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Am I really ISFP?

D

Dali

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I read online and it seems that ISFPs are supposed to be grounded in the present and their environment, good at sports, in tune with their bodies and graceful and with good reflexes (among other attributes).

Now, I'm very clumsy, I walk around lost in thought all the time which ends up with me breaking stuff (or hurting myself), I have the reflexes of a sloth and I almost never notice signs or stuff around me. I just got back from holiday and my ISTJ travel companion drove me crazy... and vice versa.

I read the online descriptions of INFPs and it sounds so much like me (other qualities rather than just the clumsiness) yet every test I do marks me as an ISFP (and with a strong S too).

Keirsey and Meyers-Briggs are just trying to drive me nuts, aren't they? :huh:
 

Jack Flak

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Tests are more unreliable than self-assessment, so you're whatever description fits best in all likelyhood.
 

"?"

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Tests are more unreliable than self-assessment, so you're whatever description fits best in all likelyhood.
I totally agree with this assessment. You should also be careful of buying inot some of the stereotypes of the descriptions, i.e. ISTPs are mechanical, ISFPs are artistic etc. It would benefit you to first learn the core temperament that fits you best. This is the test that I usually recommend to people to determine their temperament. Then as Jack Flak says, you should do some serious self-reflection. It’s no guarantee, but if you can determine your interaction style, it would shore up your type. Since you seem inclined to IFP, you may already determined that your interaction style is “Behind the Scenes”.
 

Jack Flak

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^LOL Based on "Interaction Styles" I seem to be ENFP. Let me take a closer look at this business...OK INTP on 2nd more deliberate try. I feel better now, whew!
 
D

Dali

Guest
Tests are more unreliable than self-assessment, so you're whatever description fits best in all likelyhood.

Like Jung said, everyone is an exception to the rule but it's only human to seek to categorise everything (and everyone), you see.
 
D

Dali

Guest
I totally agree with this assessment. You should also be careful of buying into some of the stereotypes of the descriptions, i.e. ISTPs are mechanical, ISFPs are artistic etc. It would benefit you to first learn the core temperament that fits you best. This is the test that I usually recommend to people to determine their temperament. Then as Jack Flak says, you should do some serious self-reflection. It’s no guarantee, but if you can determine your interaction style, it would shore up your type. Since you seem inclined to IFP, you may already determined that your interaction style is “Behind the Scenes”.

I'm aware of course not to read too much into these 'stereotypes' but there does exist a substantial modicum of truth in some of them. I guess I straddle the two types (INFP & ISFP) somewhat.

Thanks for the prompt replies.
 

Jeffster

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Sometimes as individuals, we don't fit nicely into categories. You could be a really grounded INFP or a really loopy ISFP.

I'm not particularly good at sports myself (though I was better as a kid when I was more active) and I'm very clumsy. I have good reflexes, and I notice a lot of things around me, but I can also be so focused on one thing that i ignore everything else and run into something or forget where I'm going. So, there's nothing in your self-assessment there that definitely says you're one or the other.

For me, it's pretty obvious that I'm an S. I don't care about abstract theories, hypothetical questions, vague beating around the bush, etc. I like people to get to the point and talk about real, tangible things. It doesn't mean I don't have an imagination or wonder about the unknown, because I do. But my imagination is very reality-based, if that makes any sense. And I wonder about the unknown as an occasional fun activity, it doesn't consume my thoughts. On those rare occasions it does, my eyes start watering and I quickly tell my head to start thinking about something else before my mind explodes. ;)
 

"?"

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I'm aware of course not to read too much into these 'stereotypes' but there does exist a substantial modicum of truth in some of them. I guess I straddle the two types (INFP & ISFP) somewhat.
Not straddle, one is your dominant and the other your secondary. The test alluded to in my previous post will most like result in your temperament style being SP or NF with the other following closely. My temperament is SP/NT which is why I confused myself as INTP for years. However unlike the INTP, my interaction style is "Chart the Course".
 

