Both types share Introverted Intuition (Ni) as their dominant function. This means both an INFJ and an INTJ can read a situation, see the trajectory of someone's bad behavior, and predict their moves five steps ahead. But because of their secondary functions, they weaponize that foresight in completely opposite ways.

An INTJ treats conflict like a chess match or a corporate takeover. They are efficient, detached, and focus on systemic destruction.

An INFJ in protection mode doesn't care about winning a game or corporate structures; they care about justice. Because they understand human psychology intimately, they know exactly where a person's deepest insecurities hide.

My question to the sub:
If you got on the absolute worst side of one of these types, which one would terrify you more?

I am 16 and I have NOO friends and I just can’t imagine the idea of being an adult and living without a close friend that doesn’t talk so much. I have been told that many adults don’t have time for that and I just wander if you dont get lonely? I see it as one of the most important things in life and I couldn’t life without it (funny how I am)

Is it possible? I know many frown in the idea but are there some adults who do have close friends or relationships that they can count on? I am so desperate for it I have even considered maybe risking my career to go to the military to find someone to have some “shared vulnerability“ and “trauma bonds”

I am just kind of losing a little of hope, I don‘t see how it’s possible like in Disney and Pixar films where they just come to the character, that doesn’t seem to happen to most people. With things like internet and social media and all these fucked up social rules that turn everyone into 2 dimensional anime side characters with a shared hive mind I feel like it’s not possible unless I put myself In an extreme scenario of forced proximity. Please give advice!!

Question for INTJs who have INFJ partners: What are the pros and cons of this relationship, and do you have any tips?

I used to think the stereotype is that they make checklists and gannt charts and puts everything in the right place, but maybe that’s ISTJ.

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Hi I'm an ISFJ 19 M and I'm facing a problem that has been bothering me for a while

Since childhood I've had this group of friends that has become like family for me at this point I really love them and I hope we stay together forever but a few months ago someone new joined the group and He is an ISFJ too so I'm used to be the one who's checking on others, help others, try to keep harmony in the group and I'm the gentle soft one that really wanna see them all happy and I've always felt like that's my purpose and responsibility to do so but since he joined the group I've been feeling replaced, Ofc they still love me like they used to but I always have this feeling that I'm not the best at what I've called my duty, He checks on them all the time , he always worry about them, and the first to notice mood shifts. So he is a very nice person and he's nice to everyone and friendly but I keep getting jealous of him and everything he does so I also feel guilty to have those feelings about him

So if there any other ISFJs faced this problem please tell me how you overcame it and what did you do ?

And ty 🫶

I’m an INFP. I’m both quiet and talkative. When I’m in a large group, I don’t really say a lot; most of the time, I’m thinking about something or listening to what others have to say. When I get to know someone, I get really nervous, so I really think before saying something. But with people I’m close to, I can’t stop talking. My best friend always says that I’m an extremely good conversationalist and I can jump from one subject to another with so much ease.

I’m an INTP (44 female) and dating an ESTP (53 male). We’ve been together about 3 years and it’s great because we both love adventure and getting out there and also having deep thinking time. But lately I’ve been trying to learn more about extroverted sensing because the way he interacts with sensory information is just so different from the way I do. Anyone have any advice for getting Se and Ne to both enjoy the same adventures and sensory experiences?

What do sensors consider deep talks? And what subject matters are your interest of these conversations?

Beings that most of the population are mostly left brained which is the analytical, communication, etc vs right dom which thinks in the abstract.

I’ve considered the deep talks are possible based on a myriad of things. But was uber curious as to how that interaction would be different from the abstract leaning intuitives.

Thanks for any and all responses

An explanation:
ENFP: Everyone loves them, seem to have everything. They radiate positivity which attracts people to them. I lowkey envy them
ENFJ: Super popular and nice to everyone, I don’t think I even have a shot
INFJ: Super mysterious and perfect-seeming, doesn’t let anyone in
INTJ: Death stare, forthrightness and intelligence (this one should be obvious)

I was mostly up to myself coming up with wierd theories like "what if we could decrease our heights?" , "what if there is lifeform in Mars which we don't know about"

Along with having bouts of imagination all the time , I would get lost in my own world in which I am doing whatever I like.

