non-preferred hand than intuitives use.
• INFP brains tend to show more activity in the areas associated with active listening.
• ENFP/ENTP brains are “lit up like Christmas trees.”  Indeed, dominant extraverted intuitives have all sorts of brain areas active enabling them to connect the seemingly unconnectable.
• ENFJ/ENTJ brains appear to have “cognitive superhighways” that efficiently arrive at the left prefrontal cortex to arrive at decisions swiftly and decisively.
• INFJ/INTJ brains (introverted intuitives) will respond to both new and familiar tasks, always arriving at novel solutions. Areas of the brain associated with creative problem solving are therefore captured on EEG

However what really resonated with me about this lecture were the several qualifiers that he mentioned.  For instance, Nardi acknowledged that not all brains of a certain personality type were going to look exactly alike. Indeed, personal experiences do affect how a particular brain develops.  This consistent with the research on neuroplasticity. The brain can change. He also stated that left handers don’t necessarily have the same brain mapping.  He also clarified that his subjects were college students so it follows that these findings may not be the same for older brains, especially given normal type development.  The research was exciting but there were no wild claims either.  There is nothing that can spoil the scientific stew more than a claim that takes a research finding out of context.

I am eager to read Nardi’s book, Neuroscience of Personality, to learn more about this topic.  Certainly a 90-minute keynote speech cannot adequately cover 5 years of work in this important area of research. Nevertheless, I am thrilled to see that progress is being made toward identifying neural correlates in psychological type.  The challenge is out there and Nardi has hurled a significant opening volley toward skeptics that doubt the validity of psychological type concepts.

This workshop was particularly enjoyable because even as I am intellectually well-versed in type differences, it’s still fascinating to see it in action.  It is truly like I am visiting a foreign country and interacting with a different culture…. the culture of details, the Evil Empire!   One of the exercises in this workshop was to go out and exercise our sensing function in groups.  One of our stops was in an office supply store.  It was notable that the ISTJ in our group was drawn to the simple, clean lines of the black and white thank you cards.  In fact, they were a nice compliment to her elegant and neat appearance. Meanwhile, I fell in love with the multi-colored cards with 4 different fox drawings!

Upon our return to the workshop and couple other interesting exercises illustrating differences in perception, I still kept thinking of those thank you cards.  Why am I drawn to such things?  Could it be that my mind has to have enough varied stimuli to stay active and alert?  The colors reminded me of Arizona.  The foxes made me think of my fox terriers.  I immediately started thinking of who might think these cards were cool. Then I thought, hmmmm, well maybe get them tomorrow…. I am just not sure I could extract that type of mental jolt out of a black and white card!

Well anyway, that’s what is one of the many benefits to being at the type conference.  You get to play around with type, see it in action. Then, more often than not, you walk away for something to mull around in your mind. As for me, I am going back to the store to pick up those fox cards because I keep thinking about all the ways I could use them.   Meanwhile, my decisive ISTJ counterpart bought the black and white ones right on the spot.  Mission accomplished.

When you use your strengths, there is a tendency to  feel energized. Mihaly Csikzentmihalyi describes a state of mind known as flow, wherein the difficulty of a task  and the skill level are matched and at a high level. When we are in flow or the zone, we are rewarded for using our strengths by a feeling of  concentration and absorption that has been described as blissful engagement. However to tap into the benefits of your personal strengths, it’s key to know what they are.  A 2001 study presented at the British Psychological society in 2001 found that only 1/3 of the people have a deep enough understanding of their strengths to be able to consciously use them.  It may be that your particular strengths were not honored or valued or it may be that since they feel so natural to you that  you don’t even recognize them as a strengths. Whatever the reason, there are many people who are not acquainted with their powerful and unique special qualities.

The work of Isabel Briggs Myers  and Katherine Briggs pre-dates the current positive psychology movement but is seldom included in the supporting works that are cited in the positive psychology literature.  Gifts Differing, written in 1980, describes the strengths of each personality type as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.  Moreover, this book only scratches the surface of the contributions made by Myers and Briggs toward advancing the need to honor individual differences and strengths, a body of work that stretches over a period of decades.

