[Turi]

Curious.

The "INFJs on a pedestal" thread inspired me to ask this, because I think it's important and could be useful to get some kind of general consensus regarding the distance we envision between our dominant and auxiliary functions.

I'm a dominant Ni type, of this I'm certain it's the only thing that fits along with inferior Se.
This part clicks.

However, no matter whether I look at Fe-Ti or Te-Fi, I simply can't picture *either* Fe nor Te being very close to my Ni.
There is absolutely miles between Ni, and whatever my auxiliary function is, the distance so far between the two, it's almost impossible for me to tell which is accurate, as it's essentially like standing on a rooftop and trying to spot an ant on the ground. Or trying to complete Masquerades Ball on Hidden City: Mystery of Shadows on Night mode (ermaGee Ne dom).
Can't see shit.



So rather than shit half the forum off by continuously ramming how I see "auxiliary Fe" to manifest in IxFJs, I thought a better idea would be to scout out the general vibe/consensus of everyone here, and see what you all have to say about yourselves.

Don't turn this into another goddamn INFJ thread.

Make this about yourself, consider your dominant function, and your auxiliary function..

..how much time do you feel you're in your dominant mode?
..how close does your auxiliary function feel to your dominant function?
..does your auxiliary function feel natural, or does it feel like a choice you have to apply yourself to make?

I just want to get a feel for how it is for everyone else, because for me, I feel I'm in dominant Ni mode 100% of the time, constantly in this state of perceiving, I don't feel Fe nor Te are very close at all to how overwhelmingly "Ni" I am, so therefore neither Fe nor Te feels "natural" and they're both choices I have to apply myself to make.

Keen to hear everyones thoughts and opinions.

 

[ButIHaveNoFear]

Hi!

I feel like my auxiliary Ne makes more of what I am than my dominant Fi, because I desperately need it to function. In fact, I feel like I use a lot of Te as well. I don't notice my introverted functions much, I guess.

So, my Fi... I have no idea what it "sounds like" whenever I'm thinking of things. I can't take a thought process captive and label it. The act of me thinking is very much a nudge in my brain, and then my thoughts turn into words, which are very exploratory/connective(Ne) and also seeking logic, order, and closure(Te, it appears, but probably Fi too(Most likely Fi, because it is a judging function, and though relatively hidden, it seeks internal order)). (And Si, I know you're in there, buddy, but I don't notice you!!) So perhaps the nudge that gets me to think is my Ne because it notices some connections to be made, since it is a perceiving function, and then my Fi talks through the process to get some closure? And this whole journey paragraph is a good example of what goes on in my mind every time I consider something. It doesn't look like Fi-dom to me, but the more I look at it, the more it has a judging function flavor to it rather than Ne. I search and search, but I love to find more than search. Later I will search again.

So for your three questions:
...I am never in exclusive dominant mode.
...I use my dom and aux together all the time, but Ne does serve Fi's desire for closure.
...My aux feels very natural. It's as natural as me thinking. It must be present for me to have good thoughts, and my other functions must be present too.


---------
I thought of a cool picture to describe how I feel! It's a scene of a horse and small carriage traveling on the path less travelled. I'm the carriage driver(which is just me, not any actor), and I'm Fi. My Ne horse powers the carriage, but I as Fi call the shots and determine which path I want to follow. Inside my carriage(which is not very big since I don't need much) are my Si supplies. There are necessities in my supply bags, but the most important necessities are blank journals for me to fill with my new discoveries. Running alongside the carriage is my Te dog, and he's so cute!! I can't wait to pet him during a rest stop. He is active and cheerful to me, but he's very protective and intimidating around strangers. Sometimes he catches rabbits! (And the functional carriage is my good mental health, I suppose!) With everything all set up, I am well equipped to go on any adventure

 

[Jaune]

I type as an ISTP and I think that my dominant and auxiliary functions are very close to one another. Sometimes I even think that my Se is stronger than my Ti; however, I am sure that my Fe is an inferior rather than tertiary function which keeps me to ISTP. I think that my Se and Ti work very well together in how I sense things in the present and perceive them in my mind.

