Re: My Brains

In a recent post I alluded to my gifted teacher (as in, teacher of the gifted program, although she is also gifted at teaching), who is in hospice. I was in the gifted program from 2nd grade until I left high school, so I spent lots of time in her class. (Lots, but never enough.) We did lots of great activities in there, like logic sheets (you know, those things that are like "Benny sat next to Mimi, who sat next to the person who ordered pasta with meatless balls" and then you have to figure out who ordered what and who sat where?) and playing with magnets and making our own bubble solution. Another thing we did a lot of in her class was personality tests, so I've always had a fondness for them.

I'm thinking about this right now because Whimsy posted about Myers-Briggs types, and out of all the various personality tests I've taken, I've always found that one to be the most useful. I almost always come out an INFP (Introverted iNtuitive Feeling Perceiving), although occasionally I'll come out INFJ (Introverted iNtuitive Feeling Judging). In all honesty, I feel I do a lot more judging than perceiving, and in reading the descriptions, it seems that I am opinionated like an INFJ but disorganized and "floaty" like an INFP.

Here are some things I find fit me very well from these types:

• "They rely heavily on their intuitions to guide them, and use their discoveries to constantly search for value in life. They are on a continuous mission to find the truth and meaning underlying things." (INFP)
• "They may be awkard and uncomfortable with expressing themselves verbally, but have a wonderful ability to define and express what they're feeling on paper." (INFP)
• "Situations which are charged with conflict may drive the normally peaceful INFJ into a state of agitation or charged anger. They may tend to internalize conflict into their bodies, and experience health problems when under a lot of stress. "
• "Because the INFJ has such strong intuitive capabilities, they trust their own instincts above all else. This may result in an INFJ stubborness and tendency to ignore other people's opinions. They believe that they're right."
• "INFJs are rarely at complete peace with themselves - there's always something else they should be doing to improve themselves and the world around them."
  

And stuff I find to be less fitting:

• "Generally thoughtful and considerate, INFPs are good listeners and put people at ease." [I would call myself a willing listener, but not exactly a good one. I zone out easily.]
• "In conflict situations, INFPs place little importance on who is right and who is wrong." [hahahaha no.]
• "On the other hand, INFPs make very good mediators, and are typically good at solving other people's conflicts" [EMPHATIC NO.]

So what I gather from combining the two types is I live in my head a lot, I am ~thuper thenthitive~ and I have a smidge of a messiah complex. All in all, that sounds absolutely correct.

An interesting thing about INFP and INFJ is that, while websites usually claim these types to be rare, an extremely disproportionate number (maybe 80% or more) of my close friends fall into these types. (Another close friend is an INTJ, which is also supposed to be rare.) I suppose it's just a matter of a bunch of sensitive nerds banding together, but it's interesting to think about, anyway. In fact, I have very few close friends who are extroverts, and I've found the few who are to be the relationships that have taken the most work (on my part) to maintain. That doesn't mean I don't like extroverts, just that I relate to people on a very different level than they usually do, and it's a lot harder to find the place where we can meet in the middle.

Another personality thingy I find pretty interesting is the Enneagram types, of which I seem to be a Four. I rambled on about Myers-Briggs quite a bit so I won't go into this much except to say that the description fits me very well, but that I don't like Enneagram as much because it focuses too much on your weaknesses and what you can change about yourself, where I feel Myers-Briggs tends to be approached more from an angle of embracing who you are. In any case, the tests are fun and can help you figure out how you relate to the world, and how best to connect with other people whose personalities are different from yours.