[VeryMinorEvil]

I'm 28, an INFP, and haven't had a job yet where I've been successful. I have any number of personal excuses why, but I think a lot of it comes down to the fact that I don't like that many people, so customer service is NOT my strong suit. So, I'm asking for a little advice: I already know that my career and my job will probably be different things, and that I'm going to end up having both. I already know some things I'd like to do on the career end of things, it's just the job that I can't figure out.

So, who out there has a job that doesn't utterly drain them and make them feel like downing bottles of Xanax, and how did you find it?

Thanks!

 

[virtualvortexrider]

I work for a company who's attitude I like. So the whole idealistic culture works out for me. I think that's important in the long run.

 

[Tunesimah]

I've had two main jobs... that I've been mostly satisfied with. One was fixing oxygen machines and doing other odd jobs for a medical homecare company. The other has been tutoring for a Sylvan... the sylvan is a franchise though so it is basically a small family business.

Both of these have been very small companies, where the owner/boss is there doing work right alongside of the employees. They have a family atmosphere to them, where it's work... but everyone kind of cares what's going on with each other and what not. I think that's a good bet for job satisfaction... just the environment... a job where you don't feel like a machine...

Look for those small quirky businesses...

 

[virtualvortexrider]

a.k.a. follow your heart son

 

[Nasmoe]

I think a job I can stand is a data entry type job, but just for a temporary thing until I find what I really want to do.

 

[DinoFFS]

Right now I'm the assistant manager of a movie store. Renting out and selling movies. I'm totally fine with it, and have been told I can get my own store soon if I want to.

Only problem is that I only have experience with working in stores so far, I want to see what other jobs are like. And also in this job I stand alone behind the register a lot. Maybe that sounds good to a lot of you, but I'm getting seriously tired of having no one to talk to. And that's why I'm thinking of getting a new job, I have a friend who can get me a job where you work with a few people all the time.

So yeah, my current job is okay, I can stand it. But I really need to try some other jobs first and not just settle for this. And also I need to get my studying on soon.

 

[A Better Tomorrow]

This seems to be the biggest infp complex....a career. Nothing really sounds appealing enough for us to pursue.

 

[Flora]

I can't stand anything repetitive or too boring. I can't stand anything that requires analysing large amounts of data, particularly if it's presented in numbers and graphs (like direct marketing). I can't stand for very long anything that makes me change the way I am and present myself in a way I am not, example sales where you have to pretend you have confidence in what you sell even if you don't. (I am talking business to business complex technical stuff and solutions you know the client doesnt need), I can't stand jobs where you have to deal with rejection on a daily basis (again like sales) or high pressure to reach targets. I cant stand not being involved in the big picture and not understanding how my contribution fits in the overall delivery. I cant stand backstabbing offices.

I've studied law, marketing, conveyancing, and translation..and done many different office based jobs

I thought a career in which I had control of my workload and was my own boss in something very close to writing was the best solution for me and it's what I have pursued int he last five years. Like most INPFs I love writing and that suits me perfectly. I also like working at my own pace.

However I am utterly atrocious at selling myself and being proactive enough to find the work on a freelance basis and I am utterly lost again.

This is by far what I HATE the most of being an INPF.

 

[VeryMinorEvil]

Oh thank God/Deity/Whatever, I was worried that this was just me. I know, "misery loves company" isn't particularly nice, but I appreciate you guys writing me back.

I'm about to start tearing my hair out. Who knew that needing to be happy where you work could eliminate so many potential jobs? Millions of people have jobs where they're miserable and still manage to survive. I'm AWFUL at covering up how I feel, and I automatically treat other people as they treat me, which as you can imagine tends to backfire. My inner teenager wants to interject: "Dude, we could be, like, the soul of the universe, and we can't get a freakin' job".

I took a career placement test once, and the result was "Other". Maybe we should start an INFP social networking site like LinkedIn, since we all know what a hard time we can have finding a job...

 

[Seducer of the Homeless]

honestly, i cannot think of one. if i am not a freewheeling, free and experimental soul then i will be too depressed to care, i must be creative and completely true to myself, a career would kill me (literally).

 

[abg613]

This seems to be the biggest infp complex....a career. Nothing really sounds appealing enough for us to pursue.

Hey sorry, but I've got to disagree. I'm an INFP and I'm almost positive I want to be a high school teacher, (though I'm open to the idea of elementary too - I love people, but especially kids). I've had wonderful examples of what a difference the right teacher can make, and I think I'd love using my ability to explain things, think creatively, and understand other people to help people grow.

Now, of course, teaching probably isn't right for all INFPs but have you considered typing ideal careers for an INFP into google? It gave me 36,000 results, here's one:INFP: The Healer | PersonalityDesk, and another: Meyers Briggs Personality Tests Identify Personality Types for Different Jobs., and one more: Career Test Center - Discover your ideal career. Maybe you can find something on one of these lists? Hope this helps and don't give up just yet, you still might find some job you love!

