People Watching. What Do You Think About As You Do It?

[Dreamer]

Very open-ended and broad question but that's the beauty in such ideas is it not? To allow oneself the space and capacity to ponder.

I'm sitting here at the beach as it nears sunset and I begin to wonder, what do others think of as they people watch? Are they actively participating in the lives of others as they watch from a distance? Is nothing in your thoughts associated to the people around you?

As I sit here, I find myself latching onto certain people. Not certain kinds of people, but there seems to be a particular connection I find in myself with a person or group of people that I visually latch onto. That connection usually is a parallel I see within my own life, between myself and other people, with myself and my aspirations, and what I perceive in others around me.

I sit here now, watching these two young guys, maybe in their young twenties, doing jumps off a natural ledge formed by the tides and sand. They may just be friends, but I relate to them in the way I see the relationship between my brother and I. There are many thoughts roaming around at once as I watch these two. Some longing, some pleasant, some purely observational. The theme that tends to run in these thoughts of mine though, as I people watch, is that I tend to see myself in a broader picture and remove myself from my itty-bitty life, and incorporate myself into this larger relationship that I see of humanity. This is a nice place to be, and a place in my mind that tends to help me make sense of the world again.

 

[indra]

 

[Hiraeth]

There are many things that appear in my mind as I observe others. I think I usually do so to get a feel for that person's personality and sometimes compare it in relation to my own. Some of it involves fantasy and envisioning what it would be like if I were to ever befriend them or if we'd have anything in common or not. I also observe traits I admire about a particular person, whether it's physically but not necessarily in a sexual way, or through their own personality or other attributes in order to gain inspiration from them, but there could be some envy involved as well. Additionally, I sometimes study people's mannerisms and observe if another person reacts well to them. I think part of that reason is so I can tell what is acceptable/appropriate behavior because sometimes I can't always tell myself.

All in all, there's always a comparing factor involved and I don't think I really detach from myself. I can't consciously tell if it's because I'm too self-absorbed or that my brain just immediately involves myself by default in anything I do. I wish I can somehow detach as if I'm having an out-of-body experience and jump into someone else's shoes without thinking partially about myself for once, but I can't seem to figure out how to do that or if it's even possible at all for me to achieve naturally.

 

[Smilephantomhive]

I usually just observe and pass little judgement. But for me people watching is more like people listening.

 

[ChocolateMoose123]

I was never really into them but the most memorable thing I think of when I hear their name is an old VH1 special that counted down the least metal songs and silent lucidity was on the list. "Metal is about war, death, mayhem, destruction. Not about peace and serenity."

That and Scott Ian's reaction to Mother by Danzig being on the list always made me laugh.

 

[Poki]

Purely sensory information. Gate, stride, expressions, etc. I am pretty shallow and don't try and "guess" anything or dig deeper. Best example is in regard to a crash...ISTJ is like...i wonder what happened...my smart ass didn't really feel like digging into hypothetical simply said...car hit the pole...stated the obvious, was called out for being a smart-ass on that one. Shallow Se FTW...lmao

 

[indra]

I was never really into them but the most memorable thing I think of when I hear their name is an old VH1 special that counted down the least metal songs and silent lucidity was on the list. "Metal is about war, death, mayhem, destruction. Not about peace and serenity."

That and Scott Ian's reaction to Mother by Danzig being on the list always made me laugh.

Operation Mindcrime is a masterpiece!!

You need to listen to the whole album to get the full effect, o lord.

Danzig is terrible tho.

 

[Dreamer]

I usually just observe and pass little judgement. But for me people watching is more like people listening.

I like this, "people listening"

 

[Dreamer]

Purely sensory information. Gate, stride, expressions, etc. I am pretty shallow and don't try and "guess" anything or dig deeper. Best example is in regard to a crash...ISTJ is like...i wonder what happened...my smart ass didn't really feel like digging into hypothetical simply said...car hit the pole...stated the obvious, was called out for being a smart-ass on that one. Shallow Se FTW...lmao

Do you store this information for later use? What do you gain from noticing such detail? Perhaps you are putting this information together and seeing patterns emerge? What picture do you see when you assemble the puzzle?

 

[Poki]

Do you store this information for later use? What do you gain from noticing such detail? Perhaps you are putting this information together and seeing patterns emerge? What picture do you see when you assemble the puzzle?

Watching patterns emerge pretty much. It works down to a personal understanding of people. One example is high heels and its affects on a persons ass/hip alignment/etc. This was at a Britney spears concert. If you watch all the different people in high heels you start to create a full picture of what it can/does to a body. You also see that its affects vary greatly from person to person and not a one size fits all thing. Same with facial expressions, tones, mannerisms, etc. I don't know the intricate details to create any hard conclusions so it just kinda gets stored as concepts and the blanks are filled in at a later point with more data/understanding. This may be from reading, talking with people, etc. It creates patterns, but ALOT of diverse patterns with multiple degrees of overlap.

