This post is the first in a series of 5 blog posts about “The Why Behind The Why” that are written for those who are already knowledgeable about TypeCoach and this framework of personality type, particularly the four temperaments. If you are new to TypeCoach, we recommend that you start with this post, and attend our live TypeCoach Influence Program webinars.
Why do we do what we do? Not on the surface - but underneath?
Beneath our cognitive preferences and temperament, beneath our habits and self-descriptions – what’s really driving us?
Years ago, we encountered the Four Temperaments framework as articulated by David Kiersey in his book Please Understand Me II. At first glance, it felt simple – almost ancient. And it is. The concepts in temperament theory have roots that stretch back to Greek philosophy, and it has echoed through centuries and across various cultures, languages, and studies in psychology. But its staying power isn’t about history. It’s about resonance.
This framework doesn’t just describe how we think or behave. It taps into why we move through the world the way we do. It captures something deeper than the 4 letter type codes – it reveals our core motivation. When people learn about their Temperament core values in our training they relate VERY strongly to it and that resonance is one of the most powerful elements our clients point to when asked about our work.
Even now, 20 years into our journey, it is deeply satisfying when we introduce temperaments and see the visceral reactions people have when they recognize their temperament. There’s a kind of emotional <click>… a sense of being seen not just externally, but internally. When someone realizes they’re an SJ Traditionalist, SP Experiencer, NT Conceptualizer, or an NF Idealist… they’re not just learning a pattern of behavior. They’re often encountering a part of themselves they’ve always known but never named.
So… what if we could go even deeper?
This series came out of a recent personal moment of reflection; for me personally as a member of the NT Conceptualizer group, I was curious about myself – WHY do I feel such a strong need to leave some sort of impact? Is that even a healthy thing to be striving towards? What am I preventing/protecting myself from in the first place?
So the question became: What if the values that define each temperament – responsibility, freedom, legacy, and authenticity – aren’t the destination in themselves, but a kind of defense? What if they’re not just what we seek, but what we cling to, instinctively, as protection against something more vulnerable or scary?
The fear we’re guarding against. A fear that fuels an emotional engine that drives our values which then inform our actions.
I began to hypothesize that beneath every temperament core value lies a story.
A fear.
A core vulnerability.
A threat to one’s emotional survival that people rarely name – but which I believe shapes a significant part of our inner architecture. That’s the level this series is aimed at. Not the observable pattern, but the emotional engine underneath it.
The Four Temperaments Offer a Language for our Deeper Purpose
Let’s start with a little background on the 4 Temperaments framework. It’s a powerful shortcut for understanding human motivation that we’ve been teaching for the last 20 years. It groups the 16 Jung/Myers types into four distinct clusters, each defined by a shared worldview and set of core values. Each of the 4 letter types within the cluster tends to value similar things – and are often striving toward a common life theme. Below is a simple overview to get oriented:
Temperament | Included Types | Core Value |
|---|---|---|
SJ - Traditionalists | ISTJ, ISFJ, ESTJ, ESFJ | Be reliable and responsible ➡ Responsibility, Duty |
SP - Experiencers | ISTP, ISFP, ESTP, ESFP | Get impressive, quick results ➡ Freedom, Spontaneity |
NT - Conceptualizers | INTP, INTJ, ENTP, ENTJ | Raise the bar; make an impact ➡ Competence, Legacy |
NF - Idealists | INFP, INFJ, ENFP, ENFJ | Help others reach potential ➡ Authenticity, actualization |
As you can see, each of the 16 types in the Jung/Myers model maps into one of these four temperaments. That structure makes the 4-letter code system easier to grasp – but more importantly, it makes it way more useful. Because once you understand temperament, you begin to see what people are really trying to accomplish with their lives.
Not just how they think, but what they fight for. What they cannot live without. And, as this piece will suggest, what they fear.
And here’s the breakthrough we are considering:
That these core values – responsibility, freedom, impact, authenticity – are not just things we prefer when given a choice. Rather, they are psychological survival strategies.