 

[A Better Tomorrow]

Hey sorry, but I've got to disagree. I'm an INFP and I'm almost positive I want to be a high school teacher, (though I'm open to the idea of elementary too - I love people, but especially kids). I've had wonderful examples of what a difference the right teacher can make, and I think I'd love using my ability to explain things, think creatively, and understand other people to help people grow.

Now, of course, teaching probably isn't right for all INFPs but have you considered typing ideal careers for an INFP into google? It gave me 36,000 results, here's one:INFP: The Healer | PersonalityDesk, and another: Meyers Briggs Personality Tests Identify Personality Types for Different Jobs., and one more: Career Test Center - Discover your ideal career. Maybe you can find something on one of these lists? Hope this helps and don't give up just yet, you still might find some job you love!

Yep, I've typed in careers for infp's about 300 times throughout the last four years. Granted, some of those jobs probably would be suitable, but with really no experience in any of those fields, obtaining a job in one is proving to be difficult. I have been applying to junior copywriter/editor/proofreader positions for the last year with no responses. You're lucky and I am envious of that you know you want to be a teacher, I hope you succeed and wish you luck!

 

[prettyhowtown]

Am looking into Medical coding/billing/transcription. Can make your own hours if you work at home, and not have to deal with too many people. I really liked working at a library and am considering a career as a librarian. I am working as a child caregiver at the moment. I love my job, but I hate where I work and having to be at work for nine hours (one-hour lunch break... blegh)... so I've got emotional highs and lows and kind of consider myself addicted to my job. That probably is not appealing to most people, but it works for me.

 

[simmed]

Am looking into Medical coding/billing/transcription. Can make your own hours if you work at home, and not have to deal with too many people. I really liked working at a library and am considering a career as a librarian. I am working as a child caregiver at the moment. I love my job, but I hate where I work and having to be at work for nine hours (one-hour lunch break... blegh)... so I've got emotional highs and lows and kind of consider myself addicted to my job. That probably is not appealing to most people, but it works for me.

If you want you can go through our website for any suggestions. I think it will help you well.

 

[MilkyLatte]

I've learned with myself that I'm simply just lousy at working. I get up too late in the morning, I rush through my duties and spend the entire day thinking about what I'm gonna do once I get home. But if I have a job where a lot of people depend on me, I'm motivated to show up early, do a proper (if not better than proper) job and actually enjoy being at the workplace. The more work-load, the better, actually. Being a cleaner at a hospital was a good job, though stressful. The job might not seem important, but in fact a poorly cleaned hospital is one of the most common causes of death.

 

[cheezey]

This seems to be the biggest infp complex....a career. Nothing really sounds appealing enough for us to pursue.

./nod!

I'm facing that right now myself.

I currently do web design/e-commerce work from home, but I've found myself questioning lately if I want to be doing it in the long term. I'm not bad at it, and if I devoted more time to developing my skills I could make a decent living from doing it... but I've found myself pondering if it's still what I want to be doing in 20 years time. I suppose I don't want to look back on my life in 20 years time and regret not considering other options when they would of made a difference.

I'm starting to come to the conclusion that no matter what I end up doing I'll probably always have a voice in my head asking "Could I be doing something else?". Maybe that's just something that's part of our psychological makeup.

 

[infpblog]

I just wrote an entire blog post about how to figure out the right thing to do: Figuring Out What You Should Be Doing

As for me, I love my company. I program for a very large company but my branch is 30 people who I like and respect. I have a great boss and co-workers. I think that's the most important thing. If you don't like your responsibilities, you can always find a way to get different responsibilities if you have a good boss.

But if the people your work with are hostile or just plain ignore you then you'll never really get anywhere with the job or company.

 

[Aero]

Sometimes INFP job/career suggestions have some interesting ideas. For example, "religious leader." Where do I apply for that, and what's the pay (and where does the money come from)? I found nothing on monster.com...

 

[Somniorum]

Sometimes INFP job/career suggestions have some interesting ideas. For example, "religious leader." Where do I apply for that, and what's the pay (and where does the money come from)? I found nothing on monster.com...

depends on what sort... if it's a regular priest, probably not much. if you're the next L. Ron Hubbard, well... *cough*

 

[Baby Blue]

I've said this before..only because I went through the whole hell of finding a job that was okay with my values, allowed me to support myself, and be creative at the same time. Social Work is very INFP. You might not think so from the whole 'social' aspect of it...but it is. Feel free to PM me. I went through the whole "omfg what am I going to do with my life crisis" a few years ago and I know how much it sucks.