SaltyWench

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What’s it like to be you? (isfp)
Probably I’m the happiest when things are just a little different everyday. I don’t want to commit to any particular way to be. I want to be able to be a lot of ways. In my mind, I am peacefully assimilating myself to a lot of different situations, flowing easily between them all. Most people don’t understand there’s a lot going on inside. It’s always different, and if it’s not always different, it’s no fun.

When I’m someplace, doing something, I’m really there. The whole experience is related to that time and place. And people only see the part of me that is with them that day. That’s who I am for that day, but little do they know that tomorrow I might be different.

I’m reserved when I first meet people, but I am friendly, warm, and outgoing once I’ve gotten to know someone. I really enjoy listening to people, hearing other people’s stories and learning about them. I remember a lot of the details. I ask a lot of questions and like the challenge of recognizing where people are coming from and why they might be coming from that perspective. I love the give and take of conversations. I really feel thrilled and excited learning from that intellectual energy combined with that emotional energy. It gives me a sense of the person. In any situation, I love the give and take, the playfulness and energy, the excitement and a little bit of competition, a little bit of one-upsmanship. But when it becomes abrasive and people personally attack others, I’m offended.

I have a lot of interests and I can get interested in one thing, and then something else comes along and that looks fascinating. I enjoy using the skills that I do have, and they’re varied. I’m always on the lookout for something that uses my skills and abilities, that will give me variety and still be stimulating and let me have a mission with people. In my best jobs, I was connecting with people and problem solving and often using tools, adapting equipment or techniques.

My nature is when things get to a crunch, I’ll make something happen that will make it all right. I just know that I can do that and will do that. I love solving people problems.

But part of me shivers if someone tells me their expectations of me, even if they’re expectations I have for myself. I need the freedom to be able to change my mind or direction. I like to get a feel for what they’re looking for and then just make it happen and hope they enjoy it. And don’t ask me how I did it because I have a difficult time communicating that. It’s whatever moves me at the time. I probably don’t even remember half of what I’ve done. I can spin around doing nothing and then spend two minutes and get something done. It’s a whole process that I can’t communicate, because it’s not something that can always be written down on paper—because when I’m doing it, I’m enjoying it. It’s like I’m in a different world. It’s not a task to me—it’s a creative outlet.

I enjoy family and friends. I enjoy being with them and doing things with them—developing that relationship, bonding with them. I carry through with my commitments and I’m a very responsible person. Deep friendships are important to me, but not too many.

When I am angry I get quiet. Others don’t know though, that’s the problem. Because it’s not an external, visible reaction—it’s more passive, turned inward. I’m trying to think it through to figure a way to get my point across so they understand because I wouldn’t want to attack somebody. That’s something about me, that noncommunication, or withdrawal.

I like recognition. It’s very important to get complimented soon after an accomplishment. If something goes unnoticed or unrewarded, it doesn’t have the immediate impact that I want. I’ve been learning my own positive self-talk. I tend to be a workaholic at whatever it is I am doing. You might say I’m a perfectionist. I want people to be impressed with my performance. I don’t want anyone to be unhappy with my performance so I continue to perform, and that is kind of a driving force. It has been a constant struggle to not overdo it. I need a positive environment to work in and I need the people I’m working with to support me.

What’s it like to be you?(infp)
I have a very internal focus. I think I look at myself through other people’s eyes, but sometimes I can lose touch with how things work for me. Then I can get introspective, going very deep and staying there, not coming out too quickly or easily. Somehow I find it very difficult to put into words and communicate the things that really matter to me. Most people don’t have the foggiest notion about what goes on with me.

I like harmony and seek consensus and do well with the deep issues. My values and the things that are important to me often feel outside the mainstream in the sense that I feel impinged upon and uncomfortable with so much of what goes on. I’m too private to push my values on to other people, but I am convinced that one ought to be congruent in their own life if they are going to expect congruence from others. In a sense I hold other people to that standard, and I worry about my own incongruities, inconsistencies, and contradictions. Groups can be hard. I can put myself in the group process so rapidly and so completely, and it’s important not to get sucked in. I need to be predictable about what I believe.

