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[NF] How do INFPs intuit things about people compared to INFJs and Vice Versa?

Orangey

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I've mentioned this before, but there was one distinct time in my life where I thought I "intuited" someone's "vibe", if that's what you want to call it. He was a new manager where I worked during high school, and when I was introduced to him I had an incredible urge to either punch him in the face or run away. Something about him was threatening, yet there was no evidence to support this 'feeling' of mine. I don't know whether this is closer to the INFP or the INFJ type of intuition, though- if they can even be divided into two distinct types.
 

nolla

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OK, now I'm really spooked! I just got back from my lunchbreak, which I spent in the local mall. I was browsing in a bookshop when I felt drawn towards a corner I never usually explore.

Staring at me on the shelf was a huge hardback book with the title "TSUNAMI". Sure enough, it was all about the 2004 tsunami, literally minutes after our discussion here! When I opened the book it immediately fell open on a page discussing how a large tsunami could strike without warning in many locations around the world, possibly with even more casualties than in 2004.

I hope you are wrong with this...

The problem for me is that I typically read people off of the vibes that they're sending, making it a very black and white situation, so occasionally I’ll be mistaken. It’s difficult for me to trust my intuition anymore, unless it’s a situation where it only affects me.

Hmm... I think it is anything but black and white for me. When I get a feeling from a person through intuition, I usually start thinking about why would they feel that way and how probable it is. Before I know it I am adapting to the feeling somehow. I very rarely actually do something in the normal sense "doing things", it is more like a slight change of attitude. In more dramatic cases I might prepare for something that might happen, for example, I often pay attention to someone who seems like he might get violent.
 

nolla

Senor Membrane
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I've mentioned this before, but there was one distinct time in my life where I thought I "intuited" someone's "vibe", if that's what you want to call it. He was a new manager where I worked during high school, and when I was introduced to him I had an incredible urge to either punch him in the face or run away. Something about him was threatening, yet there was no evidence to support this 'feeling' of mine. I don't know whether this is closer to the INFP or the INFJ type of intuition, though- if they can even be divided into to distinct types.

Yeah, I meant this kind of feeling when I told about people who creep me out. They are very rare, but there are people who seem ... somehow off. I have wondered if they are psychopaths (lack of emotions would explain the "weird vibe" since I expect that I feel vibes all the time from normal people, they just aren't so obvious to enter my consciousness), but I came to no definite conclusions since I don't want to hang out with them...
 

Lotr246

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OK, now I'm really spooked! I just got back from my lunchbreak, which I spent in the local mall. I was browsing in a bookshop when I felt drawn towards a corner I never usually explore.

Staring at me on the shelf was a huge hardback book with the title "TSUNAMI". Sure enough, it was all about the 2004 tsunami, literally minutes after our discussion here! When I opened the book it immediately fell open on a page discussing how a large tsunami could strike without warning in many locations around the world, possibly with even more casualties than in 2004.

At this point, I got one of those unmistakable Ni tingles down my spine; for me these are usually the hallmark of a genuine Intuition rather than a mere coincidence. :eek:

Hmm, that is spooky. I had something similar happen to me. One time when I was walking through the aisles in the video store, one particular movie seemed to jump out at me. It was an older movie that I had never heard of, so I looked at it, and thought maybe I'd rent it later. That same night, my mom told me to come and see this movie on t.v. that was one of her favorites. Sure enough, it was the same movie.
 

Apollanaut

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Yeah, I meant this kind of feeling when I told about people who creep me out. They are very rare, but there are people who seem ... somehow off. I have wondered if they are psychopaths (lack of emotions would explain the "weird vibe" since I expect that I feel vibes all the time from normal people, they just aren't so obvious to enter my consciousness), but I came to no definite conclusions since I don't want to hang out with them...

