Writer's Block and Myers-Briggs

[fajrdrako]

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I love doing personality tests. Myers-Briggs is my favourite, for gradations of meaning and accuracy - no, really, that's not entirely the reason. The reason is the theoretic link to Jungian thought. I love Jung: a lovely amalgam of the mystic, the visual and the romantic.

I'm INFP, which seems accurate to me. I've heard that INFPs are rather overrepresented online, especially in contrast to their small numbers in the world at large.

..The tranquil and reserved exterior of the INFP masks a passionate inner life.... They value harmony and integrity in human relationships, seeking unity of mind, body, and spirit but often find these values to be out of step with the more concrete pursuits of the rest of the world. Feeling "different," they may wonder whether something is wrong with them. But those differences—an ethical nature, a devotion to ideals, a commitment to harmonious interaction—are in fact some of their greatest strengths.

A caveat: some people seem to take this all too seriously, as if it was prescriptive rather than descriptive, or more meaningful than it is. We are all what we are, and I suspect we're probably more unique than any grouping by type would imply. But that's not a problem.

Of course, to tolerate the MBTI stuff, you have to be able to cope with four-letter acronyms. Which I like, because there's a gestalt effect: the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. It isn't just random characeristics added up. It makes patterns. I've always wondered what it would look like as a Bell curve.

I wonder what Captain Jack Harkness would be on the Myers-Briggs reckoning.

I think I did an enneagram once but I forget the results.

Comments

[beathen.livejournal.com]

I'm also an INFP. I don't use knowing the meaning behind it as a crutch for who I am or how I react to the world around me, but it does help explain how my brain works. For instance:

I – Introversion preferred to Extraversion: INFPs tend to be quiet and reserved. They generally prefer interacting with a few close friends rather than a wide circle of acquaintances, and they expend energy in social situations (whereas extraverts gain energy).

I'm most definitely Introverted. Sure, I can go out and have a good time with people and be very bubbly and outgoing, but it takes energy out of me to do so. Sometimes I dread going out with friends because of how draining it is on my mind (though I do have a good time while I'm there). I just have to have some personal time afterward to "recharge my batteries", so to speak.

I think if I had to guess about Captain Jack, I would say he is either ESFP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESFP) or ESTP (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESTP).

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I'm actually very sociable, and have spent my entire adulthood overcompensating for a lonely childhood. That being said - socializing takes a lot of energy from me and I need equal (or greater) amounts of solitary time to recoup.

I concluded Jack was ESTP - yes! We concur! My comments on it are here (http://fajrdrako.livejournal.com/1103266.html). I closely considered ESFP for him but decided that ESTP was a closer fit.

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

That's funny. I had an overly socialized childhood and now seem to have gone the opposite way. I don't know if I changed from extroverted to introverted when I hit puberty (or experienced some tough life moments) or if it had more to do with my childhood environment.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I think now I'm just too tired to be sociable a lot of the time. Which is a shame.

In some ways LJ is the best of all worlds - I can talk to people, but don't get the sense of being drained that I sometimes do in face-to-face interaction.

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

Same here.

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

"I'm most definitely Introverted. Sure, I can go out and have a good time with people and be very bubbly and outgoing, but it takes energy out of me to do so. Sometimes I dread going out with friends because of how draining it is on my mind (though I do have a good time while I'm there). I just have to have some personal time afterward to "recharge my batteries", so to speak."

Relate to this word by word! *sigh*

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's totally true of me, too!

[cionaudha.livejournal.com]

I'm an INFP too, and the shoe definitely fits.

Welp, I took the test trying to answer for Jack, and got ENFP, which (HA!) it turns out is The Champion (http://keirsey.com/handler.aspx?s=keirsey&f=fourtemps&tab=3&c=champion). :-)

Taking it for Ianto, I got INTJ, AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! The Mastermind (http://keirsey.com/handler.aspx?s=keirsey&f=fourtemps&tab=5&c=mastermind)!

For Gwen I got ESFP, The Performer (http://keirsey.com/handler.aspx?s=keirsey&f=fourtemps&tab=4&c=performer), which is a bit off.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

The Champion: They see life as an exciting drama, pregnant with possibilities for both good and evil, and they want to experience all the meaningful events and fascinating people in the world.

Ooh, yes, that fits Jack!

The Mastermind

That's our Ianto.

For Gwen I got ESFP, The Performer, which is a bit off.

She's harder fit, though that's only one letter off what I had for her.

[mad-jaks.livejournal.com]

I scored ISFJ/ISTJ - which apparently puts me amongst the Guardians (http://keirsey.com/images/trees/guardiantree.jpg) I'm not much of a 'joiner' though...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I don't think we can view this as an exact science!

[monsieureden.livejournal.com]

"I've heard that INFPs are rather overrepresented online, especially in contrast to their small numbers in the world at large."

Isn't that funny and true! (fellow INFP)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, so very true.

I'd like to find a chart of distribution of the character types, but haven't had time to look for them.

[gryphons-lair.livejournal.com]

I just hunted up a Myers-Briggs online and took it again.

Same result as always, ISTJ with the T being extremely borderline. Though sometimes it's ISFJ with the F being extremely borderline.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I looked up ISTJ and ISFJ. Neat!

Love your icon, too.

[gryphons-lair.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It seemed appropriate, given the results. *G*

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Absolutely! ...and (no surprise) I like that one too.

I still love those duty-bound sailor boys.

[gryphons-lair.livejournal.com]

Given my (consistent since college) Myers-Briggs profile, it's obvious why I like the lads. *g*

(Let's give one of the others a look in, eh?)

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

I don't even still have any of my Horatio Hornblower icons. Aaah, those were the days.

[nuptse.livejournal.com]

I'm an INTJ. My best friend is ENTJ.
I hadn't taken the test before I became friends with him, and he uses it as a way to know how to relate to people. He'd correctly guessed me as INTJ, and it really does explain quite a bit on how I relate to the world.
His partner is whatever the complete opposite of him is, (I forget the annagram) and it's sometimes strange how I can see our different ways of relating using our traits as such. We really are on basically the same wavelength, where he and his partner are drawn together by being opposites.

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

He'd correctly guessed me as INTJ, and it really does explain quite a bit on how I relate to the world.

I am always impressed when people can guess what MBTI designation a person will have. I have a friend who was into these things before I was, and he correctly pegged me as INFP. How'd he do that? I don't know, but it's impressive.

I like the way opposites find each other, and work - you'd think they'd be incompatible, but no, they just dovetail somehow.