tovlo
New member
- Joined
- May 2, 2007
- Messages
- 248
- MBTI Type
- INFJ
I have always been a tough MBTI type case, sitting on the INFP/INFJ cusp for most of my MBTI awareness. ENFP is also often offered in the mix, but always dismissed because of what feels my clear introversion.
However, tonight I'm suddenly wondering about something related to Ne and Ni. I took the coginitive functions test which put me with Ne as my top function--which is actually typical (usually it's Ne or Fi).
I settled on my INFJ type based on the regular closeness of my MBTI INFP/INFJ scores (I type close to the border with INFJ often coming up as my type and Ni and Fe always near the top in cognitive function tests), but primarily on an exploration of the functions where I identified Ni as my hero or dominant function.
Part of that Ni dominant identification was recognition of the large role my ability to see things from a number of different perspective vantage points has played throughout my life. It has repeatedly allowed me to re-envision my life situations and find new ways to engage when things become difficult. It has garnered me admiration and gratefulness from friends who express appreciation for my ability to give them new insights into their own situations.
I really thought this trait was Ni. I've heared INFJ's here describe what I thought was that sort of perspective shifting and it reinforced to me the idea that this ability to see things from many different angles was Ni.
I have however always lacked the certain definiteness and forcefulness pushing me into social action that is often described as INFJ. I have in the past attributed this difference from typical INFJ description to my closeness on the INFP/J scale and a strong use of Ne offsetting the more obvious manifestations of Ni.
I am most often stalled from definitive and forceful action because I can see many valid options and barrelling in on one as if it's the only valid possibility seems imprudent and inauthentic to me when I value any of the other options as just as useful generally. The specific validity of an option to me depends only on the circumstances of the particular situation. When I make a decision and move forward with a sense of conviction it is usually because I have taken all those valid options and turned inward evaluating which one seems to match my own situational needs most closely. It becomes the most valid option for me at that particular time. It is with this recognition that I then have the drive to move forward without letting external detractions derail me.
When offering perspectives to other people I tend to offer them without pushing for implementation. I see my outside perspective as less valuable for evaluating the specific usefulness of any perspective for someone else than that person's own internal assessment. I see my useful role as to offer things for consideration and then I remove myself to the role of observer and supporter in the process because I see them as knowing better than I could what tool will best suit their needs. At that point, my main goal is to encourage them to trust their own sense of what is the right for them and to celebrate their decisions with them.
Is this Ne and Fi?
I'm suddenly confused.
I do seem to process differently in many ways from INFP's I've encountered and I've felt more resonance with the described experience of INFJ's. I feel comfortable when things have closure and seem to lack a comfort with ambiguity that many INFP's seem to possess.
Here are the Ne and Ni descriptions from the cognitive functions site:
I'm suddenly wondering if the Ne description actually fits most closely with the perspective shifting I experience and I'm feeling a new sense of confusion with the Ni description.
Can I get some INFP and INFJ (or ENFP or any other type) feedback on how you see my process matching or not matching yours and also your sense of resonance with either the Ne and Ni descriptions quoted here?
Thanks.
However, tonight I'm suddenly wondering about something related to Ne and Ni. I took the coginitive functions test which put me with Ne as my top function--which is actually typical (usually it's Ne or Fi).
I settled on my INFJ type based on the regular closeness of my MBTI INFP/INFJ scores (I type close to the border with INFJ often coming up as my type and Ni and Fe always near the top in cognitive function tests), but primarily on an exploration of the functions where I identified Ni as my hero or dominant function.
Part of that Ni dominant identification was recognition of the large role my ability to see things from a number of different perspective vantage points has played throughout my life. It has repeatedly allowed me to re-envision my life situations and find new ways to engage when things become difficult. It has garnered me admiration and gratefulness from friends who express appreciation for my ability to give them new insights into their own situations.
I really thought this trait was Ni. I've heared INFJ's here describe what I thought was that sort of perspective shifting and it reinforced to me the idea that this ability to see things from many different angles was Ni.
I have however always lacked the certain definiteness and forcefulness pushing me into social action that is often described as INFJ. I have in the past attributed this difference from typical INFJ description to my closeness on the INFP/J scale and a strong use of Ne offsetting the more obvious manifestations of Ni.
I am most often stalled from definitive and forceful action because I can see many valid options and barrelling in on one as if it's the only valid possibility seems imprudent and inauthentic to me when I value any of the other options as just as useful generally. The specific validity of an option to me depends only on the circumstances of the particular situation. When I make a decision and move forward with a sense of conviction it is usually because I have taken all those valid options and turned inward evaluating which one seems to match my own situational needs most closely. It becomes the most valid option for me at that particular time. It is with this recognition that I then have the drive to move forward without letting external detractions derail me.
When offering perspectives to other people I tend to offer them without pushing for implementation. I see my outside perspective as less valuable for evaluating the specific usefulness of any perspective for someone else than that person's own internal assessment. I see my useful role as to offer things for consideration and then I remove myself to the role of observer and supporter in the process because I see them as knowing better than I could what tool will best suit their needs. At that point, my main goal is to encourage them to trust their own sense of what is the right for them and to celebrate their decisions with them.
Is this Ne and Fi?
I'm suddenly confused.
I do seem to process differently in many ways from INFP's I've encountered and I've felt more resonance with the described experience of INFJ's. I feel comfortable when things have closure and seem to lack a comfort with ambiguity that many INFP's seem to possess.
Here are the Ne and Ni descriptions from the cognitive functions site:
Extraverted iNtuiting involves noticing hidden meanings and interpreting them, often entertaining a wealth of possible interpretations from just one idea or interpreting what someone’s behavior really means. It also involves seeing things “as if,” with various possible representations of reality. Using this process, we can juggle many different ideas, thoughts, beliefs, and meanings in our mind at once with the possibility that they are all true. This is like weaving themes and threads together. We don’t know the weave until a thought thread appears or is drawn out in the interaction of thoughts, often brought in from other contexts. Thus a strategy or concept often emerges from the here-and-now interactions, not appearing as a whole beforehand. Using this process we can really appreciate brainstorming and trust what emerges, enjoying imaginative play with scenarios and combining possibilities, using a kind of cross-contextual thinking. Extraverted iNtuiting also can involve catalyzing people and extemporaneously shaping situations, spreading an atmosphere of change through emergent leadership.
Introverted iNtuiting involves synthesizing the seemingly paradoxical or contradictory, which takes understanding to a new level. Using this process, we can have moments when completely new, unimagined realizations come to us. A disengagement from interactions in the room occurs, followed by a sudden “Aha!” or “That’s it!” The sense of the future and the realizations that come from introverted iNtuiting have a sureness and an imperative quality that seem to demand action and help us stay focused on fulfilling our vision or dream of how things will be in the future. Using this process, we might rely on a focal device or symbolic action to predict, enlighten, or transform. We could find ourselves laying out how the future will unfold based on unseen trends and telling signs. This process can involve working out complex concepts or systems of thinking or conceiving of symbolic or novel ways to understand things that are universal. It can lead to creating transcendent experiences or solutions.
I'm suddenly wondering if the Ne description actually fits most closely with the perspective shifting I experience and I'm feeling a new sense of confusion with the Ni description.
Can I get some INFP and INFJ (or ENFP or any other type) feedback on how you see my process matching or not matching yours and also your sense of resonance with either the Ne and Ni descriptions quoted here?
Thanks.
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