I am a global thinker and I like to learn interactively. My thoughts need to be connected with some person or value. On reflection, don’t all thoughts have to be connected to something? I feed new information into other things I’ve read and my thoughts, and I can have a marvelous time just sitting with ideas. And I like to discuss or write things because I seem to have a lot in my head and I’ve got to get it out. I love bringing together different eclectic ideas and seeing what’s similar. I like to have my own ideas, hear others ideas, and have ideas challenged, bantering back and forth. Chitchat has no interest for me. I tend to do a lot of mental rehearsal and play in problem solving, and the fun part is figuring out how to do something. Motivation comes when something has real meaning or value for me, and while I enjoy ideas I don’t like having my values challenged.

For me, asking questions is just a different form of being quiet, a way to explore an inner thought stream or check out of reality and back into my thoughts. Sometimes I chuckle at myself that there is really no sequential way that I work though tasks.

I have always trusted my intuition, even before I was aware of it. I enjoy talking to people. It’s interesting to learn about them, where they’re coming from and how they invent their reality. And I have an innate talent for reading between the lines—to hear what hasn’t been said—and a sense of what needs to be said and done. I tend to form impressions right away about people, and most of the time I feel pretty good about my impressions but sometimes I am way off. At least if the people have good intentions, I can relax.

I enjoy seeing people enjoy who they are, and I get a lot of joy helping others discover that they have value. Being able to help someone in their darkest hour, to communicate across differences and find common ways of working together, that is very satisfying because then there is a real sense of closeness and acceptance and a genuine pursuit of helping people heal and achieve their goals. I hold on to relationships even though we may go long periods without seeing each other, and I cherish those long associations.

I’m concerned about how others feel when they are around me. Lack of honesty or ethics or integrity in interactions—when someone is saying one thing but doing another—really puts me off. So does when someone doesn’t honor, or accept as valid, my communication or feeling as I try to talk to them about something that matters to me. And I don’t need to talk about myself. I don’t enjoy it. Sometimes I’m frustrated trying to communicate, and sometimes a metaphor or a joke or a story is a way to effectively express myself so what I’m saying can be heard by someone who hears or experiences things differently.

I don’t know what I am going to do next, but I trust in myself that something will come in as a new idea, with challenge and inner meaning. Whatever it is, it will be right. Although I would never actually say it, it feels as though I am grounded in the very being of who I am when I talk like this.


So, do either of these sound like you? I really like these type descriptions. Thanks to them, and "?", I finally found my type.

You can read all of the types here: Best-Fit Type : Exploring the Multiple Models of Personality Type
 

Randomnity

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I really like the Murray State ISTP description. Can't speak for the ISFP one but my ISFP bf liked it, anyway (ISFP - Introverted Feeling with Sensing). He can also be clumsy and spacey at times (as can I), though he's definitely S. If that helps. :)
 
D

Dali

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Yeah, as I said in another of these topics, that ISFP description is the best description of me I've ever read. :)

Based on SaltyWench's link, I think I may be 3/4 ISFP and 1/4 INFP. I might come off as INFP to a casual observer but I still do feel a strong SP side inside me.

Thanks for the links, folks!
 

alicia91

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Are you sure that you are an F? ISTPs are Chart-the-Course.

Did you look at the Cognitive Processes? I couldn't figure out my type until I looked at the processes and the Interaction Styles.
 
D

Dali

Guest
Are you sure that you are an F? ISTPs are Chart-the-Course.

Did you look at the Cognitive Processes? I couldn't figure out my type until I looked at the processes and the Interaction Styles.

Very very sure on the strong F. Even more so now thanks to the excellent links you guys gave me.
 
D

Dali

Guest
You don't strike me as INFP, for what it's worth.

Whew, thanks!

Based on Keirsey's type description though, it would probably be hard for an observer to approximate within the first few meetings whether I was NFP or SFP.
 

Jack Flak

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Whew, thanks!