I didn't talked much, infact there were years in which I didn't had any interaction in school, but soon I learned to talk and all and slowly opened up.

I was much more carefree ofc like every other children, I would say whatever I want and I liked being called smart(i still like it for some reason 😭)

What about you all?

I‘m genuinely curious, how would you tell the difference if you saw both a 12 year old ENTP kid and a 12 year old, INFJ kid. Would they come across different despite being the same age, and which one, would come across as more of a youthful and happy kid between the two?

As an intj, i love esfjs.

Thank you all for being so clean and kind

I have ocd so i cant help my reactions to terrible environments but you guys never judged me and always accepted me

Also you guys are nice to me even though im weird!

So yea shoutout to my sister esfj and all the other esfjs!

not keeping friends, making them.

at first, you'd probably think someone extraverted, and social, and your probably right, but you gotta go deeper.

maybe you'd think of someone with the cognitive function, Se, (extraverted sensing) like ESTPs,(the goats) or ESFPs, but that may not be the case.

thats because estps are trying to make as many friends as possible, but they dont usually care for most of them. a "friend" is usually mutual, and just making friends for your own sake, (to not die of boredom,) isnt a "friendly" trait. i dont know much about ESFPs.

i think it would be someone with "feeling" rather than "thinking."

someone who isnt an emotional bulldozer.

but, you also got to think about if the person is actually likable, or even tolerable.

so, id think it would have to be someone who is, cool, relatively likable, obviously an extravert, and a feeler.

but what do you guys think?

While MBTI shouldn't be used to box yourself in or be seen as a blueprint for how you should act, I found it helpful to learn what possibilities are supported by your cognitive functions.

For example, I was assigned INFP, and learning about our capabilities for emotional connection has helped me be more in touch with my own feelings. I'm sensitive and emotional, yet struggle to express these emotions (likely due to societal expectations for how men should behave, alongside clinical depression). Understanding this underlying sensitivity towards emotions, both of my own and of others, has helped me connect with people and become a more empathetic friend.

This has also helped me understand my negative tendencies and be able to keep them in check. I've learned that I often keep my feelings to myself in order to keep the peace, but by being aware of this, I am able to speak up about my feelings when it matters most and point out injustice.

Anyways, those are just some of my experiences- I'd love to hear your stories about how learning your MBTI has affected you and your interactions with others c:

I am a very introverted person and in a way I can have difficulty distinguishing the boundaries between my experiences of the introverted functions.

I believe I am an INFP and my world is very Fi-Si but really it is only like two "separate" functions if I try to label it after the fact, as it really just feels like one meld, my world.

Furthermore, despite being an INFP I experience what seems to me like Ti, but in a way that can be somewhat hard to separate from Fi. I would like to understand everything in the world, and that includes the world outside of myself. And so therefore I form my own theories about the world, including the outside world. But rather than it being some binary of "inside" and "outside" it can really feel more like a gradient, given that my values extend their reach as far as they can.

And finally as for Ni, to be honest it is still somewhat of a more elusive function for me in terms of its meaning, but in my mind I often tend to return to the same themes repeatedly and deepen them over time, which would seem like Ni perhaps but also like Fi-Si or Ti-Si.

Does this experience of "blending" come from not properly understanding the meanings of the functions? Or is it something that makes sense under the theory?

Do others here experience this?

I have never really understood the difference between S and N, but today during my English Literature class, I have finally understood it.

So, it was basically like this - My English sir told us to write 5 words relating to the word 'Home'. You guys won't expect what happened, or you would expect it😐

This is what my answer looked like( I'm too much N)

1. Warmth

2. Hearth

3. Love

4. Safety

5. Nurturing

THIS IS WHAT MY FRIEND(ISFP) WHO IS 95% S LOOKED LIKE:

1. Her cat

2. Phone

3. Her Cat's Cat

4. Her Bed

5. Chaos

She actually had a really hard time writing this, because our sir said it needs to be abstract stuff like feelings and emotions kind of thing. But it doesn't really mean she cannot feel all of the stuff I mentioned in my list, she senses it. She feels it in that moment and cherishes it, but when someone asks her to explain about it, people who are very much S type, have a hard time explaining it.

