I'm an "Architect," just without training or talent

A little while ago I took this 16Personalities personality test and it told me that I'm an Architect - specifically an "Assertive Architect" (if you take the test using this link it'll compare our personality types! You'll finally figure out why you don't like me!). I've never really thought of myself as particularly assertive, but I do often get my way so maybe there's something to it (I attribute my getting my way to the fact that for the most part I don't have an opinion/preference for things. When I do, I have the right preference so of course I get my way! See, not assertive at all).

Once you take the test 16Personalities will email you from time to time with articles and insights about people with your personality type. They are very careful to say "most people with this type," so as not to piss people off (I assume). Sometimes the emails are spot on for me, and other times... not so much!

Anyway, this week's email was about work environments and it inspired this blog post... so you know it was either spot on or totally off base.

Here are the four points:

• Architects do their best work in quiet places
• Architects are very unlikely to feel like they’re doing their best work if they have to collaborate with others.
• Architects are the most likely personality type to believe they would both survive and thrive working from home.
• Architects would much rather work in a cubicle than in an open-plan office.

And my thoughts on each:

• Totally true for me. I really like silence when I'm working. My children don't seem to understand this. Nor does the rest of the world.


• I like collaborating with others, so this doesn't resonate with me. Well, maybe a tiny bit!


• Interestingly, I never thought working from home would be a good fit for me. Thanks to the pandemic I've been doing it for a couples years and it turns out that I really do like it.


• I loathe open-plan offices with my entire being. Which, of course, means that part of my job is overseeing the operation of an open-office plan office. Oh, life, you little scamp!

Ideally, I would work in a small office with the door closed. Ironically, the only time I had such ideal conditions was when working at Comcast. I was very excited about that part of the job, doubly so because everyone I interviewed with had a TV (with cable) in their offices! How cool is that? I did get an office with that job, but it didn't have a TV in it. When I sheepishly asked about it (I wasn't sure of a tactful way to ask about getting a TV in my office) I found out that they stopped doing that for some reason. No TV for me, but I really did like that office.