I get those vibes, too. There was a guy at my old workplace who was very nice on the surface and seemed well-liked by everyone, but who totally creeped me out! Every time he came near my skin crawled and I got the distinct impression that what he was thinking was anything but nice...brrrr!

He still sends me the odd greeting card here in NZ and although the cards have a slight flavour of creepiness, it is greatly reduced by having him on the other side of the planet (still not far enough away as far as I'm concerned!).
 
G

Glycerine

Guest
I've mentioned this before, but there was one distinct time in my life where I thought I "intuited" someone's "vibe", if that's what you want to call it. He was a new manager where I worked during high school, and when I was introduced to him I had an incredible urge to either punch him in the face or run away. Something about him was threatening, yet there was no evidence to support this 'feeling' of mine. I don't know whether this is closer to the INFP or the INFJ type of intuition, though- if they can even be divided into two distinct types.

I have had this type of experience to the point where I just wanted to run away from the person. He was pretty oblivious to it. haha
 

Apollanaut

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I hope you are wrong with this...

So do I! I am an optimistic person by nature (Enneagram type Nine if that means anything to you) and generally dislike "Prophets of Doom". However, premonitions relating to disasters involving water have been with me since early childhood, when I frequently used to dream of a huge tidal wave swamping everything.

On reflection, it's entirely possible I'm picking up vibes from the global collective unconscious relating to worries over global warming and the consequences of rising water levels. It is well within the normal remit of Ni to do this type of thing.

As an aside, a close ENFP friend recently took her MBTI certification here in NZ. Her trainer told her not to worry about passing the exam as in his experience, all NFs have some ability to tap into the collective unconscious. She ended up acing the test, much to her surprise. BTW the trainer was also an INFJ (cue spooky music....)
 

nolla

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However, premonitions relating to disasters involving water have been with me since early childhood, when I frequently used to dream of a huge tidal wave swamping everything.

On reflection, it's entirely possible I'm picking up vibes from the global collective unconscious relating to worries over global warming and the consequences of rising water levels. It is well within the normal remit of Ni to do this type of thing.

Makes me wish that intuition was more accurate... hmm... or less accurate...
 

Apollanaut

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It's only in recent centuries that intuition was relegated to the sidelines. In ancient times, wars were fought, religions founded and empires rose and fell because of the visions of a few. Many Ni or Ne-dominant types with a proven track record became highly respected members of society purely for their intuitive gifts alone, whereas today it would be because of their perceived concrete accomplishments.

Just because intuition is largely discounted in our current rational society (though there are numerous indications that this is starting to change) does not discount the power of Ni or Ne to change society. In fact, it may even enhance the effect, since repressed functions tend to go underground and gain much in the way of pure force in the process. However, repressed functions are also highly dangerous because they get mixed up with the Shadow-side of human nature.

Some examples of Shadow-Ni might include the invention of the Atomic Bomb on the INTJ side of the spectrum, or the rise in pseudo-gurus, magical thinking and weird cults at the INFJ end.

Ne has an easier time of it (for ENTPs at least) since it has numerous applications in sport (did you know that many top tennis players are ENTPs because of their intuitive ability to guess where the ball is going?), business (see "The Apprentice" TV show for numerous examples of yet more ENTPs) and politics (Barack Obama also fits the profile of a well-deveoloped ENTP).

[Hmm, not sure where all this stuff is coming from, but the recent threads I've been part of seem to have stimulated a sort of Ni-driven stream-of-consciousness in me.]

All this probably makes Ni the most repressed of all the type functions in modern Western society (the East knows better). Very dangerous indeed, since Ni probably has the greatest power of all to change society for good or ill. Ni-types have a hard enough time adapting to the world even when we are more-or-less accepted. Under repression, many INJs inevitably fall into dysfunction or even psychosis, with all the consequences that entails.

