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[MBTI General] ISFJ "turned" ENTP

velocity

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
477
MBTI Type
epic
"turned" was for dramatic effect. it was more like a fairly rapid ideological change. (isfj - esfj - intj - intp - entp)

high school:
bunch of shit happened to me in childhood (parents = cluster of mental disorders) that really repressed any encouragement of individuality or love. mother was also fundamentalist christian who demanded complete submission of her children and their identities. i found no value in myself growing up and desired only to serve others complete and utter state of normlessness at home - looked at the media and television for an idea of how to navigate the "real world" and learn how to be a woman and human being. what i learned as a teenager was that looks are everything (and what i learned due to our family secrets was that image was everything). began a legacy of objectifying myself and wanted desperately to look "perfect" .. because if i were outwardly beautiful, i thought, everybody would love me. if i were the prettiest girl in the world, men and women would love me. also a deeply, deeply empathetic individual. was an utterly self-loathing ISFJ.

university
came to college bright and shining and very extroverted. (ESFJ) my only confidence derived from the way i looked. i had transformed myself into a beautiful, shiny abercrombie & fitch ad. very conscious of appearances. received a lot of attention from guys. felt prized, felt i was worth something. didn't really give a shit about school. middle of the semester - suffered an undiagnosed medical condition that crippled my self esteem. realized that i had no sense of self or internal sense of value and that i derived everything from a guy's physical appraisal. realized something was horribly wrong with me. ;;

realized how highly political my shallowness was (i would judge people based on appearances). hated myself even more. ("i was no altruist - i was a political pawn created by insecurity and ethnocentrism! SHIT") became highly INTJ. could see "through" people. became very cynical of people. saw how political and self-seeking people were even though they were unaware of it. hated the world - sought an immutable "eternal" to root myself to outside of transient sensory perceptions. obsessed with rationality and wanting people to make "sense" - deconstructed other people to their most basic components. dealt with others in an impersonal manner due to hatred for my past bigotry and revolt at their own. everything was done efficiently.

forgave myself after realizing i was a victim as well, began wanting to understand the world around me completely. saw the interconnectedness of my actions and behaviors as well as those of others within a complex system. fascination with paradox and logic, obsession with acquiring more thorough knowledge. INTP phase.

now, i'm a generally happy, hard-working ENTP. claimed back my confidence, began to think in an un-linear fashion. started to make connections, to jump around between facts and observations. started to see patterns everywhere, began exercising my imagination, seeing things holistically, intuiting like a maniac. just on a joyride of fun that is LIFE. haha. enjoy the complex, enjoy challenge. when pensive, my introverted thinking (ti) leaps up and furiously incorporates new information into my pre-existing frameworks. this is a very cute thing to witness. my introverted feeling fi is also stronger than my fe, which is very cool for me.


what do you guys think? has anyone else had an mbti "journey?" (a journey into a complete reversal of functions even .. woah woah).
 
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Ardea

o edward cullen!
Joined
Dec 3, 2008
Messages
729
MBTI Type
enfp
Enneagram
7
THIS CAN HAPPEN!

My mom kinda did this. But she is still a solid ISFJ - just with her moments and her understanding of the ENTPways.
 

Petite Etoile

New member
Joined
Jan 22, 2009
Messages
56
MBTI Type
InTJ
Enneagram
5
Actually, i think i was an ESFJ growing up and through high school. Similar to you, i was also really shallow and looked like the typical Abercrombie & Fitch poster girl. now, i've become INTJ, and i think it's a result of a few major events in my life and especially dating my ENTP boyfriend for 5 years who has dramatically helped shatter my false sense of reality. but I think that's also why i'm somewhat more well rounded than a lot of INTJs.. or at least i don't completely fit all the INTJ stereotypes about not having any emotions and stuff like that.

So speaking of that, i'm still working on developing my N more, so does anyone have ideas on how to do this?
 

BlackCat

Shaman
Joined
Nov 19, 2008
Messages
7,038
MBTI Type
ESFP
Enneagram
9w8
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I went from ENFP to INFP. I think it happened due to extreme stress in my life.
 

Jeremy

New member
Joined
Dec 24, 2008
Messages
426
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
9w1
I used to be much more T - probably borderline INTP. Then I started realizing how arbitrary logic was. So I started focusing more on helping others and myself realize what the world really is, and how to survive it. There is nothing more real than your emotions and the emotions of others.
 

GargoylesLegacy

Kickin' Ass since 1984
Joined
Oct 29, 2008
Messages
1,399
MBTI Type
ESTP
Enneagram
8w9
Such a change happened to me too. I went from E something to INTJ, then back to E something and now back to INTJ. Seems I always did a change between the extremes, so basically something like ESFP (or similar) to INTJ, and then the complete thing over again.
I would like to stay mostly INTJ. The other thing just doesn't fit me.
Sometimes you fall back a bit, but the more you stay away from your old type, the better it gets.
 