For your three questions:

- Maybe around 40% of the time I am in my dominant mode. Sometimes I want to shut out the inside world and analyze stuff sometimes, so I'd say this happens whenever I am feeling more introverted.

- My auxiliary function feels so close to my dominant function that sometimes I consider it being my dominant function.

- My auxiliary function feels natural and I don't believe I force myself to use it.

 

[Bunniculla]

I feel very strongly that I posses Fi, Ne, Si, Te, but the problem is I don't know in what order I possess them. So I've been struggling with INFP/ISTJ for a while, but I chose INFP in the meantime just because I feel like I relate more to other INFPs on these forums.

As for you @Turi, I think you possess Fe. I just don't feel you make stuff about yourself enough to seem Fi. Even when you do talk about yourself, the purpose seems to be an objective point you're trying to make instead of just telling us what your values are. I know for sure I possess Fi instead of Fe, and your writing style doesn't really remind me of myself, but other Fi types word things in a way where I just feel like it resonates.

I won't speak on Te and Ti. I haven't really analyzed that in you. I am not sure which one you possess. I will say that you do tend to drag out your thought process rather than getting straight to the point.

 

[Stevester]

Too far apart IMO.

I know my focus on the world is very no non-sense and factual, but I just don't seem to have that Te drive and assertiveness that is always highlighted in TJ types. I can be very lazy, dwell on problems rather than fixing them and I back away from conflict.

 

[Stevester]

As for you @Turi, I think you possess Fe. I just don't feel you make stuff about yourself enough to seem Fi. Even when you do talk about yourself, the purpose seems to be an objective point you're trying to make instead of just telling us what your values are.

Actually that sounds very Te: bringing up an objective point or question to the masses. If anything Fe has a tendency to talk about its experience and then seeking some sort of validation, like ''Hey guys, I feel this way about that......what do you think?''

 

[pwowq]

Very close together. Sometimes the Ti leads, sometimes the Se leads.

 

[pyrrenix]

For the most part, I do feel like I take in every situation first and foremost in relation to my feelings and how it would have affected me. I notice this especially when I'm driving, which is the strangest thing. If I cut someone off, I immediately feel bad, and I think of how much I'd be swearing at the other driver if that were me. Now I'm studying law, and every class is a judging session in my mind. Whenever I learn about some judge or some politician who did some shitty thing, I go "what the fuck? if I were in his position..."

And right after all this comes Ne. After I've given my two cents about myself and my feelings, I'll think "but let's think of it a different way...what if he felt that this and that were more important?" and things like that. It really doesn't feel right to me to end on my own judgement for some reason; I feel the need to question it. To answer your last question, I really do feel that my Ne is natural, so much that I'm unable to decide which my dominant function is. I've noticed that I come across as extroverted among most of my friends, which is probably a result of how much I use it.

Honestly, I do believe that it is just a matter of personality development, and I don't think it's a matter of age. I'm sure that a few years ago I barely used Ne; I was self-conscious, sensitive and pretty selfish. I believe that eventually there will be some experience in life that will encourage one to use their aux function, for me it was because I wanted to be more confident in doing the things I loved; music and writing.

Yup, I just made this post all about me. Hope it answered your question.

 

[Turi]

Hi!

I feel like my auxiliary Ne makes more of what I am than my dominant Fi, because I desperately need it to function. In fact, I feel like I use a lot of Te as well. I don't notice my introverted functions much, I guess.

