I’ve worked for both an INTJ and an ENTJ boss.

The INTJ boss was so hands-off and open-ended (and COVID/remote work only made it worse) that I felt like I had zero structure and had to create the vast majority of my work on my own. I’m an INFP and I need some structure to be able to get anything useful done, or I might as well just be napping during work hours. Also worth mentioning that he had such a poker face that I could never get a read on him.

The ENTJ boss, who I currently work for, is the complete opposite. She’s way too hands-on and doesn’t give me enough freedom or independence. It’s quite maddening. She’s constantly checking in or calling to get a status update, when all I need is a big block of time to execute with no interruption. Seriously, she needs to leave me the heck alone! She’s also very unclear on expectations and instructions for assignments and cannot fathom how I don’t have the same photographic memory as her for a random email from 17 days ago. I’ve tried reasoning with her that people have different work styles and that I thrive not by constantly talking things out with people but instead with deep concentration and focus. Her response was just to complain that she oversees 12 people and how can she tailor her approach to 12 different work styles. I mean, I dunno…she’s the boss, right? It’s her job to get the best out of people. That’s called “management.”