Type B vs Type A Personality – The Key Differences

Hey, do you wanna find Type B vs Type A Personality?

Welcome aboard! Perhaps you found you are a type B person. Or, your acquaintance took a personality test and found they’re a Type B person. Well, it’s cool that you wanna know your B-type acquaintance better.

Your decision to find their differences can help you understand how a type B person is better or worse than a type A person.

Whether you’re their friend, colleague, or teacher… you can put this knowledge to help them feel better and more appreciated this way.

So, let’s get down to the depths of this…

Type B vs Type A Personality

Some say Type B people are the complete opposites of Type As. Others believe that Type Bs are inferior to Type As. And then some say that knowing the type A personality trait is enough… you can just guess the type Bs easily!

Is that the only difference between the B and A types?

C’mon, let’s find the truth here…

If you think that was interesting, let’s get into the details here…

1. Type Bs can cope with stress better than As

The concept of Type A and Type B people first began when cardiologist Meyer Friedman and Ray H Rosenman studied the abilities to cope with stress levels in different patients.

They found that people with type A personality traits are more prone to heart diseases like high blood pressure and coronary artery diseases in their mature age due to the way they manage stress.

However, there’s no direct reference between heart concerns and personality types. Instead, it’s based more on how they deal with stress.

On the flip side, type Bs stayed calm through thick and thin. They don’t let the anxiety and stress catch up to them and try to keep their calm. They do get stressed… it’s impossible to avoid stress.

But they also know how to avoid getting stressed any further and calm themselves. This protects them from getting heart diseases in their later life.

2. Type Bs are spontaneous while A-types are planners

Individuals with type b behavior patterns (TBBP) don’t follow the “basics” of life like everyone else. They don’t carry around planners to note down things. They can mentally note down important things and remember them for the long term.

They don’t lead an organized life. Their desks are often a mess. Their files are never sorted in alphabetical order. Their kitchens don’t have spices with labels on them. Their bookshelves are also haphazardly kept.

Often others nag them to organize stuff. But B-types don’t care about that. They know where they keep their stuff and can find it in seconds even from a heap of dust. They can’t afford to waste their time this way.

However, folks with an A-type personality do everything in a planned way. They have tight routines and keep their space tidy. They’re always worried that they might forget something and fail in life.

3. Type Bs are flexible, but A-types aren’t

Suppose a B-type person intended to finish a project on a Friday evening. But a client rushed to them with an even more important project.

The B-type person only has enough time to complete one of the tasks and wrap their day. So, they take care of the more urgent one and leave the other one unfinished. They don’t mind that they can’t go according to their plans. Instead, they keep it like that ready to roll the next week.

You can notice that a type B person is extremely flexible and spontaneous. They won’t overreact or try to finish both tasks at once. They can work on things.

On the other hand, a type A will get extremely stressed in this situation. They’ll try to finish both tasks that day. Even if they need to work overtime, work all night, or stand up to their date, they don’t mind. They just won’t let the pending task get dragged to the next week.

4. Type Bs don’t go crazy overtime management, type As do!

If a type B person is given more tasks than they can handle in a day and a strict deadline, like any other person they’ll get stressed. However, they won’t force themselves to work on everything at once. They prioritize quality over quantity all the time.

They won’t multitask or push their limits to cope with the situation. They know that the quality of their work will be hampered if they hurry. That doesn’t mean they don’t hurry at all. They try their best only until that stress doesn’t impact their performance.

On the other hand a type A person won’t be able to take this situation calmly. They’ll multitask, and get super fired up to complete all the tasks by that day. They’ll get annoyed at others if asked to take a break. They’ll take out the frustration on others and make everyone uncomfortable.

5. Unlike A-types, Type Bs don’t always seek serious competition everywhere

When a type B person is out on a date at an arcade, they’ll compete in the games to have fun. They like to enjoy the itty-bitties of life. They don’t mind who wins or loses.

They hope that they and their date have a fun and memorable time together. If they don’t win, they’ll laugh it off. If they win, that’s cool but nothing too exciting to make their date feel less than.

On the other hand, if a type A individual goes on a date where they play competitive games, the scenario will be far different. A-types play to win and nothing else. If they can’t win, they feel low.

They criticize themselves for not being able to win. They might even ditch their date because they won. They can’t take playful games lightly and might even have a real fight over it.

6. Type Bs are peace lovers while As challenge everyone

If a type B person faces a situation where the other person’s ideas contradict them, they don’t mind. They’re down to expand their horizons and grow together.

They’ll smoothly get away from confrontation and let the other person be. If the other person is their loved one, they allow them to follow their heart.

However, if the other person has ulterior motives, the type B person might be taken advantage of. A type B might not stop them even after knowing that in the fear of hurting them.

But, if a type A person falls in such a situation, they fight until the other person agrees with them. They don’t think about whether the other person will get hurt. A-types want to control others in all situations as they believe they know better than others. This can lead to major conflicts in A-types’ lives.

