The dominant function of INTJs is the ability to discover patterns within complex systems. This affords INTJs the opportunity to create solution-based intellectual property that transforms organizations, industries, as well as society at large.
The Myers & Briggs Foundation (n.d.) outlined what a dominant function is by stating:
This first and favorite function is like the captain of a ship, having the most important role in guiding us, and it becomes the type core of our conscious personality. This is called the dominant function.
During the first part of your life, you come to rely on your favorite function, and you tend to develop the most skill with it.
Team Technology (2020) outlined a critical aspect of INTJs’ personality as:
The dominant function of an INTJ is the perceptive one of intuition. This means you like looking at information from a global viewpoint, spotting new patterns and relationships that lead to understanding the key issues.
You focus more on possibilities for the future than the here-and-now, and you enjoy intellectual challenges and variety…
You may therefore seek to develop an understanding of how the world can be, wanting to understand the patterns underlying your observations of the world around you and the way in which the team or organization works.
Drenth (n.d.) further noted that:
Although INTJs are classified as Thinking types, their dominant function is Intuition, or more specifically, Introverted Intuition (Ni). In seeing the world through Ni lenses, their typical mode of operation is well described as impressionistic. Rather than noticing or concerning themselves with the details of the world around them, their existence is more cerebral or dreamlike.
Further CognitiveProcess.com (n.d.) suggested that:
The INTJ theme is strategizing, envisioning, and masterminding.
Talents lie in defining goals, creating detailed plans, and outlining contingencies.
Devise strategy, give structure, establish complex plans to reach distant goals dictated by a strong vision of what is needed in the long run.
Thrive on putting theories to work and are open to any and all ideas that can be integrated into the complex systems they seek to understand. Drive themselves hard to master what is needed to make progress toward goals.
The dominant function of INTJs allows them to become thought leaders and subject matter experts easily. The thinking and behavior of INTJs make it such that creating and disseminating innovative and groundbreaking thoughts, ideas, and insights are second nature.
Thought Leader Defined
Brosseau (n.d.) says “Thought leaders are the informed opinion leaders and the go-to people in their field of expertise. They are trusted sources who move and inspire people with innovative ideas; turn ideas into reality, and know and show how to replicate their success.
Over time, they create a dedicated group of friends, fans and followers to help them replicate and scale their ideas into sustainable change not just in one company but in an industry, niche, or across an entire ecosystem.”
Becoming a thought leader within any field requires more than spewing mere opinions and a recitation of your years of experience. With no barriers to entry, anyone with a website, smartphone, or blog can become a thought leader.
However, using intellectual property to stay top of mind within your profession requires a different skill set. You must be able to discover, diagnose, and solve problems pertinent to your industry’s needs.
And this becomes an essential skill for creating a body of work that makes you influential and immortal within your industry.
Here are a few tips for INTJs to begin documenting and sharing their ideas.
Document Your Intelligence
Let’s face it; there are many intelligent people in the world. However, if you were to Google any number of these individuals, finding a prolific body of work would not be easy. Many professionals earn excellent salaries and hold lofty positions, but have not documented their intelligence through articles, books, and videos.
Thought leadership is a way of documenting your work as an evangelist for an intelligent cause. Thought leaders demand that their net worth matches their intellectual contribution. The beauty of creating intellectual property online is that once you make the material, it exists in perpetuity.
Your thought leadership efforts continue while you sleep.
Outsource intellectual property development
Use different formats to document your solutions. Articles, books, podcasts, and videos are excellent ways of establishing trust and credibility. Since professionals have very little time to create intellectual property, there are cost-effective ways of outsourcing this task.
Fiverr.com and Upwork allow you to hire freelance writers, editors, and graphic artists to create intellectual property at reasonable prices. Marketer’s Guide to LinkedIn posited that: Ninety-four percent of B2B marketers use LinkedIn as a content distribution channel, compared to Twitter at 89%, Facebook and YouTube, both at 77%, and Google+ 61%.
LinkedIn should be your first stop if you have content to distribute (which you definitely should). “It’s where most B2B marketers go first.” (Gallant, 2019).
However, never leave your finished products in the hands of others. Make sure any freelance work you contract reflects your core beliefs and ideas. Tweak or modify any work to place your imprimatur on your creations.
Automate your thought leadership process
Creating and curating information on blogs and social media sites can be daunting. Fortunately, software allows you to schedule content distribution weeks and automatically post information on designated days.
Buffer.com is an excellent choice when you don’t have time to share information manually daily. You can post up to ten (10) articles for free, after which there is a small monthly fee.
With the advent of technology and social media, it is easier to become a thought leader today. You don’t have to rely on a book publisher like Simon & Schuster or major broadcasting networks like ABC, NBC, and CBS to select you.
As a marketer, Seth Godin says, “Now, you can pick yourself.” However, the bar has been raised because of all the noise and chatter that neophytes and dilettantes display to attain short-term success. In the end, thought leaders and subject matter experts will be left standing.
Conclusion
INTJs are well-suited to create transformational intellectual property that revolutionizes organizations, industries, and the world. As applied researchers, the ability to isolate themselves for long periods with reading and writing leads to real innovation and reformation.
In a society looking for guidance and direction, INTJs are natural thought leaders able to create and share ideas without the complexities exhibited by traditional leadership models.
Now more than ever, INTJs have to take their rightful roles as reformers or risk the devolution of an anti-intellectual world.
—Edward S. Brown, M.S.
References
Brosseau, D. (n.d.). What is a thought leader? Thought Leadership Lab. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3J6q4oe.
Brown, E. (2019, Sept. 9). Secrets of online law firm marketing: Why attorneys hate marketing and what they can do about it. LinkedIn Publisher. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3Bjs8Hx.
Drenth, A.J. (n.d.). INTJ personality type & traits. Personality Junkie. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3cHjgRU.
Gallant, J. (2019, Jan. 1). 48 eye-opening LinkedIn statistics for B2B marketers in 2019. Foundation. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/2JwSMTs.
INTJ – Conceptualizer Director (n.d.). CognitiveProcess.com. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3zAO9AH.
INTJ type dynamics (2020). Team Technology: Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3zbV5CC
The Dominant Function (n.d.). The Myers & Briggs Foundation. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3ozntdg.