Based on Keirsey's type description though, it would probably be hard for an observer to approximate within the first few meetings whether I was NFP or SFP.
Yeah, most observers.
 

sarah

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I read online and it seems that ISFPs are supposed to be grounded in the present and their environment, good at sports, in tune with their bodies and graceful and with good reflexes (among other attributes).

Now, I'm very clumsy, I walk around lost in thought all the time which ends up with me breaking stuff (or hurting myself), I have the reflexes of a sloth and I almost never notice signs or stuff around me. I just got back from holiday and my ISTJ travel companion drove me crazy... and vice versa.

I read the online descriptions of INFPs and it sounds so much like me (other qualities rather than just the clumsiness) yet every test I do marks me as an ISFP (and with a strong S too).

Keirsey and Meyers-Briggs are just trying to drive me nuts, aren't they? :huh:

Keirsey and Myers-Briggs drive a lot of people nuts. I'm a fan of Linda Berens' books on type instead (see Best-Fit Type : Exploring the Multiple Models of Personality Type for much better descriptions of the SP types).

I'm graceful and I love to dance, but I suck at all sports. It's more accurate to say that SPs (generally) care about keeping limber and active (because who wants to lose their mobility?) and that we love engaging in pastimes that are fun (whatever those may be) than to say we're all "athletic".

I really think that whenever we're engrossed in figuring out whether something's worth valuing (dominant introverted feeling) or are enamored with a vision in your mind of what we could do in the near future (tertiary introverted intuition), then we're gonna tune out of the present moment temporarily, which may make us seem like a space cadets, especially to the extraverted SPs, who probably rarely leave their dominant extraverted sensing mode. I can be COMPLETELY oblivious to what's going on around me if I'm having too much fun thinking about some project I really want to get started on! (especially if there's nothing fun going on in the present moment)

Oh, and type tests seem to be a waste of time for most people, especially Artisans (SPs) who tend to think of every question contextually -- as in, give me a concrete example of a situation and I'll tell you what I'd do or think in that situation, but asking me to notice vague patterns about my behavior leaevs me cold. I tend to test as an NF, and yet I know I don't fit the Idealist temperament at all. :p

Sarah
 

Jeffster

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Oh, and type tests seem to be a waste of time for most people, especially Artisans (SPs) who tend to think of every question contextually -- as in, give me a concrete example of a situation and I'll tell you what I'd do or think in that situation, but asking me to notice vague patterns about my behavior leaevs me cold. I tend to test as an NF, and yet I know I don't fit the Idealist temperament at all. :p

Heh. I was just re-reading this topic and this part jumped out at me because I think it's so true. Almost all the type tests present these hypothetical situations that leave me wanting to know more details of the context, a desire that is one of the traits of our temperament! :D So, it's not surprising that many SPs could test as NPs because many times the questions aren't specific enough. Even the first time I took the Keirsey Temperament Sorter in the original, Please Understand Me, I tested as INFP. The difference between then and now is only age and life experience. I don't think my temperament actually changed in the last 12 years or so, but when you ask a 20 year old if they rely more on past experiences or future possibilities to make decisions, I would venture to guess the overwhelming majority of them will say the future. There is a natural youthful idealism that high school/college-age kids have about seeing all these possibilities for changing the world for the better, and plenty of Sensor types have that too. It doesn't mean that we're actually intuitive and then change, I think it just means we haven't fully developed our natural cynicism yet. ;)

What I was thinking about this sounded much better in my head but I'm not finding the words very well when I'm trying to type it. Oh well. I think maybe what I was thinking is that MBTI tests might be better if they were interactive. I have kind of done this with people that I've tried to "type" in person, because you get more out of follow-up questions and discussing real life situations than all the hypothetical vague stuff like "Is it better to be just than merciful?" I mean, honestly, my answer to that is that it's better to be BOTH. There's got to be a better way to ask questions that presents real situations and lets people really establish their natural instinct patterns and not have to do so much just picking one for the sake of getting a test overwith.
 
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