For those of us who haven't succumbed in that way, it is still incredibly frustrating to be gifted with vision and insight and yet to have those abilities constantly discounted, dismissed or sidelined throughout our lives. The pursuits, careers and goals we are "supposed" to aspire to in the West just do not cut it for us. Sadly, I suspect it will be long after I am gone before the pendulum swings the other way and Ni can once again take its appropriate place in an enlightened society.

Phew, that was quite a rant! Are we done now? Yes? OK, goodnight everyone! :ranting:
 
G

Glycerine

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It's only in recent centuries that intuition was relegated to the sidelines. In ancient times, wars were fought, religions founded and empires rose and fell because of the visions of a few. Many Ni or Ne-dominant types with a proven track record became highly respected members of society purely for their intuitive gifts alone, whereas today it would be because of their perceived concrete accomplishments.

Just because intuition is largely discounted in our current rational society (though there are numerous indications that this is starting to change) does not discount the power of Ni or Ne to change society. In fact, it may even enhance the effect, since repressed functions tend to go underground and gain much in the way of pure force in the process. However, repressed functions are also highly dangerous because they get mixed up with the Shadow-side of human nature.

Some examples of Shadow-Ni might include the invention of the Atomic Bomb on the INTJ side of the spectrum, or the rise in pseudo-gurus, magical thinking and weird cults at the INFJ end.

Ne has an easier time of it (for ENTPs at least) since it has numerous applications in sport (did you know that many top tennis players are ENTPs because of their intuitive ability to guess where the ball is going?), business (see "The Apprentice" TV show for numerous examples of yet more ENTPs) and politics (Barack Obama also fits the profile of a well-deveoloped ENTP).

[Hmm, not sure where all this stuff is coming from, but the recent threads I've been part of seem to have stimulated a sort of Ni-driven stream-of-consciousness in me.]

All this probably makes Ni the most repressed of all the type functions in modern Western society (the East knows better). Very dangerous indeed, since Ni probably has the greatest power of all to change society for good or ill. Ni-types have a hard enough time adapting to the world even when we are more-or-less accepted. Under repression, many INJs inevitably fall into dysfunction or even psychosis, with all the consequences that entails.

For those of us who haven't succumbed in that way, it is still incredibly frustrating to be gifted with vision and insight and yet to have those abilities constantly discounted, dismissed or sidelined throughout our lives. The pursuits, careers and goals we are "supposed" to aspire to in the West just do not cut it for us. Sadly, I suspect it will be long after I am gone before the pendulum swings the other way and Ni can once again take its appropriate place in an enlightened society.

Phew, that was quite a rant! Are we done now? Yes? OK, goodnight everyone! :ranting:

That was well put. Sometimes it's like point in having Ni? However, in the end, I am thankful for it. :)
 

nolla

Senor Membrane
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For those of us who haven't succumbed in that way, it is still incredibly frustrating to be gifted with vision and insight and yet to have those abilities constantly discounted, dismissed or sidelined throughout our lives. The pursuits, careers and goals we are "supposed" to aspire to in the West just do not cut it for us. Sadly, I suspect it will be long after I am gone before the pendulum swings the other way and Ni can once again take its appropriate place in an enlightened society.

Well, hey, it's not professionally very good thing to be a Fi-Ne male either. I have been seriously considering to go to school again and become a psychotherapist, I'm sick and tired not getting any respect for anything that I do well... and of course not getting money either because I am not man enough for the man-jobs and not woman enough for the woman-jobs.

(sorry, I think you hit my rant-nerve :devil:)
 

mlittrell

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i think the INFP and the INFJ both will, in the end, read the same exact things about people. they just take different cognitive routes to get there.
 

Skyward

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i think the INFP and the INFJ both will, in the end, read the same exact things about people. they just take different cognitive routes to get there.

