Being me, you'd think that'd be the perfect opportunity to grab a good book and read. And sure I did pick up a book, but the one I chose was different than my norm. Plus I didn't read all of it, only the sections pertaining to me and to my friends. The book is called "Do what you are" and it's based on finding careers to match your personality through Myers Briggs testing.
If you haven't had a chance to figure out who you are through Myers Briggs yet, I highly recommend giving it a shot. Unlike when I took the test for the first time in high school, there are lots of free online tools to help you figure out who you are. My husband took this one: http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp but there are so many out there you can just pick and choose.
Through the years, I've been tested officially twice and done a few online just to see if anything has changed. But that's the funny thing - it hasn't. My personality is the same as it was when I was 17 and picking colleges as it is now. As you age, certain aspects of your personality do grow and you become better able to overcome some of the obstacles that are prone by your type, but you stay essentially who you are.
I'm an INFJ.
I'm really introverted. People don't always see it because I have the F for feeler. The F makes me care about people and want to get to know them on a base level. It doesn't mean I'm comfortable in crowds or anything, but it does mean that I'm comfortable talking to people. And in fact, my entire personality is built on wanting to get to know people and understand people.
Knowing that my personality type equates to only 1% of the population, you'd think it's rare. However I have two friends that are both the same type. What are the chances that we are friends? One I have been friends with since kindergarten and feel that I can tell her anything and still have the same friendship we've always had. In fact, we've gone months without talking just to pick up exactly where we left off. Did our personality type draw us together? Who knows.
What I find interesting is that knowing your personality type can help unlock so much understanding about yourself. Me and my INFJ friend were talking with two other friends about the testing and asked if they had ever done it. Through a few wobbly pops, we got down to the nitty gritty to try and determine where each other lay on the spectrum. There are 16 options and sometimes you can be close to the middle (which invariably everyone was). The hubs was listening into our debate over where we sat on the spectrum. Our discussion intrigued him so he took the test online and was amazed to find out about himself.
I don't know if my friends left with the same enthusiasm for the program. If anything, we might have improperly assessed each other based on how we perceived each other. I know that knowing my type has been invaluable in being able to look inward in planning where to go in my life or my career. Here is an excerpt that took from http://www.personalitypage.com.
The Protector
As an INFJ, your primary mode of living is focused internally, where you take things in primarily via intuition. Your secondary mode is external, where you deal with things according to how you feel about them, or how they fit with your personal value system.
INFJs are gentle, caring, complex and highly intuitive individuals. Artistic and creative, they live in a world of hidden meanings and possibilities. Only one percent of the population has an INFJ Personality Type, making it the most rare of all the types.
INFJs have uncanny insight into people and situations. They get "feelings" about things and intuitively understand them. As an extreme example, some INFJs report experiences of a psychic nature, such as getting strong feelings about there being a problem with a loved one, and discovering later that they were in a car accident. This is the sort of thing that other types may scorn and scoff at, and the INFJ themself does not really understand their intuition at a level which can be verbalized. Consequently, most INFJs are protective of their inner selves, sharing only what they choose to share when they choose to share it. They are deep, complex individuals, who are quite private and typically difficult to understand. INFJs hold back part of themselves, and can be secretive.
"It's like getting an instruction manual about myself" my husband said to me later. He couldn't stop talking about it for days and mentioned it to nearly everyone he came across. Since then he's really been working at areas that are known to be an issue for his type such as finishing projects and giving compliments. I'm really impressed by how much he's accomplished and glad that we were able to spark him to look inward. He doesn't feel as bad about feeling and thinking a certain way because he knows that's what it's like to be an INTP. Here is an excerpt from his page:
The Thinker
As an INTP, your primary mode of living is focused internally, where you deal with things rationally and logically. Your secondary mode is external, where you take things in primarily via your intuition.
The INTP is usually very independent, unconventional, and original. They are not likely to place much value on traditional goals such as popularity and security. They usually have complex characters, and may tend to be restless and temperamental. They are strongly ingenious, and have unconventional thought patterns which allows them to analyze ideas in new ways. Consequently, a lot of scientific breakthroughs in the world have been made by the INTP.
The INTP is at his best when he can work on his theories independently. When given an environment which supports his creative genius and possible eccentricity, the INTP can accomplish truly remarkable things. These are the pioneers of new thoughts in our society.
I highly recommend looking at your type to see where you fit. I find that the 16 types can fit so many people and it will help you understand why people are the way that they are. So much better than your monthly horoscopes and can really help you be the best you that you can be!