So, my Fi... I have no idea what it "sounds like" whenever I'm thinking of things. I can't take a thought process captive and label it. The act of me thinking is very much a nudge in my brain, and then my thoughts turn into words, which are very exploratory/connective(Ne) and also seeking logic, order, and closure(Te, it appears, but probably Fi too(Most likely Fi, because it is a judging function, and though relatively hidden, it seeks internal order)). (And Si, I know you're in there, buddy, but I don't notice you!!) So perhaps the nudge that gets me to think is my Ne because it notices some connections to be made, since it is a perceiving function, and then my Fi talks through the process to get some closure? And this whole journey paragraph is a good example of what goes on in my mind every time I consider something. It doesn't look like Fi-dom to me, but the more I look at it, the more it has a judging function flavor to it rather than Ne. I search and search, but I love to find more than search. Later I will search again.

So for your three questions:
...I am never in exclusive dominant mode.
...I use my dom and aux together all the time, but Ne does serve Fi's desire for closure.
...My aux feels very natural. It's as natural as me thinking. It must be present for me to have good thoughts, and my other functions must be present too.


---------
I thought of a cool picture to describe how I feel! It's a scene of a horse and small carriage traveling on the path less travelled. I'm the carriage driver(which is just me, not any actor), and I'm Fi. My Ne horse powers the carriage, but I as Fi call the shots and determine which path I want to follow. Inside my carriage(which is not very big since I don't need much) are my Si supplies. There are necessities in my supply bags, but the most important necessities are blank journals for me to fill with my new discoveries. Running alongside the carriage is my Te dog, and he's so cute!! I can't wait to pet him during a rest stop. He is active and cheerful to me, but he's very protective and intimidating around strangers. Sometimes he catches rabbits! (And the functional carriage is my good mental health, I suppose!) With everything all set up, I am well equipped to go on any adventure

The way you describe it sounds like Ne is in charge - what makes you feel comfortable with Fi dominant?

I type as an ISTP and I think that my dominant and auxiliary functions are very close to one another. Sometimes I even think that my Se is stronger than my Ti; however, I am sure that my Fe is an inferior rather than tertiary function which keeps me to ISTP. I think that my Se and Ti work very well together in how I sense things in the present and perceive them in my mind.

For your three questions:

- Maybe around 40% of the time I am in my dominant mode. Sometimes I want to shut out the inside world and analyze stuff sometimes, so I'd say this happens whenever I am feeling more introverted.

- My auxiliary function feels so close to my dominant function that sometimes I consider it being my dominant function.

- My auxiliary function feels natural and I don't believe I force myself to use it.

This matches what I've read somewhere.. might have been Jung himself, I can't recall - something like ISTPs might as well not even be included with other introverts, as far as the functions go, as their Ti and Se (I guess that rules out Jung as the source?) are so closely intertwined.

I feel very strongly that I posses Fi, Ne, Si, Te, but the problem is I don't know in what order I possess them. So I've been struggling with INFP/ISTJ for a while, but I chose INFP in the meantime just because I feel like I relate more to other INFPs on these forums.

As for you @Turi, I think you possess Fe. I just don't feel you make stuff about yourself enough to seem Fi. Even when you do talk about yourself, the purpose seems to be an objective point you're trying to make instead of just telling us what your values are. I know for sure I possess Fi instead of Fe, and your writing style doesn't really remind me of myself, but other Fi types word things in a way where I just feel like it resonates.

I won't speak on Te and Ti. I haven't really analyzed that in you. I am not sure which one you possess. I will say that you do tend to drag out your thought process rather than getting straight to the point.

When you do settle on your preferred dom/aux combo, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
Which of those four functions do you feel is your most natural state, i.e, not a choice you have to make, or something you have to 'do'?

You make a good point regarding Fe, I don't like nor want things to be about me and it irks me when the focus shifts onto me.
I don't see the point in talking about myself at all unless it serves some purpose i.e helping myself and/or others to understand things.

Too far apart IMO.

I know my focus on the world is very no non-sense and factual, but I just don't seem to have that Te drive and assertiveness that is always highlighted in TJ types. I can be very lazy, dwell on problems rather than fixing them and I back away from conflict.

Very interesting, you're breaking all the rules, haha.. lazy TJ, doesn't fix problems TJ, backs away from conflict TJ.
This is great to read (well, not for you, but it helps make things more.. 'realistic', in my head).