I thought the same thing reading through the thread. The description of INFP having a fine-tuned 6th sense for people and INFJ having more structured ideas: "This person could be x or y with z going on..." feels very 'right' in my head. Since Ive read in other places than INFPs enjoy/thrive on 'F Vibes' that they're basically connoisseurs (Kinda like a food blogger for emotions)

I don't think I've ever had any amazing premonitions (Besides vaguely dreaming about getting a Gamecube years ago and for Christmas we got one), but I always get vibes, I almost run totally off them (Fe adds a bit of etiquette, and Ti figures out how to say it).

There's a kind of slight pressure in the front of my head when I think I'm 'pushing' intuition (OR Ti since the front of the brain is the logic center, who knows?).

Have any other INFJs somehow 'know' what to do or come up with a weird, yet effective, way of doing a little thing without really thinking about it? I can't improvise when things are moving too fast for me to watch (Se clicks in then), though.
 

nolla

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Since Ive read in other places than INFPs enjoy/thrive on 'F Vibes' that they're basically connoisseurs (Kinda like a food blogger for emotions)

Maybe... I'm not sure. I do it all the time and it is an effort not to, so I don't know if it really is a choice. Maybe if I could try living somewhere that has only emotionless people, maybe then I could compare. I know I slowly depress if I don't see people for a long period of time, but this doesn't prove that it is for the absence of vibes.

Oh, actually, I remember a situation that is quite closely related to your example. When I was living in a bigger city in which I had to move by train, I loved to observe people, kinda like tasting their emotions while they were on their way to work or something...
 

Apollanaut

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Well, hey, it's not professionally very good thing to be a Fi-Ne male either. I have been seriously considering to go to school again and become a psychotherapist, I'm sick and tired not getting any respect for anything that I do well... and of course not getting money either because I am not man enough for the man-jobs and not woman enough for the woman-jobs.

(sorry, I think you hit my rant-nerve :devil:)

That's OK, I certainly didn't mean to imply that INFPs have an easier life - Fi is also seriously repressed in Western society. I've witnessed the difficulties faced by INFP males firsthand, as it is my father's type. He was born in the UK just before WWII and his family lost pretty much everything when their house was destroyed by a bomb. The next few years were totally unsettled for him, which led to many problems in later life (gambling, alcoholism) for such a sensitive soul. He found the strength to overcome all that and has just made the long journey to New Zealand with Mum to stay with us for a few weeks. Dad is something of a role-model for me - I consider myself very lucky to have had such an understanding parent who recognised and encouraged my INF traits - a rare thing from what I've heard!
 

nolla

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That's OK, I certainly didn't mean to imply that INFPs have an easier life

:) I didn't actually mean it like I would have thought you meant it that way... I just meant that I relate.

Fi is also seriously repressed in Western society. I've witnessed the difficulties faced by INFP males firsthand, as it is my father's type. He was born in the UK just before WWII and his family lost pretty much everything when their house was destroyed by a bomb. The next few years were totally unsettled for him, which led to many problems in later life (gambling, alcoholism) for such a sensitive soul. He found the strength to overcome all that and has just made the long journey to New Zealand with Mum to stay with us for a few weeks. Dad is something of a role-model for me - I consider myself very lucky to have had such an understanding parent who recognised and encouraged my INF traits - a rare thing from what I've heard!

Interestingly this is quite close to me and my mom. She is perceived as a failure by some (because of mental problems) but I think she just ... yeah, the same way you put it, overcome the issues and made them her current strength.

:cheers: to us lucky ones...
 

Paisley

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That's OK, I certainly didn't mean to imply that INFPs have an easier life - Fi is also seriously repressed in Western society. I've witnessed the difficulties faced by INFP males firsthand, as it is my father's type. He was born in the UK just before WWII and his family lost pretty much everything when their house was destroyed by a bomb. The next few years were totally unsettled for him, which led to many problems in later life (gambling, alcoholism) for such a sensitive soul. He found the strength to overcome all that and has just made the long journey to New Zealand with Mum to stay with us for a few weeks. Dad is something of a role-model for me - I consider myself very lucky to have had such an understanding parent who recognised and encouraged my INF traits - a rare thing from what I've heard!