 

[Dreamer]

There are many things that appear in my mind as I observe others. I think I usually do so to get a feel for that person's personality and sometimes compare it in relation to my own. Some of it involves fantasy and envisioning what it would be like if I were to ever befriend them or if we'd have anything in common or not. I also observe traits I admire about a particular person, whether it's physically but not necessarily in a sexual way, or through their own personality or other attributes in order to gain inspiration from them, but there could be some envy involved as well. Additionally, I sometimes study people's mannerisms and observe if another person reacts well to them. I think part of that reason is so I can tell what is acceptable/appropriate behavior because sometimes I can't always tell myself.

All in all, there's always a comparing factor involved and I don't think I really detach from myself. I can't consciously tell if it's because I'm too self-absorbed or that my brain just immediately involves myself by default in anything I do. I wish I can somehow detach as if I'm having an out-of-body experience and jump into someone else's shoes without thinking partially about myself for once, but I can't seem to figure out how to do that or if it's even possible at all for me to achieve naturally.

This is very interesting Stargaze, thanks for sharing! I find many parallels to myself in here, but areas where we seem to differ as well. Overall, I think the main constant with me, is that I am comparing myself to other people that I see. But unlike you, I don't think about their physical attributes or what it would be like to befriend them. That's a a fascinating way to look at people. It seems more personal......ok, not "personal" but like dealing with people. Sorry, just made up a new definition for personal on the fly but luckily I caught myself But I think with me, people are more like metaphors to my life, so there is that comparison being made, but I'm not seeing them for who they actually are, but seeing them for what they represent, within me. I may look at two people arguing, or two people laughing, and I might relate that to an internal struggle I have with myself, or an internal joy. I may take those two people more literally and connect it to my life in the way I behave with my friends, or with my brother, as in the example I gave in the original post. But even then, that is usually just the starting point and where the literal translation to my self, ends, and again, becomes this abstraction of emotion.

I wonder if there are any patterns that will emerge from members talking about what they think about when people watching. Do you and I see in a similar way because of our shared Fi? I'd be curious to know what Fe users may ponder. It could be the exact same thing for all I know.

 

[Dreamer]

Watching patterns emerge pretty much. It works down to a personal understanding of people. One example is high heels and its affects on a persons ass/hip alignment/etc. This was at a Britney spears concert. If you watch all the different people in high heels you start to create a full picture of what it can/does to a body. You also see that its affects vary greatly from person to person and not a one size fits all thing. Same with facial expressions, tones, mannerisms, etc. I don't know the intricate details to create any hard conclusions so it just kinda gets stored as concepts and the blanks are filled in at a later point with more data/understanding. This may be from reading, talking with people, etc. It creates patterns, but ALOT of diverse patterns with multiple degrees of overlap.

This is fascinating! Thank you for this insight This almost seems mystical to me just because I will take something literal only one step, then instantly bring it into some other territory, but it doesn't remain literal. As I mentioned in my response to [MENTION=27809]Stargaze[/MENTION] I may take a parallel I see in someone else to myself in a very superficial way, but then instantly take it to mean something else and go off on this tangential thought. It never stays tangible. I would be interested in perceiving the world in this way even if just briefly. I hear of people talking about noticing facial expressions and patterns, reading body language and such, and I've read about it online and know some things, but none of that came from my own discoveries, nor do I think they ever could have. I just don't have that sort of capacity.

 

[Lark]

What way I'll update my journal later, what I ought to be doing instead, also a lot of the time anger because people are stupid, selfish or otherwise detestable a lot of the time.

 

[Peter Deadpan]

It's really interesting to see the way that different types assess their surroundings. Great thread Dreamer.

When I people watch, I notice different things about different people. Sometimes it's just shallow physical comparison, like admiring or envying the shape of other women, or maybe a pair of shoes or shirt that I like, or thinking to myself "that's a nice beard." But when I really take time to intentionally people watch, I am usually noticing the subtleties of their movements and expressions, or even their "energy."

If I see someone who's gait seems off, I might imagine what ails them and what it might feel like to deal with that. I notice the speed and "power" of other's movements and can then determine if they are more a Type A or Type B personality. I notice people's moods, sometimes because of facial expressions and sometimes through means I can't exactly explain. I notice to what level others are interactive with their environments: Are they just moving through life performing a task right now, or are they assessing those around them just as I am? I notice the way that people interact with one another, particularly couples and parents/children. I assess the way people treat each other and conclude how healthy the relationship may be based on that.