One of the foundations of the MBTI sytem is that all  psychological types are fundamentally valuable and that each type has particular situations in which they tend to shine more brightly than other types.  Psychological preferences form the foundation of strengths because as noted in the positive psychology literature, one is drawn to or prefers activities that tap into strengths. Many tools have been developed since the venerable MBTI  to mine for these strengths such as Strength Finders and the new questionnaire from the VIA Institute on Character called the Inventory of Signature Strengths Survey. Many groups are interested in tapping into this phenomenon of using strengths to bring about happiness and satisfaction in everyday life.

It must be noted that the positive psychology movement isn’t just about finding strengths. There are elements of developing mindful behavior through meditation and awareness, cultivating a grateful mindset, compassionate behavior, and savoring one’s blessings.  However a cornerstone of this movement is to focus on one’s special gifts first and foremost rather than looking at problems and shortcomings.  In this key area, the MBTI assessment tools were not only pioneering  but continue to have relevance today.

***This article was recently featured in Bulletin of Psychological Type, September 2011.

Have you ever noticed the plethora of self-help books  in the bookstore?   What used to be a few shelves of books mostly by Wayne Dwyer or Dale Carnegie is now an ever-expanding selection of  remedies and advice that seem to provide a temporary burst of ideas and energy, but ultimately leads to limited meaningful change.  In other words, if self-help books were so effective, why would there be a need for more and more of them?   I am not opposed to using a self-help book as a vehicle for personal insight, and in fact, I have a collection of these books myself.  However, there is a tendency to default to the well-worn path in our minds despite our best intentions, often leading to frustration and despair.

Personal coaches can help by providing additional insight and accountability.  In my practice, I use the principles of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, my background in brain science, principles learned in my coach’s training and some meditation to assist a client in the process of change.  Following is an example of how this process might work:

A client may come to me with the complaint that even though he has no shortage of great ideas, he doesn’t seem to follow through on any of them.  He gets very excited about his new schemes and in fact, he can enthusiastically gather support for his ideas among his coworkers.  Inevitably, once the crescendo of excitement starts to recede, he loses interest and the project is never completed.  What’s more, this is a pattern that has been repeated so often, his coworkers do not take his ideas seriously anymore.

After getting as much information as possible using open-ended questions, I am likely to use one of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator instruments (Step I, II, or III) to provide additional insight into the client’s preferred ways to perceive and judge information.  Why?  The MBTI provides reliable insight into a client’s cognitive strengths and probable blind spots.

In this case, the client is an ENFP which is essentially characterized by someone who is cognitively energized by new ideas and possibilities, the ultimate brain stormer!  However, a typical blind spot for an ENFP personality type is inattention to details and a dislike of routine.  Once the initial burst of excitement has worn off, it is much more difficult to finish the task.  What’s more, wherever an individual has a blind spot, there tends to be a defensiveness.  Solutions are often blocked by an unwillingness to admit there is a problem in the first place or that the problem is your challenge not someone elses! It’s the my coworker who is so obsessed with details that makes this so difficult to implement!

Certainly, awareness of the problem is the first step.  However, because these cognitive patterns are preferred and well-worn in the brain, it will take more than just awareness to create meaningful change.  The brain is plastic and fully capable of lasting changes.   However, these changes require tremendous effort, motivation and in fact, a dampening down of  default methods of thinking to bring about these changes.   It is similar to a sled hill.  It’s easy to go down the paths that are already well-established but it takes deliberate effort to move your sled and make a new run.  That is how the brain tends to operate.

One way to make deliberate changes is to become mindful of both your present behavior and to create a reasonable alternative.   It is more effective to say, “I will do this instead of that” rather than, “I won’t do that.”   There are several forms of meditation that train the brain to resist existing patterns of thinking and refocus on new ways of thinking.  Meditation is an emollient to smooth transitions in the mind.  Particularly pertinent to the ENFP  personality type whose mind can run a million miles per minute in a million different directions, meditation can be very helpful.   Be mindful of details and following through.  Or at least ask someone who does this well, to help you.   Use your brain storming capabilities often but know what to shift to other modes.

