I agree with what you are getting at. I'm not defined by type either. But that Si fail is something that I have, as well as other ExNPs. Then the Ne overload, then the Ti... You understand where I'm going with this. I've never met anyone that I have had so many similarities with before and that's what creates the relation. The fact that you share so many similarities. And that in itself has made this MBTI experience worthwhile for me. The fact that we are all different, and come from all over the world, but yet are common enough that we can comfort each other.
Yes, I can see that. I just think 8 functions and 16 types is just a very arbitrary way to catalog things. For example, for all my bad Si, I can describe with great detail certain experiences in my life. Does my bad Si say anything about my relation with someone with Inferior or Dominant Si? I have yet to see that.
I always thought I was a weird little monster, and maybe I am, but at least I know that there are others... And reading other posters like Synarch, I can see how I actually appear to the outside - an insight I have never been given before. Or I can see how he has dealt with the same types of issues that I currently deal with. Ok, it's not for everyone - especially those that are somewhere in the middle and don't identify strongly with a certain type. But for me, it has been somewhat validating and challenging at the same time. Especially meeting other NT women.
Maybe I am using MBTI the wrong way, but the end result is that I am kinder and more patient, more understanding. In this case, perhaps the end justifies the means?
I totally get that. I do think even if it's all BS, you can still learn from a faulty system sometimes. Think Christianity, how it teaches you to be kind, and the certainty, or lack thereof, of Jesus Christ being the son of a God entity. Even if He doesn't exist, if you go by his words the world will be a better place for sure.
That does not mean however you have to believe to do good. And what I'm saying is that justifying interpersonal relations based on type seems like risky business. I get this feel that a lot of people have preconceived ideas of how they would relate with certain types and they limit themselves in advance, drawing conclusions from subjective experiences. I think
that, is not healthy, no matter how kinder and more patient you are...because you are being selective in a predefined way...that really says nothing about the future.
Besides. Why should we consider two Ti dominants any more similar between themselves than two Star Trek fans from opposite types? Similarity is in itself subjective. Depends on what you consider to be key.