[Type 5] Enneagram 5: We have stories

[Mademoiselle]

It sounds like there are some of fighters in your family

My grandmother's mother in law was ENTJ, one of my aunts is ESTJ, my grandfather was INTJ
They all cooperated to keep peace among the family.
It's been 15 years without a hatefull comment so I guess we're good

 

[draon9]

I have notice that ntjs with good ni and te can be conspiracy theories.

Same thing with ntps

 

[Coriolis]

Abnormal levels of skepticism and cynicism plays us more into delusions and paranoia than otherwise. It can be an unnecessary suffering.
So using cynicism and skepticism as an automated reaction over a tool used in good wisdom can be counterproductive in both understanding and progression of events surrounding the matter. I emphasise abnormality here. I always think using the more relevant mental tools we use in dealing with matters allows for both greater clarity and less stalling. Unwitting Gullibility and Delusional Paranoia are often two outcomes of the extremes of both sides because of overuse/misuse of cynicism and skepticism, or not using it at all.

Who is to say what is abnormal? Seems to me unbridled optimism is just as likely to result in delusions - the proverbial rose-colored glasses - and a failure to acknowledge and by extension address very real problems. It is just a step away from complacency and even stagnation. Skepticism and cynicism keep us from having the wool pulled over our eyes. They are significant components of BS detection, and hedges against fooling ourselves.

 

[Froody Blue Gem]

One pitfall and a devastating moment for me when people accuse me of not being knowledgeable or incompetent. I am always curious about the way world works, have asked questions, sometimes too many questions but I want to learn on my own. Some of the things I wonder about don't pertain to the real world which is one reason I get tripped up. Especially in a special interest area. It's like being left out in the cold to rot naked and I can't get back on my feet, left without my defenses in a primal sort of state. There is little that can get me to this point other than people accusing me of being a simpleton. It doesn't help that I come across as naive and stammer and stutter. I need to do things for myself and figure it out in order for it to click. When people jump in and do things for me, I never learn properly and get stuck in a rut.

One encounter that comes to mind, I was about 7-years-old at the time. I developed a love for penguins and read up on them. I liked to consider myself an expert in my own right. xD Then there was one jerky kid in school who said to me, "I know more about penguins than you." I know, it's a silly little story but this encounter has stuck with me.

I was also going through a rough patch my senior year of high school. I had gotten my first job but clashed with my supervisor and was very stressed because it seemed nothing was coming naturally to me but I eventually learned the ropes. People had distanced themseleves from me and I was struggling to get my schoolwork done. My mom told me that I suck academically and asked how I am going to cope with college. I have always been an academic overachiever and am doing just fine. I sometimes get into procrastination mode when under stress and it's not a matter of lack of intelligence, it's a matter of going through phases in life as an human does.

A few years back when I was at a job/internship, there was a lot I was not accustomed to and I screwed things up. A lot of people seemed to think I was not capable of basic tasks. They were trying to be helpful but breathing down my neck is only going to make me screw up even more. My supervisor said to me, "you need to start thinking and remembering." My brain is constantly on, trying to learn, and once it learns something, it doesn't let it go. If I'm in unfamiliar territory, I admit it takes longer for me than the average Joe but saying something like that to me isn't helpful at all...