Extraverted Thinking is an external-facing, decision-focused cognitive function. Both Te and Fe are mobilizing functions; that is, functions occupied with affecting change, bringing order, and organizing resources in the external world. But while Extraverted Feeling (Fe) deals with the objective personal, extraverted Thinking (Te) deals with the objective impersonal: systems design, logical frameworks, and business and industry interaction. Good examples: capital systems (i.e. monetary systems), logistics, investment strategy and business valuation, systems design (e.g. software design, legal and judicial frameworks, education systems).
Te is naturally rational, analytical, and somewhat linear or hierarchical; no matter the topic, high-Te users prioritize empirical findings and systematic understanding.
What is high Te good at?
High Te users (ESTJs, ENTJs, ISTJs, and INTJs) are naturally gifted in areas that make use of their ability to see and execute logical patterns.
No matter the profession (including artistic), high-Te users are almost always tremendously professionally driven. They like thinking about work, bettering their work, understanding their industry, and seeing the impacts of their vocation. Prior to working, they are often good students. Te loves intellectual stimulation, and seeing their systems logic play out professionally is tremendously rewarding. This means that the TJs are generally rather good at making money!
High-Te users aren’t precious about their ideas. They’re often confident about their direction, but if you have a better idea, have more empirical evidence, or can back up your logic, they’ll happily adopt your proposal. This makes for quick progress, since Te is good at sussing out objectively better methods and adopting them. That said, high-Te users often externalize their thought process and expect you to do the same. This can be a point of friction between Te and Ti users.
High-Te users are good at getting things done. If they see or think of something that should be done, they will simply do it. They might be grumbly and unhappy (tert/inferior Fi), or they might resent the fact that they feel compelled to do the thing, but there’s generally a straight line from perceiving the task to doing the task. You will very rarely encounter a high-Te user putting off something because they “don’t feel like it” or “aren’t in the mood”; in fact, they don’t understand why others put off doing things that they know need to be done. Te/Fi will almost always hold to its words.
Many people complain that Te can be blunt to the point of rudeness, and cold at the expense of personal empathy. While that’s true, you can also count on those same characteristics to give high-Te users their signature straightforwardness. WYSIWYG: when a Te user says “I disagree and think there is a better way to do X”, they mean “I disagree and think there is a better way to do X.” They do not mean “I think poorly of your intellectual and logical capabilities and think you’re a waste of a human being.” I mean, maybe they do, but if so they’ll just tell you that. This can make high-Te users very refreshing to talk to.
Te/Si vs. Te/Ni
Te/Si tends to build bottom-up, and Te/Ni builds top down.
Hence, Te/Si prioritizes reliability and details; if something is broken at its smallest component, then the foundation is shaky and its higher layers can’t be trusted. This is why Te/Si (ESTJs) and Si/Te (ISTJs) are most frequently associated—rather unfairly—with spreadsheets and bureaucratic overload. They are just trying to make sure they have line of sight into everything that needs to happen. The same detail that people bemoan is what makes Te/Si supreme in highly technical situations; their depth of expertise often extends far beyond what other types have.
On the other hand, Te/Ni prioritizes vision and “seeing the shape of the box”. If the direction doesn’t make sense, then the details don’t matter. Te/Ni likes to think about “big” systems—e.g. geopolitics, immigration, climate change, transportation infrastructure—and want to solve some “big problem” in their lifetime. This is why ENTJs and INTJs can sometimes come across as arrogant; they’re able to make sharp judgements on high level vision, but when they find that others do not share the same logical ability, they can decide that a conversation is no longer worth pursuing.
Extraverted vs. Introverted TJs
Our introverted/extraverted counterparts are one of our closest cousins. ENTJs will understand and recognize similar thought processes in INTJs, and ESTJs will see the same with ISTJs. So what might be some I/E differences?
Having an extraverted Judging (Je) function first versus having it second can have an enormous difference. This is especially so with Te, which is a very strong function.
Dominant Extraverted Thinking is always ready to–and very good at–mobilizing resources. When there is a power vacuum, or an awkward second where someone needs to take charge but nobody is stepping up, ENTJs and ESTJs readily and naturally rise to the occasion. They have no trouble commanding the attention of a group, setting priorities, and deciding who should do what. Yes, they can be overbearing (especially when immature), but leadership is as much of a burden as it is a crown and they wear that responsibility well.
INTJs and ISTJs—with auxiliary Te—prefer not to be in direct positions of power, but make good leaders when they are. They’re often pushed into power by need or vote; most IXTJs have had distinct realizations that they’ll need to take charge of a school or work project before other people drive it to the ground. In these cases, they can make insightful and patient leaders. But rather than mobilizing external resources, they prefer to mobilize themselves. They are often confident in their capabilities and trust their own logical judgement. Other people can be more of a liability than a value-add.
Dominant Te is fast to act, while aux-Te is more cautious. EXTJs are often happy to take action first, grasp the opportunity or the need of the moment, and adjust later. But Te in service of Pi (Si/Ni) is slower; INTJs and ISTJs spend much more time ascertaining the direction of their aim before firing. Because they think through any promises they make, IXTJs tend to very reliable.
All that being said, E/ISTJs and E/INTJs are going to share more similarities than differences when compared to other MBTI types.
The role of Fi
Fi is the natural opposite of Te, and high-Te users frequently override their Fi or work lifelong to develop a healthy relationship with it. Like all other Fi users, high-Te users are rather discerning in what they like and don’t like when it comes to personal values and tastes. Unlike high-Fi users though, they can struggle to express it, trace where it comes from, or listen to their morality over logical impulses.
INTJs and ISTJs, with tertiary Fi, usually have a rather good grasp of how they feel but have issues expressing it. They can come across as socially constipated.
ISTJs are better at social norms due to their dominant Si, since they’ll naturally observe and adopt behaviours of their family, respected peers, and mentors. However, they occasionally get called “robotic” due to their monkey-see-monkey-do approach to learning intimacy and social interaction.
INTJs really struggle. They often find that their motivations don’t translate well, that they’re accused of being “condescending” when they’re trying to explain principles, and that they struggle with basic things like hugs (Fi/Se tert/inferior combo). This makes them fall back to their zone of comfort and competence, which is Ni/Te, but using these two functions as a translation for Fi (e.g. buying their preteen kid self-improvement books because the INTJ cares about their development) isn’t always parseable.
Inferior Fi makes EXTJs significantly less aware of their internal biases compared to IXTJs. They often adopt external systems of morality as their own without realizing it. This is how otherwise logical, successful high-Te, low-Fi entrepreneurs randomly become ultra-nationalistic or cultish. Going through moral or health crises, where EXTJs are forced to recognize what is worth living for and what isn’t, usually is a strong personal development event for Te-doms.
Low Fi shows up positively as cute preferences and special interests hidden under the logical surface of Te/Pi. It can also show up negatively as little bursts of “woe is me” at 2AM at night, when they feel like they’re carrying the weight of their project/business/pursuit on their shoulders and fixing problems nobody else sees or cares and they’re tired. That’s why, despite Te being generally not dependent on social validation, it’s important to acknowledge the feelings and thank the hard work of the high-Te individuals you care about.