Was I extroverted before?

[NewEra]

Back a couple of years ago, I was a much more outgoing person. I would be energized by being around more people as opposed to being alone. I would talk before thinking, mainly for the purposes of comedic entertainment. I was a clown/comedian in a good sense. I was faaar more laid back, not caring much about priorities. I would feel much more comfortable around a bunch of people as opposed to just one person, even if the person was a close friend. Now all that is the opposite.

I have a very strong feeling my MBTI type changed. What do you think? Was I an ESTJ/ESTP before?

 

[CJ99]

Sounds like you were an ESTP to me. It would make sense as you might have started channeling the Se inwards and so grown to use Si.

 

[527468]

Lol I thought that said "faaar more laid."

 

[T-Guy]

Back a couple of years ago, I was a much more outgoing person. I would be energized by being around more people as opposed to being alone. I would talk before thinking, mainly for the purposes of comedic entertainment. I was a clown/comedian in a good sense. I was faaar more laid back, not caring much about priorities. I would feel much more comfortable around a bunch of people as opposed to just one person, even if the person was a close friend. Now all that is the opposite.

I have a very strong feeling my MBTI type changed. What do you think? Was I an ESTJ/ESTP before?

How old are you? It's not very accurate to test yourself when you are under the age of 20.

 

[NewEra]

How old are you? It's not very accurate to test yourself when you are under the age of 20.

I was 19 then, 21 now. Funny thing is a lot of it depends on surroundings, because the year before that (at the age of 18), I was more like I am now.

 

[nanook]

its not untypical for introverted people and makes perfect sense if you look at how personalities develop. a teenage group, as it is experienced by a teenager, is just a different thing, to a grown up group in the eyes of a grown up. as the individual is unknown, the subjective group experience consists of unconscious projections. as the individual gets more emphasized (conscious) a group becomes (is perceived as) a much more complicated situation. its more differentiated. a group is like an illusion, consisting mostly of miscommunication and cliches. a teenager could not care less. he's just like dancing. a conventionalist will used it for his purpose. but eventually he will become disillusioned about these purposes as well. so there are several natural breaks with the circus world, for everyone, and the introverted will be tempted by them, to skip the whole circus altogether. i would say 15, 21, and 26 are typical ages for such breaks, where individuality becomes more conscious and the extroverted worldview becomes more disillusioned.

 

[NewEra]

^^That's interesting. I thought age came in much earlier but I guess not. Yeah, so maybe I'm in a new type right now, and I may change my type at 26.

 

[nanook]

i don't believe in type changes. but that does not mean, that a stage transformation can't add a little something and also include all that has been so far, but modulate it slightly, so it appears to be something different if looked at from the outside. like when you change the government, the uniforms of the soldiers will probably be exchanged as well.

if you are actually SiTe and you are that sure about being J, you might just be estj.

 

[NewEra]

i don't believe in type changes. but that does not mean, that a stage transformation can't add a little something and also include all that has been so far, but modulate it slightly, so it appears to be something different if looked at from the outside. like when you change the government, the uniforms of the soldiers will probably be exchanged as well.

if you are actually SiTe and you are that sure about being J, you might just be estj.

Well, now I'm almost 100% sure I'm not extroverted. Being around many people just makes me a little uncomfortable. Back then though, I was different.

 

[NewEra]

Going some place to eat by myself would have bothered me before, now I do it almost every day. I used to be uncomfortable with one or two other people and very comfortable around a bunch of other people. Now it's the opposite.

 

[BlackCat]

I was like this as well.

 

[Snow Turtle]

I like to think that environment has much more influence on our MBTI type than is believed. However I also think there needs to be a reason behind this switch, and whether it's not just a result of 'repression in the loosest sense'

 

[NewEra]

Yeah, my environment affects me quite a bit actually. And yes, MBTI type can change, they're not fixed. I'm just wondering what type I was before...

I was like this as well.

Were you ENFP?

 

[nanook]

Well, now I'm almost 100% sure I'm not extroverted. Being around many people just makes me a little uncomfortable. Back then though, I was different.

I don't mean to discuss who you are, just saying to clarify where i was coming from, when i meant that types don't change: my idea was, that it would be plausible/possible, that you were introverted before, while acting and feeling somewhat clownish - which is even very likely for young istp, as i remember some of them, and that you are still introverted, but in a more careful way.

what i was writing about becoming more introverted in phases is true for myself, and i was and am introverted.

again, this is completely hypothetical, not necessarily about you.

oh, damn now i said istp. you know, i mean SiTe when i say that.

 

[NewEra]

I don't mean to discuss who you are, just saying to clarify where i was coming from, when i meant that types don't change: my idea was, that it would be plausible/possible, that you were introverted before, while acting and feeling somewhat clownish - which is even very likely for young istp, as i remember some of them, and that you are still introverted, but in a more careful way.

what i was writing about becoming more introverted in phases is true for myself, and i was and am introverted.

again, this is completely hypothetical, not necessarily about you.

oh, damn now i said istp. you know, i mean SiTe when i say that.

Okay, I sort of get what you're saying. Are you saying that I was ISTJ before too, despite not behaving like one?

 

[raz]

Okay, I sort of get what you're saying. Are you saying that I was ISTJ before too, despite not behaving like one?

Environment definitely has a great effect on how you act. As long as you're getting the breaks you need to regain energy, what's stopping you from acting out like that when in a social setting? Besides, you could've been with people you were very familiar with. An introvert with a group of familiar people could seem very extraverted. There's more to being an extravert.