Yes, very rare, luckily for me, my older sister and I are 2 years apart and both INFJ's, which has made it easier for me and my father to relate as he's had to get used to her before me, although my father's 90% sensing and I'm 95% intuition. It's funny because he falls into every ISTP stereotype there is, from occupation to how he says things. We don't see eye to eye on much, but he's had to grow used to the deep intellectual conversation of an INTP wife, and 3 INFJ children. However, I don't think he's ever gone so far as to "encourage" my INF traits, as he's never really understood us. ISTP's and INFJ's are supplement's to each other, as though we fill in each others existential gaps, when needed, ie, "Take this, to get back on track and help you live right." However, I think you have something unique, in that your father, an INFP, is the INFJ's complement, and fully completes the characteristics of an INFJ. Together you can answer questions with a rare finality, from foundational theses to panoramic summation. Therefore, the bond with your father must be very tight forming a very close knit relation, I'd go so far as to say you phone him up regularly just to clear your head? Am I right? Whereas, the only quality time I'd get with my father, is working on a vehicle or laughing at something getting blown up in a movie. LOL!
 

Apollanaut

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There's a kind of slight pressure in the front of my head when I think I'm 'pushing' intuition (OR Ti since the front of the brain is the logic center, who knows?).

Have any other INFJs somehow 'know' what to do or come up with a weird, yet effective, way of doing a little thing without really thinking about it? I can't improvise when things are moving too fast for me to watch (Se clicks in then), though.

I get the same feeling when I'm pushing my own intuition, though Ni and Ti are supposed to be mainly situated in the rear of the brain (left for Ni, right for Ti). Maybe what we're doing is actually using Ne, a front (right) brain function. This is naturally harder for us to use, so may require more effort. Alternately, we could be trying to direct it via Fe, another front (left) brain function. Or maybe both!

Hmmm, once more I've got that subtle Ni tingle that tells me I'm on the right track.

As for your second point, yeah I do this all the time. I have countless little shortcuts I've devised to help me do things more efficiently, both at work and at home. The idea is to put all of the mundane, boring s**t I have to do onto autopilot, freeing up my mind to ponder the sort of abstract ramblings I prefer. I get very annoyed at work when the petty bureaucrats decide to change our procedures yet again (it happens a lot!). It can take me quite a while to re-jig my shortcuts and put the damn thing back on autopilot again where it belongs :ranting:
 

Apollanaut

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However, I think you have something unique, in that your father, an INFP, is the INFJ's complement, and fully completes the characteristics of an INFJ. Together you can answer questions with a rare finality, from foundational theses to panoramic summation. Therefore, the bond with your father must be very tight forming a very close knit relation, I'd go so far as to say you phone him up regularly just to clear your head? Am I right? Whereas, the only quality time I'd get with my father, is working on a vehicle or laughing at something getting blown up in a movie. LOL!

What is going on with this thread?!!? Maybe the concentrated powers of all us INFJs and INFPs has invoked The Force or The Matrix or something.

I was just in the middle of replying to your post, when my father phoned me from home to discuss an old "Star-Trek" novel he had just purchased from a charity bookshop! So, yes, I'd have to admit that you are spot on in your description of our relationship. :nice:
 

Neo Genesis

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Hmm... I think it is anything but black and white for me. When I get a feeling from a person through intuition, I usually start thinking about why would they feel that way and how probable it is. Before I know it I am adapting to the feeling somehow. I very rarely actually do something in the normal sense "doing things", it is more like a slight change of attitude. In more dramatic cases I might prepare for something that might happen, for example, I often pay attention to someone who seems like he might get violent.

I'd imagine that it strikes people differently. For me, I make it a black-or-white situation; i.e. is their aura good or bad, trustworthy or nontrustworthy, active or nonactive, etc. However, how I think and act seems to change depending on who I'm with, like a chameleon.
 
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