INFJ Personality Type
INFJs direct their energy towards the inner world of thoughts and emotions. They use their imagination to come up with new ideas, possibilities and insights, especially in relation to people and important beliefs. They are often good at developing insight into people, though it can often remain unexpressed.
What makes an INFJ tick?
The Dominant function is the perceptive one of iNtuition. Characteristics associated with this function include:
- Likes looking at information from a global viewpoint, spotting patterns and relationships, that lead to an understanding of the key issues
- Focuses more on possibilities for the future than the here-and-now
- Enjoys change, challenge, and variety
The perceptive iNtuition function is introverted. That is, iNtuition is used primarily to govern the inner world of thoughts and emotions. The INFJ will therefore:
- Seek to develop a understanding of how the world is, or can be
- Seek to understand the patterns underlying his/her observations
- Be strategic in nature, wanting to establish a clear vision towards which the INFJ is working
- Not involve others in the development of that vision
The iNtuition function is primarily supported by extraverted Feeling judgement, That is, Feeling judgement is used primarily to manage the outer world of actions and spoken words. This will modify the way that the iNtuition is directed, by:
- focusing the (inner world) iNtuition on ideas and possibilities that relate to people
- expressing appreciation for the contributions of others, particularly where they have done or said something that supports the INFJ's ideals
- making decisions on the basis of values that support the INFJ's understanding of the world, and conform to his/her vision.
The classic temperament of an INFJ is Apollonian, or Choleric, for whom a basic driving force is the search for meaning or purpose.
Contributions to the team of an INFJ
In a team environment, the INFJ can contribute by:
- observing and understanding the team dynamics, and encouraging the team to recognise them and take appropriate action
- listening carefully to various viewpoints, and being able to identify potential areas of agreement to be used as a basis to move forward
- being trustworthy, meeting commitments to a consistent standard
- contributing creative ideas, particularly those involving people
- bringing the team to make decisions about important issues
- promoting harmony and co-operation
The potential ways in which an INFJ can irritate others include:
- not including others in the INFJ's process of developing ideas and vision
- not giving criticism or expressing disagreement when it is appropriate
- ignoring current reality in pursuit of insight and meaning - perhaps overlooking some tasks that need to be done
- making errors of fact
- not promoting their ideas in the group
- wanting to pursue ideas without fully thinking through the consequences in, say, cost terms
Personal Growth
As with all types, the INFJ can achieve personal growth by developing all functions that are not fully developed, through actions such as:- being prepared to declare the INFJ's own personal vision or goals
- investigating and recognising the facts before interpreting what they mean
- changing his/her vision to fit more closely with what is possible
- allowing others to participate in the process of development of the INFJ's vision or ideas, in order to gain their commitment or get a realistic, objective assessment
- learning to promote the INFJ's ideas to others, recognising that others may well find them valuable
- listing options and undertaking a formal process of evaluation against criteria, including a cost benefit analysis
Recognising Stress
As stress increases, 'learned behaviour' tends to give way to the natural style, so the INFJ will behave more according to type when under greater stress. For example, in a crisis, the INFJ might:
- find a place of solitude in which to think and work
- tell everyone else how well they are coping
- try to solve the long term problem, and neglect the short term
- make errors of fact, or ignore routine matters that might nevertheless be essential
Under extreme stress, fatigue or illness, the INFJ's shadow may appear - a negative form of ESTP. Example characteristics are:
- acting very impulsively, making decisions without thinking them through
- doing things to excess - e.g.: eating, drinking or exercising
- being critical of others, and finding fault with almost everything
- being preoccupied about unimportant details and doing things that have no meaning
- acting in a very materialistic and selfish way
- cutting corners, breaking the rules, and even contradicting the INFJ's own values
The shadow is part of the unconscious that is often visible to others, onto whom the shadow is projected. The INFJ may therefore readily see these faults in others without recognising it in him/her self.