While I am doing all of this, I am forming patterns (subconsciously) about human behavior, and I either connect what I see with what I have already experienced, or I connect with it in an empathic way which allows me to feel what it might be like to experience it. It's like an ever-growing web of understanding that moves in all directions 3-dimensionally. (Sorry, I am having problems explaining this concretely).

Basically, I focus on feelings, moods, and behaviors, and I often theorize why people are the way they are and how it will impact their relationships and future, and I am constantly drawing ties between myself and others, or between those I have known and the people I am observing. (I am very past and future oriented, and constantly drawing ties between the two).

I relate strongly to what you said about feeling connected to others and sort of getting out of yourself though. For me, there is simultaneously a connection or oneness, and also a separation or sense of singularity. But it's almost like a universally connected singularity, if that makes ANY sense at all, haha.

I often feel very connected to particular people when I feel as if I can see myself in them. A perceived kindred mood or perspective, perhaps?

 

[cascadeco]

Here's a thread that was about almost the same thing, additional answers for you....

http://www.typologycentral.com/forums/instinctual-subtypes/77320-people-watching-crosses-mind.html

 

[Cellmold]

I think most of the time people only think of others insofar as it affects their current considerations.

Such as being in a queue at a shop and thinking "I need to do X and because of this pressure I now notice that customer/cashier being slow". It's why you can't be too caring of what a majority thinks since their opinion is apt to change with mood and particularly how they have been manipulated to feel about some subject or another.

Most are not, even when relaxed, really thinking of much beyond this. We tend to project our style of thinking onto those around us, either giving or denying the benefit of the doubt as it suits.

 

[entropie]

People are boring, always the same problems. I rather watch raindrops on the window and guess what direction the water flow will take !!

 

[Coriolis]

Very open-ended and broad question but that's the beauty in such ideas is it not? To allow oneself the space and capacity to ponder.

I'm sitting here at the beach as it nears sunset and I begin to wonder, what do others think of as they people watch? Are they actively participating in the lives of others as they watch from a distance? Is nothing in your thoughts associated to the people around you?

For the most part, I do not people-watch, at least not deliberately. I'm just not that interested, and usually there are much more interesting things to occupy my mind, even while idly waiting somewhere with nothing apparent to do. I am more likely to look at something that isn't a person. At the beach I might watch the motion of the tides, or the descent of the sun at sunset; perhaps the types and distribution of litter/shells/seaweed on the beach, or how the waves wash away the remnants of sandcastles and other human designs.

If I do happen to notice anything about people, it tends to be a trend that stands out to me without any deliberate effort or attention. A few years ago, for instance, I started to notice more and more kids on the beach wearing shirts, even long-sleeved shirts. I think they are supposed to be for UV protection. I realized these were the shirts I had seen promoted in clothing catalogs and websites. I start to wonder about the real benefit/necessity of such items vs. just applying a good sunscreen. It seems too warm/confining at the beach on a hot day. I then start to think of Muslim women who wear burkinis, and how they feel the balance of physical vs. cultural/religious comfort. I then remember the seaside convent I used to visit with my parents as a child, and the old nuns who would take walks on the beach in their old-style long habits.

 

[Norrsken]

Their energy. What they might be thinking about. The invisible ties and bonds between two or more people. What it could all mean in the end.

 

[The Cat]

Very open-ended and broad question but that's the beauty in such ideas is it not? To allow oneself the space and capacity to ponder.

I'm sitting here at the beach as it nears sunset and I begin to wonder, what do others think of as they people watch? Are they actively participating in the lives of others as they watch from a distance? Is nothing in your thoughts associated to the people around you?

As I sit here, I find myself latching onto certain people. Not certain kinds of people, but there seems to be a particular connection I find in myself with a person or group of people that I visually latch onto. That connection usually is a parallel I see within my own life, between myself and other people, with myself and my aspirations, and what I perceive in others around me.

I sit here now, watching these two young guys, maybe in their young twenties, doing jumps off a natural ledge formed by the tides and sand. They may just be friends, but I relate to them in the way I see the relationship between my brother and I. There are many thoughts roaming around at once as I watch these two. Some longing, some pleasant, some purely observational. The theme that tends to run in these thoughts of mine though, as I people watch, is that I tend to see myself in a broader picture and remove myself from my itty-bitty life, and incorporate myself into this larger relationship that I see of humanity. This is a nice place to be, and a place in my mind that tends to help me make sense of the world again.

I dont know that I actually think about anything when I people watch really. Like I look at what they're wearing, how they carry themselves, what color eyes/hair they have, how they wear it. Their aesthetic with how they dress and groom. I look at how they interact with their surroundings, I watch facial expressions, gestures. that kind of thing, but like I really dont try to speculate on things unless I'm people watching for writing, I tend to just kind of let it roll over me like the breeze. Maybe I dont watch people as much as moments. I guess? If that like makes sense?

Mostly it all comes down to this I guess...