Venom

Babylon Candle
Joined
Feb 10, 2008
Messages
2,126
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
1w9
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
"turned" was for dramatic effect. it was more like a fairly rapid ideological change. (isfj - esfj - intj - intp - entp)

high school:
bunch of shit happened to me in childhood (parents = cluster of mental disorders) that really repressed any encouragement of individuality or love. mother was also fundamentalist christian who demanded complete submission of her children and their identities. i found no value in myself growing up and desired only to serve others complete and utter state of normlessness at home - looked at the media and television for an idea of how to navigate the "real world" and learn how to be a woman and human being. what i learned as a teenager was that looks are everything (and what i learned due to our family secrets was that image was everything). began a legacy of objectifying myself and wanted desperately to look "perfect" .. because if i were outwardly beautiful, i thought, everybody would love me. if i were the prettiest girl in the world, men and women would love me. also a deeply, deeply empathetic individual. was an utterly self-loathing ISFJ.

university
came to college bright and shining and very extroverted. (ESFJ) my only confidence derived from the way i looked. i had transformed myself into a beautiful, shiny abercrombie & fitch ad. very conscious of appearances. received a lot of attention from guys. felt prized, felt i was worth something. didn't really give a shit about school. middle of the semester - suffered an undiagnosed medical condition that crippled my self esteem. realized that i had no sense of self or internal sense of value and that i derived everything from a guy's physical appraisal. realized something was horribly wrong with me. ;;

realized how highly political my shallowness was (i would judge people based on appearances). hated myself even more. ("i was no altruist - i was a political pawn created by insecurity and ethnocentrism! SHIT") became highly INTJ. could see "through" people. became very cynical of people. saw how political and self-seeking people were even though they were unaware of it. hated the world - sought an immutable "eternal" to root myself to outside of transient sensory perceptions. obsessed with rationality and wanting people to make "sense" - deconstructed other people to their most basic components. dealt with others in an impersonal manner due to hatred for my past bigotry and revolt at their own. everything was done efficiently.

forgave myself after realizing i was a victim as well, began wanting to understand the world around me completely. saw the interconnectedness of my actions and behaviors as well as those of others within a complex system. fascination with paradox and logic, obsession with acquiring more thorough knowledge. INTP phase.

now, i'm a generally happy, hard-working ENTP. claimed back my confidence, began to think in an un-linear fashion. started to make connections, to jump around between facts and observations. started to see patterns everywhere, began exercising my imagination, seeing things holistically, intuiting like a maniac. just on a joyride of fun that is LIFE. haha. enjoy the complex, enjoy challenge. when pensive, my introverted thinking (ti) leaps up and furiously incorporates new information into my pre-existing frameworks. this is a very cute thing to witness. my introverted feeling fi is also stronger than my fe, which is very cool for me.


what do you guys think? has anyone else had an mbti "journey?" (a journey into a complete reversal of functions even .. woah woah).

u were INFJ all along. just because u got a little upset about deriving satisfaction from the world in a Fe way, doesnt mean that you arent a Fe type.

example: it has, at some points in my life, bothered me that i derive most of my pleasure and sense of self from accomplishments, random knowledge and talents (Te), but im still ENTJ. (i went through what "you" might call an INFP phase...but really, i've always been ENTJ.)
 

Bufo

New member
Joined
Jul 27, 2008
Messages
122
MBTI Type
onto
Enneagram
5w4
^Why is it taken for granted that a preference mustn't change over time?
 

Athenian200

Protocol Droid
Joined
Jul 1, 2007
Messages
8,828
MBTI Type
INFJ
Enneagram
4w5
Well, that's all very interesting, but what about this? Perhaps you were an ENTP all along, and you were pressured to live out your shadow for most of your young life? It just took you that long to grow into who you really were.
 

velocity

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
477
MBTI Type
epic
I used to be much more T - probably borderline INTP. Then I started realizing how arbitrary logic was. So I started focusing more on helping others and myself realize what the world really is, and how to survive it. There is nothing more real than your emotions and the emotions of others.

for me, emotion is arbitrary in the sense that i always have to understand it within the context of its manifestation. for example, a person might have a "gut" "feeling" of immense pride and love when they see the american flag. i suppose it's meaningful to them .. but that's where i come in to burst their bubble and undermine their belief systems. i like to understand why people "feel" a certain way to get to the underlying issue (i am more interested in thoughts though). although i believe emotions are valid, it's important for me to be able to discern when they DO matter (and one should listen to them as an indicator of something our consciousness has not yet approached) and when they should be questioned. i also do not like being a slave to passion although, like any human being, i get overwhelmed by emotion from time to time - but it's not the most important thing to me. what is? - my philosophy, a certain idea that i have to which i am fiercely loyal.
 