Actually that sounds very Te: bringing up an objective point or question to the masses. If anything Fe has a tendency to talk about its experience and then seeking some sort of validation, like ''Hey guys, I feel this way about that......what do you think?''

You think so?
I do see Fe as an inclusive judging function (and Fi therefore, as an exclusive judging function) - i.e "what do you guys think about this?" but I don't connect this with a tendency to vocalise their own value judgments before they know how others will perceive them.
Though what you say does make sense, it is *extraverted* feeling, after all.

Very close together. Sometimes the Ti leads, sometimes the Se leads.

Very interesting, supports what I said above to another ISTP.
I need to find out what that source was.

For the most part, I do feel like I take in every situation first and foremost in relation to my feelings and how it would have affected me. I notice this especially when I'm driving, which is the strangest thing. If I cut someone off, I immediately feel bad, and I think of how much I'd be swearing at the other driver if that were me. Now I'm studying law, and every class is a judging session in my mind. Whenever I learn about some judge or some politician who did some shitty thing, I go "what the fuck? if I were in his position..."

And right after all this comes Ne. After I've given my two cents about myself and my feelings, I'll think "but let's think of it a different way...what if he felt that this and that were more important?" and things like that. It really doesn't feel right to me to end on my own judgement for some reason; I feel the need to question it. To answer your last question, I really do feel that my Ne is natural, so much that I'm unable to decide which my dominant function is. I've noticed that I come across as extroverted among most of my friends, which is probably a result of how much I use it.

Honestly, I do believe that it is just a matter of personality development, and I don't think it's a matter of age. I'm sure that a few years ago I barely used Ne; I was self-conscious, sensitive and pretty selfish. I believe that eventually there will be some experience in life that will encourage one to use their aux function, for me it was because I wanted to be more confident in doing the things I loved; music and writing.

Yup, I just made this post all about me. Hope it answered your question.

Brilliant post, thank you, so essentially you've developed your Ne, and it's become more natural and more who you are.
The dominant and auxiliary functions so closely intertwined now, you question which is actually your dominant function.
Makes sense, I guess.

I just picture the dominant function as being some completely overwhelming force, crushing all the other function, like it is for me.
It's great to read various points of view.

 

[atamagasuita]

I know, Aux can actually be ignored.. and we usually tend to rather use our third function.. BUT dom + tert = unhealthy.. You must be aware of your Aux because your Aux is a helper.. He keeps you healthy.. Either way, just chill. XD I think it wasnt that really obvious. I think..


..how much time do you feel you're in your dominant mode?
- i am mostly on my DOM mode. i actually dont know if im an SE or NE dom.. all the time. xDDD

..how close does your auxiliary function feel to your dominant function?
- FUCK dude, i can just awarely turn on my Aux Function. I always use Ti at work. I swear.. i have aux Ti.. and sometimes, when im healthy, or maybe just sometimes, i use Ti. I seemingly use Fi, but probably Ti>Fi. or simlutaneously. xD when it comes to Fe and Te.. i think i rather use Fe than Te. But i can use Te, like its easy to boss around right? xD but its not my personality to boss around. I think i use Fe more on that case. But as much as possible, im trying to not use Fe because i feel uneasy or depressed by seeing what people thinks, id rather use my Fi/Ti on that case. because Ignorance is a bliss.

..does your auxiliary function feel natural, or does it feel like a choice you have to apply yourself to make?
- Its actually a choice for me. But whenever im using it, it really feels good! XD Its Aux/Helper function for a reason. Keeps me grounded, and mentally stable.

Too much DOM use is unhealthy.

Check this out

http://mbti-notes.tumblr.com/theory#inf

The more heavily you rely on the dominant function, the more you press down on the inferior function, causing it to feel too constricted and bottling up its energy. When you are under intense emotional stress or no longer have the mental energy to maintain the cognitive control of the dominant function, bottled up inferior energy has the potential to leak back into the conscious mind, sometimes causing a regression to more primitive coping behaviors, described by Naomi Quenk as “being in the grip of the inferior function”.

