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Does Your Personality Affect Your Income and How Much You Save? I Found Out. Kinda.


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Did you know your personality can be linked to how much you make as well as how much of that you are able to keep?

Many people have taken the Myers-Briggs personality test. If you haven’t HERE is a link to take the test for free, it will only take a few minutes and you can find out which one of the 16 personalities you are.

Go ahead, take the test, I’ll wait.

(This post may contain affiliate links – it does not cost you anything extra but I might get a commission that helps support the site.)

They have taken the data from the test takers and have released some information that is very interesting. What I am going to focus on is which personality earns the most, and then which personality is able to keep that money in their hands.

I am an INTJ, also called ‘The Architect’ or ‘The Intellectual’. My characteristics are: Intelligence, Honors commitments, and Highly independent. The average household income for an INTJ is $71,000 a year. Additionally, 66.44% of INTJs say they are frugal. I am one of them. We are one of the rarest personality types, with just 1-2% of the population being an INTJ.

It is important to note that the data is self-reported. What I mean by that is being frugal to one person could mean something totally different to another. An example: for one person, not purchasing an appetizer at a restaurant could make them think they are being frugal. For another, like myself, buying a $3.29 blizzard from Dairy Queen is being spendthrift because I could have achieved nearly the same thing by just buying Oreo ice cream from the supermarket for $2.99, which would easily have 6+ servings.

Yes folks, I am that fun to hang out with!

So this whole thing is just for fun really (accurate results cannot be had with this data after all). But let’s see what we can find out.

The personality that makes the most money by far are ENTJs, with $83,000 a year. These are ‘The Commander’ or ‘The Director’ types, leaders. Just 2% of the general population are ENTJs, with 3% of men and 1% of women. You tend to find these types in leadership roles such as business leaders, entrepreneurs, and professors.

Runners up are ESTJs ‘The Executive’ with $75,000 and ESFJ ‘The Consul’ with $73,000.

At the bottom of the earning data are INFP ‘The Mediator’ with $60,000. The ENTP ‘The Debator’ with $61,000. And a tie for 3rd least average income goes to ESFP ‘The Entertainer’ and ISFJ ‘The Defender’ with $62,00 each.

Ah! But how good are the personalities with actually keeping the money in their pockets?


According to a survey by SunTrust about 33% of people making over $75,000 a year still live paycheck to paycheck. Many people are not very good with having money set aside, even if they make a good income.

To find out that information I searched for the average positive responses to the question ‘You are a frugal person.’ Using a completely scientific* method of just multiplying income by average positive responses to the frugality question, I came up with the following chart. *(science not included)

 

Personality:Income:Frugality%:Relative Income

 The personality that, on an average income and frugality level, will have the most money in their pockets are the ISTJs!

ISTJs ‘The Logistician’ or ‘The Auditor’ make up approximately 13% of the population. With an average income of $70,000 and 67.16% responding positively to being frugal they can expect to feel as if they make $47,012. These personalities are organized, good listeners, and can handle criticism well. They are quiet, serious, and very responsible. They also value traditions and loyalty.

Runners up are ENTJs who have a relative income of $46,688, and ESTJs with $43,703.

At the bottom of the pack for keeping money in their pockets are ENTP ’The Debator’, ENFP ‘The Campaigner’, and ESFP ‘The Entertainer’

You guys may not keep a lot of what you make, but you sure are fun to hang out with.


Care about healthy living? Now invest in it.

The bottom three are all extrovert personalities so they are less likely to be frugal. Being that extroverts love social interaction, they would appear to spend more money on social events like meals and/or drinks out with friends.

Introverts will be more happy to spend a weekend home to recharge, which is an easy way to save money. Personalities that are extroverted and prospecting are more likely to splurge in the moment.

One of the most interesting things from this research is that ISFJs ‘The Defenders’ who were tied for 3rd place in making the least income, jumped up to 4th place for keeping money after applying the frugality formula. 

Introverted and judging personalities excel at impulse control and planning.

Extroverted and prospecting personalities seem doomed to spend most or all of what they make if they do not fight their natural tendencies. 


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This post was originally featured on my steemit blog.

11 comments

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  1. Mrs. Picky Pincher

    Ironically I’m an ISFJ and I make a pretty great income. 🙂 I think it’s all about finding a profitable field for your own strengths. In my case, a sense of empathy and understanding is important in my field, marketing.

    It’s interesting because I notice that people’s money management skills vary by personality–even when they’re raised in the same environment. Nature definitely has a place in finances. 😉
    Mrs. Picky Pincher recently posted…Crock and Roll with Homemade SauerkrautMy Profile

    1. MrDD

      Personality certainly does have a huge impact in my opinion. How many times have you read from other personal finance stories about a sibling or parent or another family member that is just doing the wrong thing financially?

      As for you, well I think anyone that is as driven to succeed as you are would definitely find themselves above the average!

  2. David Domzalski

    Hey Mr. DD,

    This was a great idea for a post. I couldn’t remember what my Myers-Briggs type was so, I retook it. I came out as an INFP-T “Mediator.” It’s good to see I’m out-earning my fellow Mediators. It was also a good reminder of what my tendencies are.

    By the way, I found your site over at Rockstar Finance and I’m glad I did. As a fellow novice personal finance blogger, I look forward to seeing how your journey goes this year.

    Take care,

    Dave

    1. MrDD

      Hey David, thanks for the kind words and encouragement. I would suspect that a large majority that ends up reading the article are going to be those that are above the average. It is because they are the ones actively searching out new knowledge and ways to better themselves and their situation in life. I wonder what percentage of each personality are actively seeking FI. I think there was a poll on the mrmoneymustache forums a year or two ago – most were INTJ (like me) or close to. I can’t bring it up this moment because those forums are down because of a server migration.

      The ‘P’ in INFP means prospecting. Do you find that the prospecting trait sneaks into your life and wants to spend money frivolously? Before you beat it back into submission, of course.

  3. Mustard Seed Money

    Great idea for a post!!! I am an INFJ which I believe are pretty rare among males. I am definitely out of my comfort zone a lot of days at work. Unfortunately most workplaces are set up for Extroverts although I did find Quiet by Susan Cain very refreshing.
    Mustard Seed Money recently posted…Why CEOs with Daughters Are BetterMy Profile

    1. MrDD

      I would say that is pretty rare – about .5% of the male population. MLK jr and Nelson Mandela were both male INFJ’s – so you are in good company.

  4. Mike H

    Interesting post. I was an ENTJ for the first 20 years on my career but after having a kid and taking a pay cut in my job I just tested as an ESTF but the S tendency was only slightly over N.

    Mike

    1. MrDD

      Mike, did you mean ESTJ? I don’t think ESTF is one the Briggs-Myers.

      Sounds like you fit in with the chart here. The ENTJ’s make a bit more money, but the ESTJ’s save a bit more. Would you say that is true compared to your younger self?

      1. Mike H

        Sorry, I meant to type ESTJ that was a typo. I’m 44 and make about $300K a year in my job with another $90K a year coming in from investments, so I think I fit the bill. I save less now than before since having a daughter and moving to a larger space; she is 4 now. Our annual spending is slightly over our passive income so our savings rate is still healthy, so long a I am working.

        -Mike

        1. MrDD

          Mike, you are rocking life man. Congrats!

          I am sure if anything happened you could just tighten the belts a little bit, or move somewhere cheaper.

          1. Mike H

            Thanks. You are right. In the meantime I’ll keep on keeping on. It looks like you are walking the path as well.

            Best,

            Mike

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