I tested INFP a few years ago, but more lately, the internet has labelled me with a higher J preference. I read up on function stacks and began to wonder if I'm actually an INFJ (that is a separate topic, and something you can all help me with eventually!)
What I'm interested in is how you guys see INFP's - as friends, lovers, family members. One of the reasons why I'm willing to accept the INFJ typing is because INFP's have always had a special place in my heart. I always felt like I was observing them as opposed to being the type itself. This is what I mean:
1) I'm in awe of their ability to remain authentic and to care about authenticity. The INFP's I know don't always share their feelings (especially in front of strangers) but they are driven to be authentic in their work (whether it's poetry, novel writing, etc.) and to define themselves by their art. Me, I already have a back-up plan if my dream job (academia) does not work out, and that does not feel like selling-out at all.
2) I find them to be very outwardly calm (while I have a tendency to dive in, mediate social awkwardness, and just project something into the environment).
3) I envy their ability to go with the flow and accept their emotions; on the other hand, I am a bit of a control freak about times and places and managing emotions. I've tried to control the direction of relationships in the past, to my own detriment.
4) I am too happy to work with structures (hence, the love of MBTI) whereas most INFP's, I think, would balk at the idea of typing people into "boxes." I do resonate with the idea that people fit into larger collective structures, with minor individual differences - but the larger structure is still there.
5) I've read from somewhere that INFP's tend to find too much logical/analytical thinking cumbersome (unless they're flirting with an Ne-Te loop) but I've always liked turning ideas in my head and hitting on the Ni "aha!" moment - whether that's a conclusion to my paper, or a new motivation I've uncovered in someone.
6) And morality! Even if INFP's don't hold onto any strong religious or political convictions, I find them consistent, authentic, and embodied in the way they view morality. (Ie. if they're relativist... they truly feel so at heart.) whereas for me, I have always viewed morality in context with Fe - if I do x and y, will they make others happy or harm them instead? Will the collective be benefited as a whole? Hence, I tend to view morality as social laws, applied for the good of the people - and hence, breakable.
7) I find their writing to be deeply emotional and to reveal a lot about the inner heart, while my writing (fiction and nonfiction) tends to be more theoretical and imagistic. I can't see characters as extensions of my inner-psyche; they really are themselves, in all the variations that humanity offers.
8) I sense an inferior Se in my atrocious sports/motor skills, yet simultaneous love for long lasting and elegant things. I like to surround myself with things, ideas, and people that last the test of time, while most INFP's I know aren't really concerned in this way. (My lifestyle, in this way, is very similar to my INTJ dad.)
9) They listen much better than I do. If I hear a problem, I jump in and offer solutions (that are, in theory, helpful for the person) but sometimes, simply listening and "being in the moment" is better.
*This is starting to sound NT, but I swear I am an NF at heart and there is no way I am extraverted, or a sensing type... so that makes me either an INFJ observing INFP's, or a latent INFP who admires the loud and proud ones.
What I'm interested in is how you guys see INFP's - as friends, lovers, family members. One of the reasons why I'm willing to accept the INFJ typing is because INFP's have always had a special place in my heart. I always felt like I was observing them as opposed to being the type itself. This is what I mean:
1) I'm in awe of their ability to remain authentic and to care about authenticity. The INFP's I know don't always share their feelings (especially in front of strangers) but they are driven to be authentic in their work (whether it's poetry, novel writing, etc.) and to define themselves by their art. Me, I already have a back-up plan if my dream job (academia) does not work out, and that does not feel like selling-out at all.
2) I find them to be very outwardly calm (while I have a tendency to dive in, mediate social awkwardness, and just project something into the environment).
3) I envy their ability to go with the flow and accept their emotions; on the other hand, I am a bit of a control freak about times and places and managing emotions. I've tried to control the direction of relationships in the past, to my own detriment.
4) I am too happy to work with structures (hence, the love of MBTI) whereas most INFP's, I think, would balk at the idea of typing people into "boxes." I do resonate with the idea that people fit into larger collective structures, with minor individual differences - but the larger structure is still there.
5) I've read from somewhere that INFP's tend to find too much logical/analytical thinking cumbersome (unless they're flirting with an Ne-Te loop) but I've always liked turning ideas in my head and hitting on the Ni "aha!" moment - whether that's a conclusion to my paper, or a new motivation I've uncovered in someone.
6) And morality! Even if INFP's don't hold onto any strong religious or political convictions, I find them consistent, authentic, and embodied in the way they view morality. (Ie. if they're relativist... they truly feel so at heart.) whereas for me, I have always viewed morality in context with Fe - if I do x and y, will they make others happy or harm them instead? Will the collective be benefited as a whole? Hence, I tend to view morality as social laws, applied for the good of the people - and hence, breakable.
7) I find their writing to be deeply emotional and to reveal a lot about the inner heart, while my writing (fiction and nonfiction) tends to be more theoretical and imagistic. I can't see characters as extensions of my inner-psyche; they really are themselves, in all the variations that humanity offers.
8) I sense an inferior Se in my atrocious sports/motor skills, yet simultaneous love for long lasting and elegant things. I like to surround myself with things, ideas, and people that last the test of time, while most INFP's I know aren't really concerned in this way. (My lifestyle, in this way, is very similar to my INTJ dad.)
9) They listen much better than I do. If I hear a problem, I jump in and offer solutions (that are, in theory, helpful for the person) but sometimes, simply listening and "being in the moment" is better.
*This is starting to sound NT, but I swear I am an NF at heart and there is no way I am extraverted, or a sensing type... so that makes me either an INFJ observing INFP's, or a latent INFP who admires the loud and proud ones.
