INFJ is one of the rarest out of all of the 16 personality types in the Myers-Briggs Type Inventory. Also known as the MBTI. Which is based on Carl Jung’s theory of personality.
It’s characterized by introversion, intuition, feeling, and judgment. The INFJ personality type makes up less than 2% of the world’s population. And people with this kind of personality type are known for their warm empathy, keen insights, and deep insights into human potential.
Before we begin, we would like to make a disclaimer that this article is based on a Myers-Briggs Type Inventory, which is just a theory and has personality types that are just rough tendencies rather than strict classifications.
Here are eight common signs that you are an INFJ.
1. You’re on a different wavelength
Do you often feel like an outsider?
Being on a different wavelength means that you have a dominant intuition. And due to the nature of how intuition works, you feel that explaining how you know things are very difficult. This can make you feel isolated or misunderstood by others.
2. You’re a perfectionist and you procrastinate
Do you have a feeling of failure?
Do you feel like you need to be perfect and not only want to succeed but to go above and beyond to exceed everyone’s expectations?
This can be a telling sign that you might have the INFJ personality type. Consequently, due to your ever-present desire to perform perfection, you also tend to procrastinate a lot, because they can all feel like too big of a task.
3. You’re perceptive and good at reading people
Do you have a natural ability to understand people’s emotional states and motivations?
This can be a very clear sign of the INFJ personality type. You rely heavily on your intuition to reach deeper than the surface level of someone’s mind.
You are intrigued by how other people’s minds work and how that makes everyone unique.
4. You tend to keep a small circle of friends
You may have a large number of acquaintances.
But think about it, How many of these acquaintances do you actually consider to be your friends?
If your answer is not many, then this can be a sign that you have an INFJ personality. You are very devoted and loyal to your small circle of friends. And will remain steadfast in the years to come.
This devotion and loyalty stem from the fact that you have a very strong intuition. Your intuition makes you highly selective and allows you to separate people who truly share your values from others who are fake.
Similarly, if a friend acts in a way that puts their loyalty towards you in question, you can be quick to cast them aside.
5. You’re deeply empathetic
Is it easy for you to imagine taking a walk in someone else’s shoes?
Do understanding one’s feelings and emotions come easy for you?
This kind of empathy can once again be attributed to your intuition and your ability to deeply understand other people’s minds.
For example, whenever one of your friends has bad behavior or does something wrong, instead of just focusing on what they did, you can see past it and consider other things, such as their insecurities or past traumas.
6. You cannot stand small talk
Do you hate having to talk about the weather or discuss the local football team?
Are you one of those people who can’t stand excessive small talk?
If you find yourself being extremely bored from prolonged small talk, you might have an INFJ personality
You find that small talk is pointless and only takes away from your energy. Your real desire is to have deep and meaningful conversations with other people.
What you really want to know is their values, feelings and emotions and not their comments on the weather.
7. You are future-focused
If you have an INFJ personality type, you often do everything you can to achieve your personal goals. As such, you have a future-focused insight, since you are constantly thinking about the next step to reach your goals.
You also tend to be very critical about your past experiences. To avoid feeling sad, you’ll prefer to live a lifestyle that’s heavily future focused.
An example is if you feel like the relationship with your partner is not going anywhere, you’ll most likely break it up. Or if you find yourself stuck in the same work position consistently, you’ll most likely quit your job.
8. You gravitate towards people who need help
Do you often feel like you need to help people? Does your heart just feel almost too big, brimming with compassion and empathy?
While this trait makes it much easier to form deep and meaningful relationships with your friends, it can also backfire on you. The combination of empathy and the ability to look past the surface and see the good in people can make you fall victim to the broken wing theory.
The broken wing theory is the idea that people who need help can never be abandoned. Although it can be very rewarding and gratifying for you to help others. When overdoing it. It can then be very frustrating and stressful.
For example, if one of your friends is struggling with a particular subject that you know you’re good at, you’ll offer to help tutor them, even if they didn’t ask for your help. Now, even if you have to study for an exam, you will instead choose to help your friend.
If you feel like this article describes your personality, congratulations, you might be part of less than 2% of the world’s population with the INFJ personality type.
You are someone who is very appreciated by your friends and family and relies heavily on a very developed intuition to know things without the need for obvious proof.
You are someone who will do anything to achieve your goals, but at the same time, care about how your actions might affect other people.
Be proud and embrace all your strengths and weaknesses. It will definitely lead you to a happy and successful life.
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This post was previously published on medium.com.
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Photo credit: Amadeo Valar on Unsplash
