Am I An Ambivert?

From the moment I heard the term "ambivert," I was intrigued. Am I an ambivert? After all, I don't mind being in large groups of people and I even don't mind small talk. So I rushed over to 16personalities.com in the hopes of learning whether or not I was an ambivert or an introvert as I had previously discovered.

The results were ISTJ: an honest, responsible, logical introvert. I've since realized 16personalities is based on the Myers-Briggs personality indicator. And when the MBTI was developed, there was no such thing as an ambivert. Additionally, the validity of the MBTI has been questioned due to the two founders having no training in psychology or testing. Furthermore, Katharine Briggs developed her theories in the early 1900s. A lot has changed in 100 years!

That's the trouble with labels. It's so incredibly hard to group introverts into one specific mold. Introversion (or extroversion) is one piece of your complex personality. As Carl Jung stated, "There is no such thing as a pure extrovert or a pure introvert. Such a man would be in the lunatic asylum."

Because there are introverts who enjoy being around people and because there are extroverts who enjoy alone time, the term "ambivert" has been coined.

A quick Google search revealed that there are several tests to determine if you're an ambivert though none of them are widely known.

Rather than potentially limiting yourself with one definition, consider that personality is a spectrum. You likely fall somewhere near the middle of the spectrum and have a lean toward one end.

And that's how I'd describe myself...a non-stereotypical introvert. You might call yourself an extroverted-introvert. In either case, you're closer to the middle than the end of the spectrum. Essentially, if you're flexible with how you get your energy and how you connect with others, you're an ambivert.

How energized and connected you are around other people is one factor in your overall personality.

Other factors of personality are:

• how open you are to learning and experiencing new things
• how organized, motivated, and goal-directed you are
• how friendly and optimistic you are toward other people
• how well you handle stress and other negative emotions

Each of us will fall somewhere on the continuum. And if you want to improve on one of those personality factors above, you can!

Thanks to people such as Dr. Benjamin Hardy, author of Personality Isn't Permanent and James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, it's possible to change your personality by setting goals and creating habits to become your future self.

The method I've synthesized from reading numerous neuroscience books is a 3-step process as follows:

1. Envision your future self - who do you want to become in 3 years? Motivated? Flexible? Optimistic? Peaceful?
2. Set controllable goals - is the goal you're setting within your control? By focusing on you and the type of person you'd like to be, those factors are within your control.
3. Create habits that support the goals - what is one small, simple thing you can do regularly that will help you achieve the goal?

Whether you land in the middle and show up as an ambivert or not, know that personality is malleable. One day, you will become your future self. You get to decide who you desire to be.

For more on the subject of habits and personality, check out this free webinar, The Habits of Joyful Introverts.