7. Type Bs can’t miss socializing time. A-types don’t care

For a B-type, they’ll do everything possible but never miss the celebration of their child’s sports day, parents’ birthday, or their own anniversary. They won’t ditch their friends’ night out just because they have yet to finish another file.

They prioritize the time they can devote to their personal life. If there’s pending work and it can wait until the next day, they’ll keep it for later. They have their priorities set pretty well.

They love being around people, making them laugh, and grabbing the limelight. And unless a task is too important, they won’t miss socializing and spending quality time.

Type A folks, however, don’t value socializing as much. They’re more into making money and earning themselves and their loved ones a secure future. However, they don’t notice that they’re losing precious time with their favorite people.

8. B-types thrive in teams. A-types thrive solo.

If a Type B individual is put in a group activity, that’s their dream come true. They feel comfortable and driven when there are lots of people working on the same goal.

They make the team collaborate well, mediate between people with differing opinions, brainstorm together, combine unique plans into a new unbelievable one, and so on. 

They thrive in group settings because they’re outgoing. They like to communicate with everyone else. If others can’t catch up, they help them out. They’re made to work in groups.

On the flip side, people with type A personality traits like to work alone. They judge others who don’t work as intensely or as long as them. They feel a team will drag them down. They believe that they can wrap up the entire work alone by the time others can learn the basics.

Even if they’re put in a group by any chance, they boss around others even before they understand the duties. They make an action plan for others and don’t bother explaining the reason. In short, A-types don’t fit in groups.

9. B-types focus on creativity and the entire journey. Type As only run after the end results.

Often, people assume that B-types are not driven. They don’t want to succeed in their career or anywhere else. But that’s far from true. They also want to win in their life.

However, they don’t want to win everything. They focus more on creativity and uniqueness. They relish every point of hard work. They know that every little task will bring about the final magic. So, they also take pride in the little steps.

But a person with a type A personality doesn’t attach themselves to their task this way. They don’t feel emotions about their job and responsibilities unless they win. They hurry to succeed because that makes them feel alive the most. Their passion is winning.

They look down on themselves if they can’t win. They believe that if they can’t win on the first go, they can’t ever win.

Due to such beliefs, they focus only on the bounty. They don’t feel they learn much from failure. So, they don’t give any other option to themselves. They might even get depressed because of failures.

10. B-types can relax even under pressure… A-types become aggressive

When a situation or person pressures a type B person, they won’t react to them. They’ll feel stressed and their stress managing system will kick in. They’ll try to ignore the reason behind the stress.

They stay calm and collected… and try to understand the situation. Their response gives others the courage to not give up and reassures them that things will get better. When they work, they make sure everyone around and under their care feels optimistic and energetically deals with situations.

But A-types can’t handle stress well. They lose their patience easily unlike B-types. They channel their frustration on others and make them feel bad.

Others lose their self-confidence around a stressed type A person. They start believing they’re inadequate. Type As make their entire workplace feel negative about their situation.

11. Type Bs are kind and lenient while type As are excessively strict

If you get a type B leader in a work team, they’ll treat you kindly. They’ll make you feel comfortable, talk to you like a friend, try to understand your point of view, and even give you a moment to explain yourself. 

Type B leaders don’t reprimand people around them when they can’t win. Instead, they try to understand their issues, help them find solutions, motivate them, and support their journey.

If a type B person’s child doesn’t score the best in the class, they talk to them about how they feel. They ask whether they learned anything from the experience. If they don’t, they teach them life lessons.

On the other hand, A-types don’t stand for any kind of failure. They’re strict with themselves and others. They expect others to devote most of their time to work or school. They don’t tolerate mistakes.

If their team members don’t produce the expected results, they reprimand them for that. They make others feel bad if they can’t work like them and bring similar results.

If their child can’t score 100 or their subordinate can’t get the best results, they become ruthless.

12. B-types are often misunderstood in professional lives… while type As are worshipped

In the workplace, supervisors often think that type B workers are not focused enough. They believe that they don’t want to achieve anything or that they have their head up in the sky and don’t understand how professional platforms work.

They feel extremely frustrated with B-types because they don’t hurry up or multitask. Or, simply because they don’t act like Type A employees.

They avoid recommending type Bs to leadership positions because they “might not take the task seriously”. But it’s just that people don’t understand how B-types work.

On the other hand, workplaces think highly of type As. They believe they’re the perfect ones for leadership positions.

Most (not all) workplaces don’t even mind that while type A employee overwork themselves, they might get sick and be unable to work for too long. They only have short-term plans in mind.

A word from ThePleasantPersonality

There are quite a lot of differences between types A and B… however, it’s not always polar opposites as people say. So, when you judge the type B in your workplace, classroom, social circle, or home, don’t judge them unknowingly. You might misunderstand them.

And remember, even if the world paints type Bs as weaker than As, know that they have their strengths too… it’s just that they don’t show up like A-types.

So, take time to understand fellow B-types, treat them better, and make the world a better place.

Article Sources

1. https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-type-a-and-type-b-personality.html
2. https://www.wellandgood.com/type-a-versus-type-b/
3. https://www.hiresuccess.com/help/understanding-the-4-personality-types