 

[Red Panda]

I would say very close. I have been typed in socionics as INFP - 1Ne subtype. I am guided by Fi more often than not, but my Ne feeds it constantly, which is why I think I'm very open to rethinking my values as I get new information, certainly more open than Fi-doms are stereotypically made to be. I think Fi behaves strongly when "surprised" so to speak, so if something sudden happens that requires ethical thinking, it's more likely to react first and Ne follows later (sometimes later than I'd like). But in calm situations I think they're very close and sometimes Ne takes the lead for a while.

 

[AllyKat]

I always found it difficult to spot Si in myself because it's automatic, mostly unconscious and I tend to take it for granted. Historically, and prior to any serious knowledge on MBTI, I attributed most of what is probably Si to general introversion - only later realising that introversion doesn't work in quite the same way for all introverts.

My Si is the very fabric of my being. It's a constant background process like breathing or your heart beating. It's sometimes hard to tap into what it's actually doing even if you can see some of the stereotypes, the origins and motivations aren't always visible. Te is more visible. It's obvious. It's no less me, but it's more conscious or at least more observable.

Perceiving is paramount to me. I love perception, I love taking things in and analysing them to gain an understanding of what is. But I can't do anything with it without judgement. If Si is the ingredients, Te turns it into a cake. Or if Si is the heart and lungs, Te is the brain. They need each other to function and are draining if used for too long without the other.

I often imagine Si and Te as two conflicting inner voices arguing their case, looking for their compromise. Si is the "we need more details, more understanding" and Te the "can we just get on with it and make a decision?"

There's no doubt I spend more time introverting than extroverting, but even then I think Si is making use of Te to move to the next stage. They are intertwined, linked somehow. When in doubt, Si will win out (hello, caution!) but Te is still present. They work together - it's unhealthy and results in acting out of character when you focus too much on one or the other.

In terms of your questions, I don't really see a 'dominant-mode' - I think Lenore Thompson's captain-of-the-ship model is more appropriate here. Both are present constantly; one is boss, other works with it (working relatively closely imo).

Te isn't a choice (Ne feels like a choice I'd say, Fi I think butts in when Te gets out of control or there's a lack of logical solution). It feels perfectly natural, and I'm grateful for it otherwise I'd just be going round and round all day never making a decision or doing anything. It's beautifully direct and full of certainty.

 

[Valtire]

Keen to hear everyones thoughts and opinions.

I'd say my aux flavours and serves my dominant. Seldom do I use my aux for the sake of it.

However, no matter whether I look at Fe-Ti or Te-Fi, I simply can't picture *either* Fe nor Te being very close to my Ni.
There is absolutely miles between Ni, and whatever my auxiliary function is, the distance so far between the two, it's almost impossible for me to tell which is accurate, as it's essentially like standing on a rooftop and trying to spot an ant on the ground. Or trying to complete Masquerades Ball on Hidden City: Mystery of Shadows on Night mode (ermaGee Ne dom).
Can't see shit.

The focus of this thread is Fe. You're focusing on the values of others. I.E. vibes and opinion collecting.

 

[Turi]

I'd say my aux flavours and serves my dominant. Seldom do I use my aux for the sake of it.

What is your Dom/aux?
I haven't checked your profile.

The focus of this thread is Fe. You're focusing on the values of others. I.E. vibes and opinion collecting.

If this is the case then I'm essentially the world's worst INFJ, hell bent on demystifying and exposing my own type.

I understand what you're saying, but how else am I supposed to get a feel for everyone's thoughts if I don't ask?

Edit: I think Fe might be right.
Te-Fi would obviously be comfortable coming to decisions on it's own, wouldn't it.
That kind of thing makes me paranoid I'm going to fuck up, vastly prefer to gather information and points of view from everywhere, including opinions, before coming to a conclusion.

