Last week after a discussion of Life Of Pi, our book-club randomly decided to take a personality test to see if we’d changed from high school and college. The test was a simplified form of the famous Myers Briggs test, a psychological assessment dating back to the 1920s, one that most of us are required to take multiple times during school.
For those of you unfamiliar with the test, the Myers Briggs model looks at personality type like Lady Gaga looks at the gays; you’re born this way. It’s like left or right handedness or the ability to roll your tongue. You can’t help it. The test sorts psychological differences into four opposite pairs with a resulting 16 possible psychological types. None of these types are better or worse, you just naturally prefer one overall combination of type differences.
The 16 types are typically referred to by an abbreviation of four letters—the initial letters of each of their four type preferences (except in the case of intuition, which uses the abbreviation N to distinguish it from Introversion). For instance:
ESTJ: extraversion (E), sensing (S), thinking (T), judgment (J)
INFP: introversion (I), intuition (N), feeling (F), perception (P)
And so on for all 16 possible type combinations.
I took the test thinking I’d score completely differently than my former self, but no such luck. I was an INFP in high school, an INFP in college, and as it turns out, an INFP in my late twenties. It’s not a terrible fate (none of them are terrible). I guess I just hoped I’d turn out to be one of those people who really like things clean.
Other notable INFPs include C.S Lewis and Bill Bryson (yes!), but it also includes Sylvia Plath (oh). Suggested career paths include writer, photographer, activist, and video editor (yes!). Careers to avoid are office administrator and business professional (learned that the hard way).
Here’s the INFP profile, which is probably boring to everyone except other INFPs.
INFPs have a deep capacity for love and caring and are sensitive and perceptive about what others are feeling. INFPs do not like conflict, and go to great lengths to avoid it. If they must face it, they will always approach it from the perspective of their feelings. In conflict situations, INFPs place little importance on who is right and who is wrong. They focus on the way that the conflict makes them feel, and indeed don’t really care whether or not they’re right. They don’t want to feel badly. This trait sometimes makes them appear irrational and illogical in conflict situations. On the other hand, INFPs make very good mediators, and are typically good at solving other people’s conflicts, because they intuitively understand people’s perspectives and feelings, and genuinely want to help them. Many INFPs are talented writers. They may be awkward and uncomfortable with expressing themselves verbally, but have a wonderful ability to define and express what they’re feeling on paper. Most INFPs have a problem with reconciling their highly idealistic and romantic views of life with the reality of their own lives, and so they are constantly somewhat unsettled with themselves and with their close personal relationships. However, the INFP’s deeply-felt, sincere love for their mates and their intense dislike of conflict keeps the INFP loyal to their relationships, in spite of their troubles achieving peace of mind. INFPs like the rain, are prone to regret, often cannot control fearful thoughts, are prone to day dreaming, and can be pessimistic. INFPs are often late. {More on INFPs here, here, and here}.
Now that you know I’m an awkward and irrational pessimist, it’s your turn. What’s your personality type?
If you’ve never taken it or you want to see if it’s changed, you can take a simplified test here. I love this stuff.
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I’m an ENFJ, or an ENTJ. Actually, I’m right in the middle of the first three, but I’m squarely a J.
Have you ever done the Enneagram? I like that interpretation more than the MB—it’s a bit more … robust.
I also like the Enneagram. But I like any personality test. I’m one of those! Also an ENFJ!
I took it freshman year of college. I remember liking it!
Another vote here for the Enneagram! I’ve found Meyers-Briggs useful, but the Enneagram life changing.
Whoa! I’m going to take it again.
I shall tweet you some books to read. It’s especially useful if your loved ones get into it too — my MVS housemates and I all studied it together and it totally transformed the way we interacted (in a good way).
I’m an ENFJ, no matter how many times I take the test I’m always the same :)
ISFJ…right on for me.
I love stuff like this too! I scored as an ISFJ, and after reading the profile, I think it’s pretty accurate. Interestingly, it said my career choices should/would be social work, education, or secretarial roles. In highschool I wanted to be a teacher, but I chose to study a social work type program in college, and I’ve always worked as a receptionist. It also said that I share a personality type with Jane Fonda, which doesn’t hurt :)
It’s like reading a horoscope. A scientific horoscope. But not really anything like that.
Anyway, it’s surprising.
ISTP!
ESFJ. It’s right on!
Lady Gaga. LOL.
INFJ :)
Was an ENFP in college, but reading the INFP it sounds just like me. Especially the conflict issue–oh my, that’s true. I’m terrible at expressing myself verbally. So awkward. And I’m always always late.
From what I’ve read, it’s normal to transition from ENFP to INFP over time! INFPs unite.
Nope. Still and ENFP. But I’m with you on the NFP part, sista
I’m an ISFJ according to the test but I don’t agree with the career assessment :P I was an admin assistant and didn’t mind that job but was certainly not what I wanted to make a career doing! And being a teacher has always been the farthest thing on my list. I read through all the personality profiles and I think I just may be a combination of a few.