Most of all, realize that change takes time.  The brain requires several opportunities to try out new behaviors before they become readily accessible.  In between the resolution to make a significant change and the actual attainment of the goal can be many challenges.   There is always the temptation to go back to the familiar.  However, with a coach, teacher or mentor that you trust and rely on, your chances of success are greatly improved.

Happy New Year from Annholm.net!   Make 2011 a very good year!

Many people have encountered the MBTI either at work, at a career center, or in counseling.  Several online tests incorporate MBTI principles.  The MBTI I describes the broad strokes of an individual personality with the goal of identifying people with similar cognitive preferences.  The MBTI II (Form Q) serves to capture individual differences in people who have the same personality type. The newly released MBTI Step III measures how effectively you are using the unique qualities of your type.

The Rationale: Most of us are using only a fraction of our talents and gifts. In addition, we are frequently dissatisfied with home life, career choices, and relationships.  This can lead to burn-out, lack of motivation, or resigned acceptance that we are about as good as we are going to be in this lifetime.  With self-knowledge, energy is released and new paths and solutions are unveiled.  The MBTI Step III is a personalized road map  to begin this journey.

The Design : The MBTI Step III is a questionnaire that has 222 forced choice items that not only uncover an individual’s psychological preferences but also examines type development. How effective are psychological preferences being used so they are manifested as strengths in everyday life?  How are environmental factors influencing opportunities to use and develop psychological type? Ultimately overall satisfaction with career, relationships and home life hinge on effective use of psychological type. The MBTI Step III instrument generates both positive statements about what is functioning well  in an individual’s life and statements that might suggest a need to improve in a certain area.  While knowing your strengths and continuing to use them effectively is the best way to use mental energy, it is also helpful to know which areas need increased self-regulation, development, or assistance from others to optimize an outcome. The Step III is written in everyday language and serves as a springboard for discussion between a coach/counselor and clients seeking to uncover their potential.

The Theory: There is a finite amount of mental energy that one has available to take in information (perception) and draw conclusions about those perceptions (judgment).  How that energy is allocated, according to type theory, is based on psychological preferences.  The dominant function has access to the most abundant and readily available energy, followed by the auxiliary or assisting function, then the tertiary or third function, and lastly the inferior or 4th function (everyone uses all of the functions: sensing, intuition, thinking and feeling but at different levels of  frequency and competence, hence the terms: dominant, auxiliary and so on).   Effective use of type preferences insofar as perceptionand judgment are concerned  is often dependent on both theopportunity to use a a natural  function and support from the environment to foster it’s development. According to type development theory, “good type development”  is comfort and effectiveness in the processes that come most naturally to your verified type AND the ability to use the processes that go against one’s natural tendencies.  Knowing which process is most adaptive to the task and the ability to shift among preferred and non-preferred functions is also critical.

Applications: The MBTI Step III is a comprehensive inventory covering your approach to:  Yourself and Your World,  People and Relationships, Responsibility and Work, and Problem Solving and Decision Making.  It is newly released and unique in it’s scope and capability to illuminate what is working well for you and what isn’t and what to do about it.   It has the potential to streamline the coaching/counseling experience especially in the early stages of the coaching alliance. It is also a potential reference tool to return to when setting goals and evaluating progress.

The MBTI Step III is a stand alone instrument. There is no need to have taken previous MBTI assessments.  Step I and II data are an inherent part of this instrument and can be highlighted separately as needed. At this time, there are relatively few practitioners of the MBTI Step III due to the professional prerequisites required to become certified in the use of this instrument..

For more information: Coaches can contact me to assist in using this tool with clients on a consultation basis or interested individuals can contact me directly to take the assessment. MBTI Step III feedback sessions are available in person, via phone, or Skype. Current MBTI practitioners can also contact me if they are interested in learning more about the MBTI Step III certification experience (What did I learn? How am I using this instrument now?).  Inquiries about certification criteria and to sign up for the class can be directed to The Center for Application of Psychological Type/ capt.org .