Figured this is mostly Ni though. Eh. Food for thought.

Kind of makes me feel like.. Fe is dumb, though.
Not smart enough to figure things out on its own.
Reliant on others.

 

[Gilead]

Kind of makes me feel like.. Fe is dumb, though.
Not smart enough to figure things out on its own.
Reliant on others.

It really is, isn't it?

 

[Bunniculla]

Actually that sounds very Te: bringing up an objective point or question to the masses. If anything Fe has a tendency to talk about its experience and then seeking some sort of validation, like ''Hey guys, I feel this way about that......what do you think?''

That's the thing though. From the posts I have read from him, I feel like @Turi often seeks that validation in terms of asking "Hey guys I have a hunch but am not sure, what do you guys think?" Also, he tends to involve himself with helping others (typing, thoughts, etc) more so than most people on these forums (I know there are some others that also help a lot). It could be argued that he's using Te to problem-solve for others, but really, I just get a feel that it's for a more altruistic purpose? I might be totally wrong though. The point is that the theme I am getting from the overall picture is that his posts are more revolved around helping others than actually problem solving for them.

 

[nablur]

ESTP here.

Se Dom is going at all times, whether i want it to or not. Ti is going 80% of the time... but its very close to 100% these days after a year of hard times and stress. My career is in engineering, so i've to be mentally sharp at all times.... and since my Ni is so low, I feel i have to think in overtime to make up for the lack of imagination.

 

[Mez]

I can't even fathom the idea of an auxiliary function being "far apart" from your dominant function.
The fundamental premise of MBTI is that type is determined by the sequence of functions in the stack. If you think your auxiliary is too far apart from your dominant, then you're talking about a completely different stack, thus the function you inquire can no longer be classisfied as your auxiliary - but rather as your tertiary, inferior, or even shadow.

An auxiliary can however be (1) repressed, which will cause it to underperform, or (2) indulged in, which will cause it to over-perform - and both of these scenarios would qualify as "unhealthy".
If your auxiliary is Te, but it doesn't express neither healthy nor unhealthy behavior, then the simple conclusion is that Te is nor your auxiliary.

For example, in my case, if I am correctly typed as INTJ, the unhealthy tendencies of Te's expression are noticable in almost every discussion I have with people in real life:

Repressing Te: indecisive, ineffectual, able to rationalize shirking responsibilities, unable to set and achieve goals well (though you want to), unable to make good plans and stick to them, unable to solve problems well, rejects societal rewards because of not being able to grasp them (sour grapes), cannot see flawed thinking, irrational but believes oneself logical, cannot accept criticism or feedback
Overindulging Te: inflexible, controlling, insensitive, rigidly enforces rules and standards, harsh and critical, too focused on results, places undue pressure on oneself to succeed or carry out responsibilities, unable to delegate, unable to truly enjoy leisure time

I tend to suffer from repressed Te in regard to myself: being indecisive and ineffectual when making decisions that affect my life, very bad with goal setting and plan execution in regard to my own life, reject societal rewards, unable to accept criticism or admit flawed thinking when accused of it.

And I suffer from overindulgent Te in regard to people around me: demanding everyone to solve their problems regardless of price or suffering, pushing everyone into following strict rules, and criticizing them for not meeting my standards, uncompromisingly putting everyone into a behavioral/thinking/feeling boundaries which I deem efficient and functional, depriving people of leasure, etc.

 

[Jewl]

This thread is so interesting. I've always wondered what this was like for others too. Thanks, @Turi.

I feel like I'm in dominant mode all the time. I feel it's always harder to see that when leading with a Perceiving function. But a pattern in my life has always been being open to taking in everything outside of me... I've always been looking outwards.