There's also the possibility that you could've been developing your extraversion. What were you like at the ages of 10-15? Even at those ages, though, the functions you use are changing constantly, but your dominant function has grown a lot of influence on your behavior.

There's also the chance that you could have yourself mistyped right now. Extraversion isn't only about wanting to be around people, it's about defining yourself in terms of the external world, engaging the external world, seeking stimulation from it, and reacting in terms of it.

In response to eating alone, etc, 2 years ago, I was a lot weaker emotionally, and could barely do things on my own. It was a lack of knowledge, lack of understanding of the external world, and just plain lack of extraversion. 2 jobs, each progressively more social and demanding than the other combined with a lot of mistakes and 2 semesters of college has changed that dramatically. I don't think 2 years ago, I would've had the audacity to say to myself, "I'm going to spend this summer doing a bunch of shit around the city." It's part of solving the tertiary problem for introverts. I had to learn to give the external world its own accord and entertain new possibilities.

 

[NewEra]

Environment definitely has a great effect on how you act. As long as you're getting the breaks you need to regain energy, what's stopping you from acting out like that when in a social setting? Besides, you could've been with people you were very familiar with. An introvert with a group of familiar people could seem very extraverted. There's more to being an extravert.

I became familiar with them through time, and as that happened I opened up. You know now that I think about it, I did get short breaks in between interacting. However, I used to get energized from interacting with a bunch of other people I knew well. I wouldn't get energized from just one or two people I knew well though. But at the same time, like now, I would be cautious about meeting new people and sort of not like it out of some social anxiety. I would also neglect work to have fun with others. Now I would really not do that. Extrovert or not... go figure, huh?

There's also the possibility that you could've been developing your extraversion. What were you like at the ages of 10-15? Even at those ages, though, the functions you use are changing constantly, but your dominant function has grown a lot of influence on your behavior.

Funny thing is I changed drastically at the age of 10. I went from being this hyperactive talkative kid who always got in trouble to this quiet kid who kept to himself mostly. Environment probably played a role there too, as I was adjusting to the new middle school.

There's also the chance that you could have yourself mistyped right now. Extraversion isn't only about wanting to be around people, it's about defining yourself in terms of the external world, engaging the external world, seeking stimulation from it, and reacting in terms of it.

Well I would say I react strongly to the external world (my environment) but that doesn't make me extroverted, right? I mean, I'd much rather be alone than with people.

In response to eating alone, etc, 2 years ago, I was a lot weaker emotionally, and could barely do things on my own. It was a lack of knowledge, lack of understanding of the external world, and just plain lack of extraversion. 2 jobs, each progressively more social and demanding than the other combined with a lot of mistakes and 2 semesters of college has changed that dramatically. I don't think 2 years ago, I would've had the audacity to say to myself, "I'm going to spend this summer doing a bunch of shit around the city." It's part of solving the tertiary problem for introverts. I had to learn to give the external world its own accord and entertain new possibilities.

True, and you maintained the same type.

 

[raz]

I can get energized interacting with other people, but it depends on what we're talking about. If we're talking about surface things, then I can get drained quicker. However, if we're talking about things that require more contemplation, like plans, ideas, specifically my interests, I can go on for much longer.

I'm more interested in concrete, tangible and objective facts. Like, for instance, I have a hard time just driving around my city aimlessly, but I want to learn more about it. So, I went and bought 2 big maps of the area. It gives me a detailed overview of the city from a geographical point of view, and suddenly I'm much less lost because I have a concrete external reference point that can serve as a mental image. That's really Te in action serving Si.

When I was 10, I was more playful and less serious or whatever around that time. I did a lot of stuff, but like I said, your type fluctuates a lot around that age. The only thing that really stays constant near that age is your orientation. As I got older, I'd say the TJ started to develop, and I grew an interest in that thinking oriented judging. It made me look at things systematically consistently, I grew competitive in a sense and started to define myself by accomplishments.

The thing was, in middle school, I used Te more to meet the minimum requirements of school. I found out what I had to do to just get by, and only did that, devoting more time to personal pursuits. I saw school as a requirement, but not an interest.

Well I would say I react strongly to the external world (my environment) but that doesn't make me extroverted, right? I mean, I'd much rather be alone than with people.

You need to stop this thinking. Extraversion != interaction with people. The two are correlated, but not equal. Increased engagement with the external world increases chances of interaction with people, but does not require it. They only enter the equation as a requirement if you're an FJ.

In the words of Yoda, "You must unlearn what you have learned"

 

[BlackCat]

Were you ENFP?

My thoughts were that I was an ENFP, and due to extreme stress, depression, and loneliness (just feeling that way, not actually being that way hah) for about 4 years I turns myself introverted? I don't even know how that's possible (it's biological I think...), but I remember being much more sociable and enjoying people a lot more. Nowadays after I got over all of those bad feelings I still enjoy socializing a good bit, but it exhausts me like it does any introvert. I used to be able to keep going. Like, I desire to socialize now, probably more than an introvert would want to I'm guessing. For example today I want to hang out with my friend Dylan, but yesterday I was out all day and I feel tired as a result. It's odd.

 

[NewEra]

You need to stop this thinking. Extraversion != interaction with people. The two are correlated, but not equal. Increased engagement with the external world increases chances of interaction with people, but does not require it. They only enter the equation as a requirement if you're an FJ.

I don't really need a lot of engagement with the external world, but as you can see from my cognitive functions, the extroverted ones are about equal with the introverted ones. But from the tests I've taken and all the descriptions I've read, I come out as an introvert almost every time.