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velocity

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
477
MBTI Type
epic
Such a change happened to me too. I went from E something to INTJ, then back to E something and now back to INTJ. Seems I always did a change between the extremes, so basically something like ESFP (or similar) to INTJ, and then the complete thing over again.
I would like to stay mostly INTJ. The other thing just doesn't fit me.
Sometimes you fall back a bit, but the more you stay away from your old type, the better it gets.

haha the performer mastermind. write down all your thoughts and DANCE TO THEIR MELODY!
:headphne:
 
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jenocyde

half mystic, half skeksis
Joined
Jan 2, 2009
Messages
6,387
MBTI Type
ENTP
Enneagram
7w8
u were INFJ all along. just because u got a little upset about deriving satisfaction from the world in a Fe way, doesnt mean that you arent a Fe type.

example: it has, at some points in my life, bothered me that i derive most of my pleasure and sense of self from accomplishments, random knowledge and talents (Te), but im still ENTJ. (i went through what "you" might call an INFP phase...but really, i've always been ENTJ.)

Not so at all. I could have written that above post because it seems like my life word for word. I most definitely was ISFJ and most definitely am ENTP now.
 

Petite Etoile

New member
Joined
Jan 22, 2009
Messages
56
MBTI Type
InTJ
Enneagram
5
Well, that's all very interesting, but what about this? Perhaps you were an ENTP all along, and you were pressured to live out your shadow for most of your young life? It just took you that long to grow into who you really were.

although that could be possible, i think it makes more sense that she did change letters simply because she seemed to have been happy as the other letters. if she was ENTP all along, she probably would have been somewhat depressed not following her true preferences.

Although most people are pretty stable, our letters/preferences CAN change over time.
 

Mondo

Welcome to Sunnyside
Joined
Mar 1, 2008
Messages
1,992
MBTI Type
EsTP
Enneagram
6w7
I think that you may have always been an ENTP but one who was under a lot of stress.
When a person is under a lot of stress, he or she often doubts him or herself and does the opposite of his or her instincts (a.k.a: The opposite personality).
The type you are in your most sane state is the one you are. I hope this helps! :)
 

Jeffster

veteran attention whore
Joined
Jun 7, 2008
Messages
6,743
MBTI Type
ESFP
Enneagram
7w6
Instinctual Variant
sx
You should go back to ISFJ.
 

velocity

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
477
MBTI Type
epic
Well, that's all very interesting, but what about this? Perhaps you were an ENTP all along, and you were pressured to live out your shadow for most of your young life? It just took you that long to grow into who you really were.

that's one of my theories as well. when you're young, you're so vulnerable and defenseless .. i was bewildered by my mom and her contradictions .. with absolutely no way to understand them. all aspects of my life were constantly controlled and monitored (and severely punished if the "rules" were not followed .. with those rules being unpredictable and fabricated along the way as well). there was no continuity or stability .. my only goals were to fit in as much as possible and to appease her and make her happy, i had no sense of a healthy reality at all. i was never allowed to talk or acknowledge any of my feeling at all and always had to appear "happy" and "fine" and i was never allowed to actualize my dreams or goals. i think the tendency to be very passive or very controlling without clear boundaries or a healthy sense of self is pretty common among children and adult children of abuse or alcoholics.

i think we have all eight functions - some of us are just more comfortable to us and bring us greater joy and satisfaction. i see typology more as a reflection of the investments of our time than as a static personality. there are places i want to go (personal goals) and in order to get there i have to be willing to put myself out there and very pro-actively exert myself in the public world and it took the support of one really amazing professor to bring out my confidence again.
 
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velocity

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
477
MBTI Type
epic
although that could be possible, i think it makes more sense that she did change letters simply because she seemed to have been happy as the other letters. if she was ENTP all along, she probably would have been somewhat depressed not following her true preferences.

Although most people are pretty stable, our letters/preferences CAN change over time.

i see my changes more as ideological changes than personality changes - but as ideologies that expanded my mind and THUS changed my personality. i see fi, fe, ni, ne, ti, te, and si, se as all "lenses" of seeing our realities and "lenses" for interpretation. some of us see the forest or the trees or the spaces in between - others see the sky, the ground, and the colors of the scenery .. but none of us can see the whole. if i were to meet an individual when i was an INTJ.. i would have noticed how individualistic or competent or focused they were - i would have paid attention to those aspects. i would have seen the biases in the rationales that were presented to me in someone's opinion. now, as an ENTP, i notice and individual's openness and sense of humor (among other things). i see typology not as the actual essense of a person but of their investments. that being said, i feel happier, more creative, and more confident now than i ever was, but that also has to do with being grateful for having my mind opened to a larger whole while keeping the lessons of my past alongside me. i just try to have fun and learn as i go along. :)
 
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Venom

Babylon Candle
Joined
Feb 10, 2008
Messages
2,126
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
1w9
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
people dont change types

agreed. though, i have no proof of such a thing. i just think the theory makes more sense in a developing sense if people are static in XXXX, yet develope weaker functions as they go. changing "dominant functions" to me just doesnt make sense (this is coming from someone who at first thought they were INFP).
 
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