When I was little, my mom tells me I was more easy than my two siblings (ESTJ and INTP) when it came to warming up to strangers. I was also imaginative in a particular sort of way when I was a child... I feel like I can trace this to the beginnings of Ne. A little like Anne in Anne of Green Gables, I was very enthused by everything outside of me that made me wonder. Yeah this is a tree, but it could be this portal to another world. Yeah these are PJs but they could be magical PJs that transform me into a faerie. *imagines and chases after this possibility* This is embarrassing but hey - this was me as little Julia. ^-^ Behind everything outside of me was a bunch of exciting "could be".

I still feel like this is me. Still relate a lot to my kid self. I feel like that is my mode.

When I first got on PerC, some people said my Fi was rather developed. I don't think this is true. Looking back now, I had begun formulating what I valued. I think the way I evaluated things was rather subjective, but people looked at the amount of time I spent talking about what values I had they thought my Fi was already super developed. And I actually think it was around this time that I started really developing my Fi. Or maybe that started around middle school... high school. *shrugs* I think it was later on in my life, anyways. It just has always taken me longer to determine something's significance to me - I would always have to take a step back and ponder it, ponder the subjective feeling. It has never been my natural "mode".

But I will say sorting things out by evaluating things in an Fi way is indeed my natural way of sorting out information. When it comes to sorting out info, I'm always evaluating it subjectively. I pay attention to how things weigh on me, how they feel to me. I like to do that. It always feels subservient to my Ne... I'm still always in go-to "take it all in" mode. I'm rather conscious of the times where I pull back to try and focus on and articulate just what feeling something gave me and the significance it had. But also the things I tend to weigh seem very concept-y and idea-y since that's the sort of stuff my Ne takes in. Or some idea will come to me that feels like it has potential - and with Fi if it feels significant to me, I'll get very swept away by it. I have related to the idea that ENFPs are all to some degree flaky dreamers. Chasing after the wind.

I'm clumsy with Te - my ESTJ sister just uses it like breathing, but when I have to force myself to stop evaluating, it feels restrictive and I get rather incompetent. I just spew out textbook definitions and stats and facts to try and back up some subjective feeling I get about something and it completely fails. Meanwhile my sister is kicking butt and taking names and my INTP husband talks about the same issue eloquently with barely any evaluation involved and I'm left scratching my head like. What just happened.

So both Ne and Fi feel natural to me. I think Fi has become more developed over the years for me, but it still exists in me to serve the purposes of Ne. I'm in Perceiving Mode all the time. It doesn't feel like a conscious choice when I look at my focus on evaluating things - it just feels automatic - but it's not where I'm at all the time and I tend to mull things over longer. Nor do I feel I have the same issue expressing these internal things as actual Fi-doms.

FWIW, my husband tells me I always seem to feel the significance of things. I think this is true. I never thought of my cognitive functions as being separate things used apart from another another, some being further away from me. I do feel like I use Fi a lot, but how should I put it - I feel like the way I use it has grown more conscious and developed over the years. I can only hope that will ever happen with my Te, but I dunno. My use of Te and Si are just... fail.

 

[sippingcappucino]

This thread is extremely interesting.

INFP here.

I use my dominant function very heavily. I am balanced enough to realize the difference between projection that is created by Fi vs. reality, but I feel I am myself when I am silent and recognizing what feels right to me—in the state of self-awareness and judging. I kind of send a strong hippie vibe due to it. When I feel I am myself, I am a ball of intensity, abstraction, and thoughts.

I’ve only recently learned to use my other functions healthily, because I realized how mentally unhealthy I was. I felt the need to learn to socialize and to do it well. At the same time, I fortunately met very intelligent ENFP and INTJ, who I found very intriguing and made me want to socialize. I love Ne and Te to interact with others and have a lot of fun with it (Ne feels a lot more natural). But I’ve found I have to turn my Fi off almost completely to socialize like a normal person. So when I am introverting, my Fi hits hard and loop in Fi-Si. I don’t mind it, but I am aware of the extreme difference within me. I’ve tried methods to remove the need for nostalgia, but they were unsuccessful and I came to realize I need it to breathe. So I am very aware the top four are all there, but would say my dominant function and others are far apart.