ENFJ. And confirmation that I am NOT in the right career (which I already knew, but it was nice to have the Internet validate for me). ;)
Thanks Internet!
INFP too! No wonder I check your blog daily.
“It’s worth mentioning that nearly all of the truly great writers in the world have been INFPs.” (http://www.personalitypage.com/html/INFP_car.html) Okay, now I feel awkward. Too fast? But it’s true! Great writing in these parts.
I love personality stuff. What were you on the Enneagram? I couldn’t figure out if I was a 2 or 9. I like Rohr’s “redeemed” examples of each type, instead of the tripe like this that makes you feel oh-so-awesome about yourself: “can feel uncomfortable around others, familiar with the darkside, hermit, more likely to support marijuana legalization” (http://similarminds.com/jung/infp.html) Whaaa? Should I feel insulted? Are YOU familiar with the darkside?
Curious: what is your partner’s type? My husband is an INTJ so our arguments are extra fun — gotta love that inability to take criticism.
Haha… I bet that’s what Austin is too. I tried to get him to take it, but apparently studying cardiology is more important? Lame. I found him watching TV an hour later.
Ooo, Dave is such the INTJ. He’s pretty bitter about it, because apparently the website’s descriptors of it say they can be interpreted as “aloof and moody.” Also, it’s called “the scientist” and top careers are scientist/doctor. Hmm. But interesting that there are other INFP/ENFP-INTJ pairs out there
“aloof and moody.” That sounds like someone in this house (not me).
hah–I thought he might be one
Oh, I love this stuff too! As a child/teenager, I was an ENFJ (so funny that there are other comments that say the same!), but just now taking it, I am now an ISFJ, which makes sense.
I think it’s the motherhood thing that changed me.
Motherhood changes things!
ENFP. but now I wanna take it again.
dooo it.
INFP! Heavy on the I, light on the N.
I’ve taken this test a bajillion times. ENFP every time. Where did you find out the famous people who are the same as you?
Check the ENFP wiki page!
I took the test you linked and I’m an ESFJ. The last time I took it was in third grade! I wish I still had those scores so I could compare! I know I was E then, and there is no question I’m E now. It was my strongest one.
You know what’s creepy? I just googled ESFJ careers just for fun. The first three were Home Ec, Nursing and Teaching. I just quit teaching home ec for the past five years. . . (to be a stay at home mom, not because I didn’t like it.) Creepy.
So weird, right?!
Somehow I’d never taken this before! I am ISFJ. Along with Jimmy Carter! And Louisa May Alcott! Yessssssssss.
And, from what I read, ISFJ is a highly moral, controlling goody-goody. Spot on.
Have you ever heard of the StregnthsFinder personality test? I think it’s the trendy one in college/businesses right now, and it’s super interesting. It tells you so much about a person.
Never heard of it. Googling!
ISTJ here, I think reading the description describes me well.
ISTJ as well!
ESFJ. Nailed it. Loves to host, traditional, over sensitive, needs everyone to be happy, detail oriented…
I love these things. I could take personality quizzes all day!
I have a lot of ESFJ friends. I love them.
ESFJ: Guardians of birthdays, holidays and celebrations, ESFJs are generous entertainers. They enjoy and joyfully observe traditions and are liberal in giving, especially where custom prescribes.
YES. There’s a lot more, of course, but this always sticks out to me. :)
I love it!
Jess, that is SO YOU!
I’m an INTJ (I’m pretty sure I was ISTJ in high school), I was a green on the colors test, and my boss recently made us take one that assigned us birds–I was an owl.
Somehow, I stumbled upon a site with fictional INTJs, including Mr. Darcy, Stewie Griffin, and Sherlock Holmes.
I love your fellow INTJs!
I love personality tests. And I am not surprised by yours at all, but it is pretty neat that you haven’t changed over the years.
With Myers Brigs I am nearly always 100% E and 100% J – it is the two in the middle which I waiver.
But I tend to be an ENTJ most of the time…which also doesn’t ever surprise people.
So how did you like Life of Pi? I read it years ago and loved it.
Life of Pi? Best book I’ve read this year.
ENTJs are great! We need them.
ENTJ!
Me too!
ISTJ. Yikes. I hate the thought of all of those career possibilities, except maybe dental assistant. Maybe that’s why I stay home.
But the description of “Doing what needs done” fits me to a T.
I don’t remember what I was in high school but I remember being told I should do something in statistics or accounting so I must have been a similar type.
Statistics or accounting? That sounds awful.
I’m nearly always an ISFJ when I take these, though the S, F, and J are usually very close to the middle. The I is basically always 100%, which led me to do a lot of reading about introverts and seriously helped me understand myself and how I function SO MUCH. This article is FAN-TAS-TIC, and all of the introverts commenting here will likely appreciate it: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2003/03/caring-for-your-introvert/302696/
Yes! I love this article. I should link to it on Friday. Thanks for reminding me!