What Is An INFJ Personality Like?
INFJ is considered to be the rarest of the 16 Myers – Briggs personality types. INFJs are introspective, very intuitive, insightful, gentle, and caring. They’re very sensitive to how other people feel and they have high moral standards. All in all – INFJs are an authentic mix of logical and emotional. So, if you happen to be an INFJ, congratulations, you are unique.
The Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator was developed by Isabel Myers and her mother Katharine Briggs. The test, which Myers and Briggs based on Carl Jung’s theory of psychological types, analyzes individuals in four categories: Extroversion vs. Introversion, Sensing vs. Intuition, Thinking vs. Feelings, and Judging vs. Perceiving, and the results indicate which personality type they are. INFJ would be those people whose personality traits match the sides of introversion, intuition, feeling, and judging.
7 Signs That You Are a True INFJ Personality
So, if you’re wondering whether you are an INFJ, know that if you match the following 7 descriptions, the answer just might be yes.
Here they are:
1. You’re a true introvert.
People can often mistake you for an extrovert because you appear quite outgoing and you’re able to blend in any social setting. But, in fact, you’re a truly introverted person.
You can feel happy and fulfilled having only a handful of friends who you know are good, honest, and deserving of your love and attention. And you’re fiercely loyal to them.
Socializing and hanging out with people is not difficult for you at all. However, you don’t really like attending events that involve huge crowds as this takes away from your energy and makes you feel exhausted. Even when you do so, you always feel the need to take some me-time and “recharge your batteries.”
2. You’re highly intuitive.
Your sharp intuition enables you to tell what kind of a person someone is within minutes of meeting them. You possess the ability to “see” what’s going on in other people’s minds and recognize their true motives and intentions.
By being able to sense what someone thinks and how they feel about you, you’re able to protect yourself from getting deceived and manipulated.
3. You judge other people by the way they make you feel.
You don’t pay attention to people’s marvelous tales and grandiose gestures unless you can feel they’re completely honest and have no hidden intentions. What you care about is the way others treat and make you feel. You always trust your gut feeling. So, when you feel that a person is honest and kind to you, you make sure you treat them the same way and keep them in your life.
On the other hand, if you believe someone to be phony, manipulative, and lacks principles, you immediately lose interest in and distance yourself from them.
4. You feel different from the rest.
INFJs are low in numbers so they tend to have a hard time finding others who see the world the way they do. Having said that, it’s no wonder that it’s difficult for you to find people who have character, ideas, opinions, and attitudes similar to yours. That’s the reason why you often feel like you’re misunderstood by others or like you don’t fit in. And sometimes, this makes you feel lonely.
5. You exude warmth and charm.
People enjoy being in your company. Your warmth and ability to listen attentively make others feel peaceful and comfortable when they’re around you.
I’m sure you’ve often found yourself in a situation when a complete stranger sitting next to you in the bar starts sharing with you their deepest desires, secrets, and problems within minutes after meeting you.
Undoubtedly, you have a charm that is difficult to resist.
6. You have deep convictions about the world.
You have strong and unwavering beliefs about the world and you know what you want to see in it. You know what things you don’t like and bother you, and you feel the need to change them. You can have doubts about many things, but there are ethical truths of which you’re always certain and therefore lines you’ll never cross.
You don’t let anyone and anything change your beliefs and you always hold firm to them. For example, if your job or relationship isn’t in accordance with your moral and social convictions, you’re not reluctant or afraid to abandon them.
7. You’re a visionary.
You always see the big picture. You focus all your attention and energy on your goals and you make plans that will help you achieve them. But, be careful. By focusing on your future too much and too often, you can sometimes forget about the present. That’s why you get on well with grounded people who can remind you to live in the present moment.
INFJ Is The Rarest Personality Type
Yes, INFJ is the rarest personality type in the population and it is the third least common among women and the least common one in men. So, in percent it looks as follows:
- 2% of the general population are INFJ
- 2% of women have an INFJ personality type
- 1% of men have an INFJ personality type
Dark Side Of The INFJ Personality Type
INFJ appear to be gentle and kind-hearted and no one talks about their dark side. But when they are under stress, their dark side starts to appear. But we should keep in mind that all INFJ is unique, so the other personality types may struggle with the following “dark” tendencies as well.
1. Moodiness
INFJ appear calm outside, but they struggle with a lot of emotions and can be rather confused about their emotions as most people are. They are introverts and they need to spend some time alone to manage themselves and to see why they feel the way they feel. But, you feel good when you express your feelings, and sometimes you need a hug so you can feel secure, loved, and understood.
2. They give harsh and honest opinions
You give honest opinions, but your openness is well-intentioned, but other people see it as too blunt, harsh, and judgmental. You are not cruel or malicious, you just want to tell your friends the truth and you are genuinely concerned about them.
3. Exploding negative emotions all of a sudden
INFJ can be great caregivers, but you can lash out if something is not right. In case many negative minor hurts have piled up, you feel like your frustration blows and it can be nasty. So, you should not let all these negative emotions pile up, but just address them carefully the moment they happen.
4. Stubbornness and high expectations
When you have set your mind on something, it is difficult to change it, You may look like someone who is not flexible, but you need time to accept the new situation and the new plan or ideas. And of course, it needs to go along with your deep-held morals.
You have high expectations for your love relationships and want real romance and actually, you want to reach the ideal in everything.
What Is So Rare About INFJ?
INFJ are walking contradictions because they are introverts who like to help people and they are sensitive people who love logic.
They share their deepest feelings only with chosen people and they value personal integrity, but they can be so complex that they would have a hard time understanding themselves. Here is why:
1. They like to socialize, but also prefer to be alone
They focus on people and can be a great shoulder to cry on, but they can also need time to be alone.
2. They put other people’s needs before their own
They have such a great desire to help others and give too much of themselves to others, so neglect themselves.
3. They are rational and sensitive at the same time
They can be sometimes dreamers, sometimes practical. They enjoy thinking and in some cases use their creative side to tell stories and sometimes they feel a great passion for science and feel torn between their opposite interests.
4. They have childlike character
They are highly intelligent and creative and do not lose the child’s creativity like most of us, but continue in life and see things in a childlike way, free from constraints, judgments, and criticisms.
5. They are rebellious and conservative
They may embrace novelty and tradition and appreciate the past, but try new things as well. They look silent, but can also work behind the scenes to change the status quo, but they are also very quiet and sensitive people, but also passionate and creative, always want to change this world with their creativity and make a better place for living.
What Kind Of Music Does INFJ Personality Like?
INFJ can be sometimes rebellious, so they are attracted to the rebellious type of music and insurgent musical acts such as alternative rock and they would listen to alternative rock music and groups like Radiohead, Arcade Fire, and Nirvana. These artists make great musical rebellions and simmer beneath the surface.
Famous Celebrities With INFJ Personality
INFJ are idealists, and great–picture thinkers. They are determined and energetic and will try to change things in society. Many of the great changes in society come from famous people that are INFJ, and some of them expressed their concern through music, science, politics, and literature as follows:
Alanis Morissette, Canadian singer-songwriter, Taylor Swift, U.S. singer-songwriter, George Harrison, English musician, Carl Jung, Swiss psychologist and psychotherapist, Plato, Greek philosopher, Dante Alighieri, Italian poet, Leo Tolstoy, Russian author, Simone de Beauvoir, French feminist and philosopher, Noam Chomsky, U.S. linguist and social critic, Al Pacino, U.S. actor, Cate Blanchett, Australian actress, Eleanor Roosevelt, U.S. First Lady, and others.
Image: Mischa Buckow
