Have you ever wondered how your personality type impacts your friendships? After all, self-awareness is the key to any healthy relationship; you can’t grow (and help others do the same) if your friendship is full of blind spots. When you understand your natural tendencies and quirks — the good and the bad — you can maximize your strengths while working on areas where you might need to grow. To help shine some light on the way you approach the people you care about, here’s what type of friend you are based on your Myers-Briggs personality type.
ISTJ: THE LOGICIAN
While the practical, rule-following ISTJ might prefer crunching numbers to wild nights out, you can count on this personality type to be a loyal and faithful friend: Where another person might bail when things get tough, ISTJs are deeply committed to the people they love. In spite of the built-in loyalty, though, connection doesn’t come instantly with an ISTJ. This type of personality is slower to make friends, and as such, commits only to people they truly care about.
ISFJ: THE DEFENDER
What’s in a name? For the “defender” ISFJ, a lot! Having an ISFJ as a friend is like having a guard dog on call — this personality type is both fiercely devoted to and protective of friends. While the ISFJ honorably defends their closest social circles, they’re also protective of their own emotions, which means they might come across as a little reserved at first.
INFJ: THE ADVOCATE
INFJs are intuitive and deep, which means that as friends, they’re great listeners and even better advice-givers. But the INFJ’s empathy is a two-edged sword. Sometimes, this sensitive, in-tune personality can become meddlesome or impatient, thinking they know what’s best for their closest friends.
ISTP: THE VIRTUOSO
Active, adaptable, and addicted to thrills, the ISTP is fun to hang out with. This personality type has no trouble making friends; it’s going deep that comes with more difficulty for them. While ISTPs are observant and engaged with the world around them, they’re always on the go, which makes it harder for them to commit to any one thing or person.
ISFP: THE ADVENTURER
Experts at enjoying the moment, ISFPs are warm and easygoing as friends — the kind of person you’d call if you wanted to embark on a last-minute adventure. Although ISFPs are known for their down-to-earth nature, they’re also highly sensitive and don’t take criticism well, so it might be best to focus on low-key fun with these pals.
INFP: THE MEDIATOR
The INFP — soulful, deep, and poetic to the core — thrives on deep connection and vulnerable conversation. This personality type is likely to be a sensitive, highly expressive friend, but given they are also introverted feelers, they may at times get lost in their own emotions and need space to process.
INTP: THE LOGICIAN
The intellectual and logical INTP may be picky about friends, but that doesn’t mean they never “click” with others. On the contrary: If you connect with an INTP on an intelligent or creative train of thought, you’ll probably quickly become fast friends. When it comes to time with loved ones, this personality much prefers to have long, deep conversations about ideas rather than emotions.
ESTP: THE ENTREPRENEUR
Straight-shooting, confident, and adventurous, the Entrepreneur is drawn to fast-paced outings with friends over slow-moving intellectual or emotional conversations. ESTPs are likely to seek out friends who share their spontaneous nature and zest for life. Because of their confidence, they’re also not likely to be offended by a friend’s judgment or opinions of them.
ESFP: THE ENTERTAINER
The life of the party in every circle, the ESFP is known for being an enthusiastic and thoughtful friend (the kind who never forgets to send a hand-written card on a birthday). This personality’s quick-witted, direct, and honest personality attracts a wide network of people to them, but they may also come across as scattered or flighty.
ENFP: THE CAMPAIGNER
Equal parts enthusiastic about life and emotionally in tune, the ENFP loves to wax poetic over a cup of coffee as much as they’re up for a last-minute road trip. But this is where things get complicated: ENFPs are naturally highly idealistic, which means they often have unrealistic expectations for their long roster of friends.
ENTP: THE DEBATER
There’s nothing ENTPs love more than earnest, lively debate. Whether it’s a deep dive into politics or gossip on the latest Kardashian saga, an ENTP knows their way around culture and always has an original, well-formed thought about it. Because they’re so good at seeing both sides, this personality might struggle with empathy in friendships.
ESTJ: THE EXECUTIVE
No one is more loyal than the ESTJ. Faithful friends with little tolerance for nonsense, ESTJs enjoy surrounding themselves with equally responsible, honest people. Because they so deeply value those who are also drawn to structure and tradition in relationships, this personality might not open up well to those who don’t share their values.
ESFJ: THE CONSUL
The ESFJ is both easygoing and outgoing, meaning they’re very easy to be friends with — which is a plus, because they love being surrounded by people. Sincere and socially intelligent, the ESFJ is also sensitive and doesn’t handle criticism or judgment well, especially from those who are supposed to love them unconditionally.
ENFJ: THE PROTAGONIST
Because they are driven by empathy, ENFJs enjoy connecting emotionally with their wide, diverse circle of friends. This personality type also values justice, which means they will defend their friends (and encourage them to grow) when no one else will. To some, this may feel stifling, but ENFJs typically pursue close friends who reciprocate their desire for commitment and growth in relationships.
ENTJ: THE COMMANDER
ENTJs are intense, but that’s why they’re so amazing. They seek out friends who share their ambitious passion for growth and improvement, and they’re unlikely to invest time or energy in those who don’t want to get ahead. This personality type does demand a lot in relationships, but it’s usually not an issue since they’re so committed to giving themselves too.
How do you see your MBTI shaping your friendships? Tell us @BritandCo.
(Photos via Getty)
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
You X Ventures for Unsplash
Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
Kobu Agency for Unsplash
You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures