How You Cope With Being the New Person at Work, By Personality Type

Starting a new job is like stepping onto a roller coaster with equal parts excitement and a dash of apprehension. There are quirky personalities to meet, unspoken rules to decipher and who knows what type of boss you have landed yourself with. How you cope with those early days and weeks on the job can often make or break your experience at a new company—and you won't be surprised to learn that your personality type can have a big impact on how you handle it all.

ISTJ - You Arrive With a Plan

As a meticulous ISTJ, you arrive precisely five minutes early on your first day, equipped with a brand-new notebook and a systematic plan for learning everyone's names. You greet your coworkers with a slight nod and the warning: "Hello, I'm here to get things done." You'll know every workflow by the end of the week and have your boss's favorite coffee order memorized by the end of the month.

ISFJ - You Bring Baked Goods

ISFJs make their grand entrance with homemade muffins and the declaration, "Hi all, I brought something to share!" You learn everyone's names quickly, but it takes a little longer to figure out the office politics. Despite the tasks piling up on your desk, you'll find time to help your coworkers with their projects and agree to babysit your boss's kids on a Saturday night.

ESTJ - You Mean Business

Arriving prepared and ready to lead, you introduce yourself with authority, "Hi team, let's hit the ground running." This annoys some of your coworkers who've been with the company for years, but you're the new boss and they'll have to get used to it. ESTJs have a strict plan for getting to know everyone and will be off to happy hour with a few colleagues by Friday afternoon.

ESFJ - You Make Friends, Lots of Friends

ESFJs arrive at their new job with one goal in mind: building strong relationships. You're eager to meet everyone, learning names and personal details as quickly as possible. You mop up all the admin work your boss throws your way, but you also find time to plan team lunches and happy hours. One week in, and everyone is pretty sure you've been with the company for years.

INTJ - You Observe and Strategize

As an INTJ, you don't have time for small talk or petty office politics. You spend your first days quietly observing, taking note of everyone's strengths and weaknesses. You'll have a strategic plan in place within the first month and it will boost efficiency tenfold. Who cares if three teams get amalgamated and two people get fired? You got things done.

INTP - You Ask All the Questions

As an INTP, you're eager to learn and understand everything about your new job. So, you ask a seemingly endless stream of questions, trying to make sense of it all until you've assembled the perfect mental picture of everyone's motives and aspirations. By the time you've grasped everything at your new workplace, everyone will consider you an expert in their field. Six months later, you still won't have a single friend at work.

ENTJ - You're the Boss

Regardless whether you've been hired to lead the company or mop the floors, you are taking control,  ENTJ. You'll have strong opinions on what the company should be doing differently right from day one, and you won't hesitate to voice them. Despite being new, you quickly take charge, delegating tasks and outlining expectations for your coworkers. If they don't like it? Too bad—you have a vision.

ENTP - You Start a Debate

ENTPs arrive with confidence, charisma and  a desire to stir things up. You make friends quickly by sharing witty anecdotes, only to argue with them about their favorite TV show or why on earth they've structured a project in that way. You'll brainstorm new ideas and question old ones, keeping everyone on their toes and potentially driving them crazy.

INFJ - You're the Listener

INFJs arrive at their new job with an open mind and heart. Your desk is adorned with personal touches and your  door is open to literally everyone from day one. Before long, you've become everyone's confidant—the work will take care of itself eventually. 

INFP - You Start a Fair Pay Campaign, Vegan Lunch Club and Petition for Better Recycling

INFPs arrive at their new job with a vision. You don't want to just fit in, you want to contribute and make the world a better place, even if it's one tiny office at a time. You work quietly on your projects, but before long your coworkers have joined the 15 -page petition for office-wide composting and they have no idea how it all started.

ENFJ - You Bring Donuts and Motivation

ENFJs arrive with a smile, brightening up the whole room the moment they walk in. You're genuinely excited to meet your new coworkers and can't wait to get started on projects together. Your enthusiasm is contagious and before you know it, everyone is working harder than ever before and they don't know why. At least there's the office yoga you started to help everyone de-stress.

ENFP - You're Everyone's Best Friend

ENFPs arrive at their new job full of energy and optimism. You make friends quickly with everyone, from the CEO to the janitor. Before long, you've made plans for after-work drinks, convinced your boss to start a company book club and taken up knitting with your desk neighbor. Your coworkers may question how much actual work gets done in between all the socializing, but they can't deny that work has never been more fun. 

ISTP - You Keep to Yourself

ISTPs arrive at their new job calm and unimpressed.  You spend most of your time getting lost in your work and trying not to make friends because work friends means drama and drama means feelings. You're great at your job, and everyone knows it even though they don't know much about you.

ISFP - You Find Your Niche

ISFPs arrive a little timid but with a clear goal in mind—to find your niche. You're eager to learn and try new things, but you also want to make sure that what you do fits in with your personal values and beliefs. You totally refuse to discipline anyone, so if your new job requires that, the whole place will soon be on fire because you just couldn't bring yourself to say 'no'.

ESTP - You're the Life of the Party

ESTPs arrive at their new job ready to have a good time. Your energy is contagious and people are drawn to your extraverted nature. You quickly become involved in office shenanigans, making jokes and breaking up any tension with ease. Work gets done, but not before everyone has had a chance to laugh. How did anyone survive without you?

ESFP -  You Refuse to Stay in Your Cubicle

Nobody puts ESFP in a corner! Before the first day is over, you've already done the rounds of the office and invited everyone to a group lunch. You've made friends with everyone (who's fun), solved a couple of problems (that have been dragging on for months) and convinced your boss to let you color the walls of the conference room. And you know everything about everyone as if you've worked there for years.