Introversion

I'm an introvert. According to the Meyer-Briggs personality assessment, I'm an INFJ. If you've never take the Meyer-Briggs personality assessment, I HIGHLY recommend it. As I read through my INJF Counselor - Protector profile, I was dumbfounded and stunned at how accurate it was.

"Counselors do quite well with individuals or groups of people, provided that the personal interactions are not superficial, and that they find some quiet, private time every now and then to recharge their batteries." Yes, that's true

"Counselors . . . can be hard to get to know, since they tend not to share their innermost thoughts or their powerful emotional  reactions except with their loved ones. They are highly private people, with an unusually rich, complicated inner life." "Most INFJs are protective of their inner selves, sharing only what they choose to share when they choose to share it. They are deep, complex individuals, who are quite private and typically difficult to understand. INFJs hold back part of themselves, and can be secretive." Wow, how do they know that? I have the hardest time sharing my most inner feelings even with those I trust and love deeply. I've only recently become better at divulging personal secrets and many thoughts.

"Counselors themselves can seldom tell how they came to read others' feelings so keenly. This extreme sensitivity to others could very well be the basis of the Counselor's remarkable ability to experience a whole array of psychic phenomena." "They get 'feelings' about things and iNtuitively understand them." No way! I've genuinely had dreams which actually happened later. I also have these feelings about people where I just know that they like each other or they don't, even though I don't understand it. I don't believe in psychics or think that I'm one, but sometimes I just know things. Though the majority of the time I can be pretty naive.

"INFJs place great importance on having things orderly and systematic in their outer world. They put a lot of energy into identifying the best system for getting things done, and constantly define and re-define the priorities in their life." Yes, endless organizing and reorganizing and figuring out my priorities. This is creepy.

"Because the INFJ has strong iNtuitive capabilities, they trust their own instincts above all else. This may result in an INFJ stubbornness (Very stubborn) and tendency to ignore other people's opinions. They believe that they're right. On the other hand, INFJ is a perfectionist who doubts that they are living up to their full potential. 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 (I think it's never quite good enough, that there's always more I can do to make it better. The work is never done). They believe in constant growth, and don't often take time to revel in their accomplishments. They have strong value systems, and need to live their lives in accordance with what they feel is right." That is exactly how I think. How is possible that they know exactly how I think?

"INFJ is a natural nurturer; patient, devoted and protective." I've been called a mother since I was four, but that was mainly for bossing everyone around. I am very protective of those I love though.

"INFJs generally have the following traits--idealistic, highly principled, complex and deep, sensitive and compassionate towards people, service-oriented, future-oriented (sometimes all I do is think about my future and plan for it), value deep authentic relationships, reserved about expressing their true selves, and intense and tightly-wound." 

"They're likely to seek out and promote relationships that are intense & meaningful. They tend to be perfectionists and are always striving for the Ultimate Relationship. They seek long-term, lifelong relationships, although they don't always find them." I talk about building meaningful relationships all the time; it's one of the main reasons I'm teaching where I'm teaching.

"Relationship strengths: sensitive and concerned for others' feelings; usually have good communication skills, especially written; take their commitments very seriously, and seek lifelong relationships; have very high expectations for themselves and others (both a strength and a weakness); good listener; are able to move on after a relationship has ended (once they're sure it's over)." Yes, yes, yes, yes.

"Relationship weaknesses: tendency to hold back part of themselves; not good with money or practical day-to-day life necessities; extreme dislike of conflict and criticism; have very expectations for themselves (both a strength and a weakness." Yes, yes, yes, and yes.  

"The INFJ is likely to spend a lot of time socializing with family members. If they are religious, they probably are social members of their religious community. After that, the INFJ may have friends represented from any of the personality types (variety is the spice of life). They are extremely iNtuitive individuals, who will have no patience for anyone they feel is dishonest or corrupt. They'll have no interest in being around these kinds of people." Absolutely no patience for those kinds of people; they frustrate me to no end.

"The INFJ's perfectionism and idealism, when combined with their empathy and genuine concern for others, can cause them to be true servants for people in some fashion. They may be great doctors or ministers or counselors. If they have also achieved a good amount of life wisdom, they  can become powerful forces, such as Jesus (INFJ) & Mahatma Gandhi (INFJ)." Interesting, I have the same personality as Jesus and Gandhi. I don't mean that disrespectfully in anyway, though.

"May be unaware (and sometimes uncaring) of how they come across to others. May quickly dismiss input from others without really considering it. May apply their judgement more often towards others, rather than toward themselves. With their ability to see an issue from many sides, they may always find others at fault for any problems in their lives. May have unrealistic and/or unreasonable expectations of others. May be intolerant of weakness in others. May believe that they're always right. May be obsessive and passionate about details that may be unimportant to the big picture. May be cuttingly derisive and sarcastic toward others. May have an intense and quick temper. May be tense, wound up, have high blood pressure, and find it difficult to relax. May hold grudges, and have difficulty forgiving people. May be wishy-washy & unsure how to act in situations that require quick decision making. May have difficulty communicating their thoughts and feelings to others. May see so many tangents everywhere that they can't stay focused on the bottom line or the big picture." Ouch; ouch; so judgement its awful; ouch; and I hold them to those unreasonable expectations; ouch; ouch; ouch; ouch; my temper has always been such a struggle for me; this is why I can't play an instrument because I can't relax; I struggle with letting those grudges go; can't make decisions quickly; I have to think about it and write it down before I can communicate it semi-well; I get distracted when organizing because there's so much to do.

"If you become upset, walk away immediately. DO NOT express anger. When you get angry, you lose." And I lose big time if I don't walk away because then I ignite and spew horrible and awful things to the person I'm angry with.

"Relax! Do yourself a favor and learn how to effectively unwind. Get exercise and restful sleep. Take vacations. Engage in relaxing activities. Take care of yourself and your loved ones by learning to let go of your passion and intensity for a respite." I really need to take that to heart.     

Take the test to find out what your personality type is, and then read all about it and be amazed!