What personality type is Harvey Specter?

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Te: Harvey is in full control of his own life—and others’, too. He bosses people around, and keeps his place immaculate. Harvey is blunt when it comes to giving voice to opinions and thoughts, which often leads him to misunderstandings and the other party holding a grudge against him because of his straightforwardness, because it translates in other people as Harvey being rude. When manipulating people, he influences their thought process, not their emotions. He always persuades people via logic, not by pressuring their morality. Harvey takes joy in being at the top of the hierarchy, and craves power over other people. He loves control, provided that he’s the one keeping it; he goes as far as even wanting to control things he has no power over, like another corporation, merely because he foresees consequences that wouldn’t benefit him within the next five years. He likes to make fun of others, and with the lack of F in the picture, it’s not hard to see all the broken hearts Harvey leaves behind in his wake.

Ni: Harvey is quick in seeing through other people and pinpointing their true motives and what makes them tick—this is also the reason why he can win his cases. He can easily understand other people’s thought processes and then uses these against them. He is very ambitious and goal-oriented. However, differing from someone with an NiTe stack, he doesn’t plan as carefully, just sets up his aim then immediately goes to achieve it. As he said so, he “doesn’t have dreams; he has goals, and it’s on to the next”. Harvey has an out-of-the-box way of thinking, which makes him cunning. He is able to put small pieces together in order to get to the whole picture and understand a case as a whole (and then come up with an ultimate solution). In his mind, he clearly lives in the future, because whenever something happens, his first instinct is to conclude what will happen.

Se: Harvey enjoys and willingly engages in any kind of physical activity. He values beauty and is an aesthete. He believes in the importance of appearance when it comes to human relationships (especially first impressions), hence he makes sure his looks are perfect—talk about his usual outfit, which consists of suits with a pretty steep price. He exercises regularly, and chose his flat specifically for the view. He doesn’t deny one-night stands from himself, more so, he encourages women to sleep with him.

Fi: Harvey doesn’t value emotions at all. He said himself, “I’m against having emotions—not against using them.” He frequently fails to recognize what other people feel, and his inferior function is suppressed by his dominant by a long shot; because of his Te, Harvey is extremely blunt, and doesn’t always think twice before he speaks aloud. He scolds Mike whenever he gets emotionally involved in his cases, and wanted to suppress this tendency in him at the very beginning. Harvey has an own code to which he sticks strictly. Once he was even asked jokingly which of his principles was holding him back from handing over the keys to a car in 1×3.

Harvey Specter

Grew Up… poor. Harvey was 16 when he first caught his mom cheating on his dad. Harvey knew of his mother’s repeated infidelities during the two years leading up to his parents’ divorce, and remained silent about them to protect his father. While still a young man working in a firm’s mailroom, Harvey met Jessica Pearson, his future boss and colleague. After managing to impress Jessica with his initiative, cunning, and negotiating abilities, she offered to send him to Harvard Law, all expenses paid.

Living… in luxury. The bank account of a high-powered lawyer in New York City allows for some high-expense fun and games.

Profession… attorney, and the self-proclaimed “best closer in New York city” – though others sometimes proclaim it too. It’s undeniable that Harvey is good at what he does. With raw talent, encyclopedic knowledge of the law, and unorthodox methods, Harvey never fails to amaze. He can improvise where he needs to, and even his working principle of “keep pressing till it hurts” isn’t industry-standard. Harvey’s most daring move is hiring a new associate, Mike Ross, who isn’t even a college graduate never mind a Harvard Law alum, but is incredibly smart in both the “book” and “street” senses.

Interests… poker, the higher the stakes the better. Harvey likes cars too, and is known to drive a Bentley, an Aston Martin, a Mercedes, a Lexus, and a vintage Mustang. In high school he enjoyed playing baseball, and played it well. The trait that links Harvey’s passions is that he’s a competitor, in and out of the boardroom.

Relationship Status… single. He’s capable of charm, but incapable of commitment. Harvey is a carouser, using his affability and charisma to seduce any woman who captures his fancy. He makes a point of not sleeping with married women, but as a pragmatic concern rather than a moral stance; he likes to avoid unnecessary complications. One of the serial hook-ups that he carries on is with Dana Scott, a rival from Harvard Law against whom he still competes in court.

Challenge… caring about more than just himself. Perhaps due to childhood trauma, Harvey makes a point of depending on no one and getting his fulfilment from ambition, material success, and expression of his own worth. Harvey’s challenge is to move beyond the sarcasm and wit that characterize an ironic attitude toward existence and learn what it means to have responsibility to others. If he can’t find a way to base his happiness on more than winning for himself – and admit it – then he may remain alone forever.

Personality… narcissistic, egotistical, and driven. As he admits, “I’m not about caring, I’m about winning.”

Harvey Specter MBTI Personality Type

Harvey Reginald Specter is a skilled lawyer, considered “the best closer in New York City”, and a name partner at Pearson Darby Specter. After being promoted to the position of senior partner at Pearson Hardman, he hired Mike Ross, a veritable genius who was able to pass the bar exam despite not attending law school, as his associate. (Suits Wikia)

Introverted or Extraverted?

At a glance, Harvey’s preference in this dichotomy is not apparent. He does seem very good at dealing with his external environment, whether it is fighting cases or charming the ladies. He fears nothing anyone might throw at him. However, he also doesn’t really welcome unwanted intrusions. As we know him more deeply, we find that he has many ‘secrets’ which he doesn’t like to share with others, even people close to him such as Mike. When the subject of his mum cheating on his dad comes up, he gets very emotional. He also really dislikes it when Mike arrives at his home unannounced. It then becomes clear that Harvey is actually introverted, with Extraversion that is selective (for certain aspects of his life only). This suggests that he is an introvert with a well developed secondary extraverted function (most likely Te) which he uses to keep his external world in order. Harvey is an I.

Sensing or Intuitive?

Harvey is not conventional. He doesn’t go for conventional rewards, status and objectives the way his colleague Louis Litt does. His type of status and legacy is based not on the standards of society, but rather they are generated based on his own rules. This suggests that he is not a sensor who observes and wants what he sees, but rather an intuitive who just gets what really matters. The act of employing Mike is also an intuitive one. An Si user would never dare to hire someone like Mike who never went to law school. (Se is not really in question here because Harvey’s dominant E function seems to be Te). Harvey bends the rules to suit himself, but he never sees the rules as something sacred that is not to be manipulated. Harvey is an N.

Thinking or Feeling?

Although not entirely devoid of emotions, Harvey’s feelings are really hard to dig out. And when they come out, they are explosive. Feelings are not his strong suit. He feels out of place when conversations begin to get touchy feely and he will cut them off. He is also not very idealistc about the Law, and is more pragmatic about it. He takes women to bed but rarely falls in love. His affections are reserved for a very few. Harvey is a T, as we suspected above (strong Te secondary).

Judging or Perceiving?

Harvey gets to business and does not mess around. He doesn’t like tardiness. He is unconventional but not sloppy. He doesn’t have a hair that is out of place. He is a stickler for punctuality. All these shows that the function he uses to face the external world is a judging one. He is a J, and this is consistent with our guess that he has strong Te secondary.

Comments:

Harvey is an INTJ with an especially strong and well developed secondary Te. His Fi in tertiary position can sometimes be seen when he explodes with anger at issues close to his heart. (He doesn’t seem to have a heart at first, but it can be found when we know him closer, as is typical of Fi in lower positions). His dominant Ni understands the core issues of any assignment or predicament and his Se in inferior position makes him interested in pursuing money and sex.

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