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[MBTI General] Why are certain types so wordy?

Opal

New member
Joined
Jan 16, 2014
Messages
1,391
MBTI Type
ENTP
My wordiness usually stems from an unclear sense of what I want to convey... I despise thorough, technical writing. I find connecting every dot tedious. I'd rather offer a sparse but accurate synthesis to cue the reader to fill in details.

I usually only sacrifice brevity for the sake of speculation.
 

cafe

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 19, 2007
Messages
9,827
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
9w1
I had a professor refer to me as "prolific," but she meant it as positive feedback, often sharing my writing in class. Did your instructor mean something negative?
He said it wryly but not cruelly. He liked me and thought I wrote okay, but maybe not as concisely as I could have, I think.
 

ancalagon

New member
Joined
Feb 22, 2014
Messages
57
MBTI Type
INTP
there is, in particular, a certain type of young INTP wall-o-text that seems to recur every so often.
:yes:

I used to be worse about this, but even now I'm fairly wordy. I got into a mini-flamewar on another site recently, and even though I was spending a lot of time cutting down on the length of my responses, the other guy ended up trying to use my wordiness as an insult against me. (To clarify: the other guy never saw the longer versions, just the cut down ones, and he was still bothered by it.)

I don't consider it a flaw, exactly, but excessive wordiness is. Good wordiness says a lot and says it very precisely; it's wordy because there's a lot to say, and saying it as precisely as possible usually makes it take more words as well. Bad wordiness is not cutting out empty words or repetitions (that don't alter the meaning).

Even in my most wordy days, though, I always at least included paragraph breaks.

I adore it when someone hits the nail on the head in an incredibly compact and anti-wordy way, but I can't do it myself unless I'm specifically aiming for it. (What I should have written: "I adore terseness, but I normally can't do it.")

I think a lot of people would have just put: " :yes: ", and just left it at that. That's how my reply started out, but then it grew a bit...

If you think this is too wordy, be grateful you didn't see the unedited version in my head. :tongue:
 

Evo

Unapologetic being
Joined
Jul 1, 2011
Messages
3,160
MBTI Type
XNTJ
Enneagram
1w9
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
There's the bottom line, and then turning that line into a dot. I have no problem cutting to the chase, but resent oversimplification as it does a disservice both the topic, and to the people claiming to want the information. It feels almost like being forced to lie, or at least misrepresent the situation.

I see. :laugh:

I think I would be put off by it too. Sound like an extreme way to go about it. lol
 

Abbey

New member
Joined
Nov 12, 2012
Messages
166
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w3
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I have thought the same thing before until I realized sometimes I write so much about something I care about. And all the pieces I think are wordy, in reality, just don't interest me.
 

Stanton Moore

morose bourgeoisie
Joined
Mar 4, 2009
Messages
3,900
MBTI Type
INFP
I try always to use all the words necessary to convey my idea, and no more. (I won't claim always to succeed at this.)

At work, I just finished compiling a 129-page report.
I then had to summarize it in a 4-5 page conclusion.
Next I had to write a 1-page executive summary.
Finally, I wrote a 200-word abstract.

I can do it, but this makes quite plain what is lost at each reduction.[/QUnote]

what's the subject of yer report?
 
Joined
Mar 26, 2014
Messages
16
MBTI Type
ENFP
Enneagram
2w3
Fascinating question.

I am trying to get to the bottom of this to better my writing, professionally. What am I afraid of not saying?

I admire people who can encompass entire worlds in concise sentences.
 

Coriolis

Si vis pacem, para bellum
Staff member
Joined
Apr 18, 2010
Messages
27,230
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
5w6
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
My wordiness usually stems from an unclear sense of what I want to convey... I despise thorough, technical writing. I find connecting every dot tedious. I'd rather offer a sparse but accurate synthesis to cue the reader to fill in details.
That's because tedious technical writing is not good technical writing. Unfortunately the scientific literature is full of bad writing, and not just from those writing in other than their native language.

what's the subject of yer report?
I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.
 

TaylorS

Aspie Idealist
Joined
Aug 6, 2007
Messages
365
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
972
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
I tend to be very concise, generally because I have a hard time translating my thinking into words.
 

Iriohm

New member
Joined
Mar 17, 2010
Messages
166
MBTI Type
INKP
Enneagram
5w4
Who has time nor want to read a 3 page dissertation on why clowns are scary than demons? Just watch the movie It that is the answer, no need to write 3 pages on it

Personally, I tend to be elaborate in my writing almost because it's cathartic. I enjoy the challenge of fiddling with a sentence until I have the perfect combination of words together. I also have a bit of an "all or nothing" mentality. Oftentimes, if I don't have something substantial to say, I won't say anything at all, while if I do have something substantial to say, I will spend however many hours and pages I need explaining it.

Of course, I completely understand how painful it is to read, or even write, a three-page dissertation on why clowns are scary. Doesn't mean I can stop myself from writing one if I have enough material to work with.
 

prplchknz

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
34,397
MBTI Type
yupp
Personally, I tend to be elaborate in my writing almost because it's cathartic. I enjoy the challenge of fiddling with a sentence until I have the perfect combination of words together. I also have a bit of an "all or nothing" mentality. Oftentimes, if I don't have something substantial to say, I won't say anything at all, while if I do have something substantial to say, I will spend however many hours and pages I need explaining it.

Of course, I completely understand how painful it is to read, or even write, a three-page dissertation on why clowns are scary. Doesn't mean I can stop myself from writing one if I have enough material to work with.

if you don't mind people not reading it, then it's cool. My real problem with it, is when people expect people to read it. Also if it's interesting I'll read it but lot of times it isn't. Just like if I were to write a long post, I wouldn't expect people to read it
 
B

brainheart

Guest
When I was younger I used to be quite wordy in my writing. As I've gotten older I've become increasingly nonverbal.

Currently I'm reading Proust. There is a wordy dude, and he's an INFP. Same could be said for Kerouac. And Virginia Woolf.
 
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