Our temperament doesn’t just shape what we like. It defends us from what we are deeply seeking to avoid.
That’s the heart of this series. We’re going beneath the obvious. Beneath the 4 letter code. Beneath the temperaments. Beneath even the words people use to describe themselves.
We’re going into the why behind the why.
The Universal Search for Meaning
Human beings have always wrestled with the big questions: Who am I? Why am I here? What matters? The pursuit of answers has propelled humanity’s work in philosophy, literature, religion, and psychology.
A few key thinkers provide insight into the human search for purpose:
- Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor and psychiatrist, argued that the primary human drive is not pleasure or power, but meaning. Without it, we become despondent or nihilistic.
- Ernest Becker believed our actions are largely efforts to deny our own mortality. From careers to religion, we seek symbolic immortality to manage our fear of death.
- Carl Jung recognized that the human psyche is not content with surface-level answers or simple explanations. Beneath our behaviors lies a deep yearning for wholeness. You can think of it as a drive to reconcile the many parts of ourselves into a meaningful, unified identity. For Jung, the journey toward individuation was not just self-knowledge, but a sacred pursuit of psychological and spiritual integration – a response to the soul’s innate longing for purpose and coherence.
- Abraham Maslow reminded us that once our basic needs are met, we are driven by the need to self-actualize – to become whole.
- Joseph Campbell described the archetypal Hero’s Journey, a narrative blueprint of growth, challenge, and transformation that mirrors our internal quests for significance.
These voices suggest a powerful truth: our outer lives are shaped by inner, often unconscious, longings.
One Purpose, Four Paths
Central to our exploration here is that we are all searching for meaning. But we do not search for or find it in the same way.
Our temperament shapes not only how we act, but what kind of meaning we crave. And, more deeply, what kind of pain we’re wired to avoid. Here is a first look at what I am suggesting are the corresponding existential fears at work underneath each of the 4 temperaments:
Temperament | Core Value | Existential Fear |
|---|---|---|
SJ - Traditionalists ISTJ, ISFJ, ESTJ, ESFJ | Be reliable and responsible ➡ Responsibility, Duty | Exile from the group; loss of worth through visible failure or community disgrace |
SP - Experiencers ISTP, ISFP, ESTP, ESFP | Get impressive, quick results ➡ Freedom, Spontaneity | Suffocation or frozen stasis (death of vitality) |
NT - Conceptualizers INTP, INTJ, ENTP, ENTJ | Raise the bar; make an impact ➡ Competence, Legacy | Irrelevance in an uncaring universe |
NF - Idealists INFP, INFJ, ENFP, ENFJ | Help others reach potential ➡ Authenticity, actualization | Invisibility of the true self; emotional erasure |
These are not surface-level preferences. When our core values are not met, I’m suggesting that each temperament is bumping into this deeper fear.
What to Expect
Each follow-up article will focus on one temperament in detail. We’ll look at:
- The visible core value and behaviors
- The hidden fear driving that core value
- Thought leaders and literary figures who articulate these perspectives
- A metaphorical lens (e.g., suffocation vs. frozen)
- Practical reflections for your own growth and awareness as well as recommendations for coaches and others on navigating these elements with others
My intent with this series isn’t about labeling. It’s about liberation. When you understand what your psyche is defending, you can finally stop defending – and start choosing.
This series goes beyond what we teach in our sessions with clients or certification and includes some ideas we are trying on for size. Curious to read more? You can find links to the other parts in the series below the comments section. We’d really appreciate your feedback. Does this resonate for you? Please add your thoughts to the comments or email me at rob@typecoach.com.
More in this Series...
One Comment
There’s something about the distillation of MBTI dimensions into temperament that cross-checks the framework against other thinkers who have arrived there independently.
Temperament can be a handy starting point in understanding another individual. Once you get familiar with the “SJ”ness of a colleague or partner, it becomes a shorthand for where their non-negotiables are likely to lie, and what might offend their values (particularly if these are foreign to your own).
Though some of us like to imagine ourselves complex and unique, a grasp of temperament can at least tell us which compass point we follow.