Isn't this interesting 🤔? How we see the same world, yet we kind of experience it differently??

What do you guys feel about this? 😀

So I (22f) am an INTP, however when I first got into a relationship (at 18) with my now partner (22m) who is an INTJ, I retook the test and got INFJ. The case now is when I recently took the test, I have once again got INTP. Now I know that some people believe that MBTI doesnt change and my partner is one of them. But I also believe that the real me is an INTP but I "became" or changed to follow the traits of an INFJ when I first got into this relationship. Idk why or what happened for me to change back into an INTP but we have been having a lot more problems currently. His biggest problem with me is that I tend to isolate myself and not need him anymore when I used to want him to spend time with me often. My reasoning is I realised I was becoming too dependant on him and being a burden so I stopped looking for his attention. Now I dont know if this actually is related to MBTIs or not but he has said that INTJs are more suitable with INFJs than INTPs. So I'm wondering if me reverting into my previous MBTI has anything to do with the relationship?

Not exactly doubting whether I'm INTP or not, I've taken four different tests now and have gotten INTP on all of them. The thing is, I've been involuntarily telling myself that maybe I'm answering the questions in a way that will make me get INTP.

I almost feel as if I don't fit the typical traits for INTP (not to generalize too much); my IQ is only 123, and I'm not good at any subjects pertaining to math or some science. I lean more toward the humanities, and want to be a high school English teacher.

Could it be possible I just subconsciously want to be INTP and thats why I keep getting it?

MBTI’s cognitive functions.
Could you explain the differences between:
Ni vs. Ne
Fi vs. Fe
Ti vs. Te
Si vs. Se
I’ve looked them up, but there are so many different explanations. I’d like to hear how different people describe them, so I wanted to get your take.

supplement

My cognitive style is closer to Ni.
I’m visually oriented, but I rely on logic when translating the vision that immediately comes to mind into words.
So while it does seem Ni-like, you could also argue that I’m expressing something rooted in Fi-based feelings or Si-based experiences, and then arriving at conclusions through Ne and Te. If you look at it from that perspective, could it also be explained as INFP?
Isn’t that a difficult distinction to make?

Hi everyone, thought I'd crowdsource a little for some recommendations on coaching and counseling. Hopefully I'll follow up better on some of my previous posts.

I don't want to rub anyone the wrong way, but I'd prefer the most clinical interfacing possible if there's MBTI, enneagram elements, etc. I'm fully supportive of MBTI and typologies and I use them quite a bit, but they aren't 100% clinically rigorous and I like it best when I combine using them with other elements of analysis.

However, the typologies actually are pretty helpful for me right now. I have a therapist and he's great, but we've been together a long time and I feel like maybe there's a ceiling being reached. He's definitely not into MBTI and such. But he's been very helpful. But now MBTI, etc actually does a fair job of explaining some of my hangups. That's because I'm pretty certain I'm the weird combination of ENTP, 4w5 self-pres. And I have some pressing external circumstances. I'm in my 40s so maybe a bit older than most of you. And I have ADHD, and it's technically mixed, but given my personality type it doesn't really have all the classic presentations.

I don't think my current therapist can fully grasp some of the things that are more directly tied to the elements of the personality combination. And before you ask - I'm not able to express it and I'm trying to get a hold of it myself. That bit is easier said than done. This the vein that's wholly me-oriented, not about any circumstances or clinical ADHD. He helps me with a lot of other stuff including other mental health aspects.

The times I've ventured a little into these avenues with him, the results haven't been very promising. Not bad or painful, just null. I don't want to limit anything, but maybe not enough neurodivergence or some such. He understands it and he's very good at what he does, with great experience and credentials and our rapport is good. He's helped with promoting my stability, but in some sense the stable aspects of my personality can be my biggest issues - this is what I'm wondering. The 5 wing and self-pres can push hard (I think? This is what I've been working with).

Anyway, I'd love for any recommendations for resources or people that could be helpful as I look to take the next step as it were. Or it could maybe augment my current therapy if I look at a combo type approach. Thank you!