intj

INTJ

Monday, October 27th, 2008 | Life | 4 Comments

Taking a reprieve from my post series on respect, I wanted to write about something cool I (sort of) discovered today. Hayden over at Persistent Illusion wrote about Jungian personality types and the Myers-Briggs Personality test. She referred to pieces of the personality profiles as “freakishly accurate,” and I have to agree.

I took the full-blown test for a college class a year or two ago, and it came back as ISTJ. The full results are in a box somewhere, so I’ll have to go looking for those, but it probably wasn’t too different than what the two I took today were.

One came back INTJ, and one came back ISTJ, but but both toed the line between S and N. ITJ were solid for all 3 of the tests though. For those who have no clue what that means:

  • I for Introverted versus E for Extroverted
  • S for Sensory versus N for iNtuitive
  • T for Thinking versus F for Feeling
  • J for Judging versus P for Perceiving

There are long descriptions for each of the 16 possible combinations. After reading both ISTJ and INTJ, I believe that I fit better as an INTJ (with aspects of ISTJ).

Here are some examples of why I agree with Hayden in regards to “freakish accuracy,” and hopefully, this will allow anyone reading this to understand me better.

To outsiders, INTJs may appear to project an aura of “definiteness”, of self-confidence. This self-confidence, sometimes mistaken for simple arrogance by the less decisive, is actually of a very specific rather than a general nature; its source lies in the specialized knowledge systems that most INTJs start building at an early age.

I have noticed that some people seem to think that I can be arrogant (which is not completely untrue at times…), but that sentiment tends to vanish once they actually get to know me. I think it’s because I do possess, and often try to outwardly show, my self-confidence, which manifests itself in a dignified, gentlemanly attitude, and that sometimes gets misconstrued.

INTJs are natural leaders, although they usually choose to remain in the background until they see a real need to take over the lead. When they are in leadership roles, they are quite effective, because they are able to objectively see the reality of a situation, and are adaptable enough to change things which aren’t working well. They are the supreme strategists - always scanning available ideas and concepts and weighing them against their current strategy, to plan for every conceivable contingency.

This, especially the part about choosing to remain in the background, is very accurate. I don’t like the limelight; I don’t crave fame for my actions (a simple “thank you” will suffice). I’m even content to let others take the wheel, as long as they’re competent enough to drive.

For INTJs, love means including someone in their vision of the world. INTJ men tend to be attracted to partners who enjoy living their lives with and outward vitality and zest. Perhaps it is to compensate for their internal, visionary focus that they often find partners who are more outgoing and may even run interference to help the INTJ deal with the day-to-day world.

They say “opposites attract.” I think they’re onto something. That’s about all I’ll say about that for the moment, but let’s just say I hope they’re right. ;-]

When scorned, INTJs retreat to their own world and may share none of their feelings with others.

It’s really very difficult to make me angry. I mean, I may get agitated and/or annoyed, but it takes a lot to really piss me off. But, if it happens, I tend to withdraw, throw up walls, and fume for a while. It usually doesn’t last too long, but it’s usually wise not to push my buttons in the meantime. Just give me a punching bag.

As for my ISTJ roots:

ISTJs are easily frustrated by the inconsistencies of others, especially when the second parties don’t keep their commitments. But they usually keep their feelings to themselves unless they are asked. And when asked, they don’t mince words. Truth wins out over tact. The grim determination of the ISTJ vindicates itself in officiation of sports events, judiciary functions, or an other situation which requires making tough calls and sticking to them.

I don’t like indecision. I don’t care if you make a wrong choice, just pick something and stick with it. Make up your mind.

To sum it all up:

[An INTJ is an] “…observer, values solitude, perfectionist, detached, private… does not talk about feelings, hard to impress, analytical, likes esoteric things…”

I’m proud I’m an INTJ. It’s a part of who I am. I’m not strictly defined by it though, as there are certainly a lot of other aspects of my personality that are not listed here, and may not fit into this category. But this is definitely a good foundation for people who want to get to know me better.

Quotes taken from:

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