Hey, everyone.
So, I don't really know how to introduce this article. All's I can say is that this is a response to a POPSUGAR article called "13 Spot-On Traits of an INTJ Personality Type." Most of these are true regarding me, but as I have found in a lot of these INTJ articles as of late, they're full of stereotypes or they give you the basic-bitch information with none of the deeper explanations. The response articles therefore, have become me explaining the underlying reasoning and issues as to why INTJs have these characteristics. Anyway, let's get into this article, and if you enjoy my writing and would like to support it, you may do so over on Patreon. Even just a dollar a month, would go a long way toward ensuring my independence and making sure I bring you quality writing every month.
1. You were a bookworm as a kid.
Not true! I totally wasn't. Well, it depends what part of my childhood you're talking about. After reading The Hobbit and the Harry Potter series, I did sort of become a bookworm, but before either of those, I really didn't care much for books and I hated reading. Why read when I could watch TV or play video games? And after I had read The Hobbit and Harry Potter, I just went back to my old tricks. Although, I did have a brief stint with the Animorph series when I was in elementary school. But I would never call myself a bookworm. Do I like to read? Sure. But I don't always have my nose in a book.
2. You're a cynic.
This is quite true. However, our cynical natures are not derived from the fact that we're natural douchebags, but rather from a series of constant disappointments in the human race. As I pointed out last week in one of my articles, one of the reasons why we hold others to such high standards is because we know they're capable of being better than they are. From this perspective, we aren't cynic by nature, but it is rather a learned trait and we are actually hoping humanity will one day remove its head from its ass and figure out what this whole life thing is actually about.
3. You don't like rules or tradition.
That's not entirely true. Some rules need to exist because some people can't be trusted to act in a manner that is in the best interest of the universe, i.e. murderers, thieves, rapists, pedophiles, commies, nihilists, liberals, etc. Those rules I quite like. Similarly, some traditions are also good. I'm a practicing Catholic and one of things that keeps the Faith the Faith is its long-standing Tradition. It's "heritage," in a sense. It's actually a lot more than that, but I'm not here to discuss theology.
What we actually don't like is pointless rules or useless traditions. Some things do change with time, and some things need to change. Some rules are superfluous or only in place so that one party may unfairly benefit over another. And some things can just be done in better ways than already imagined. INTJs merely seek to keep everything even-Steven and at peak efficiency. And some things just don't make sense when you actually stop to think about them.
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| How is wearing my hat indoors rude? |
4. You're always a step ahead.
Not always. I have been pwned pretty badly in the past for thinking I was ahead of the game, but generally speaking, we are ahead. Sometimes it's not even that we are ahead of the game, just ahead of the conversation and able to see where you're going before you get there.
5. You think with your head, not with your heart.
Well, no duh! I mean, how do you think with your heart?!
No, but seriously, leading with you heart almost always backfires and is incredibly painful. You lead with your head, and even if you do fail, the worst that is hurt is your pride, and who cares about that, but the main advantage with leading and thinking with your head is that you stay focused. That's actually how we stay a step ahead. It's a combination of recognizing patterns, thought power, and intuition, which all happens in the brain. There's no need during any of that to stop and ask ourselves how we're feeling.
6. You keep it real.
Yo, yo, yo! We keep's it r-eal, dawg! You dig?! Here's a shovel!
Yes, we do keep it real. This is due to a couple of factors. 1. We don't really know how to be anything than what we are, and we can't stand being something or someone else, unless we're up to something dastardly, 2. The virtues of truth and honesty are so deeply ingrained into us that after a while, using them is no longer a practice, but a habit. In fact, when we try to go against them, we almost cannot because our brains and bodies refuse to, and 3. We know we're sort of weird and don't really fit in, so we're completely apathetic about how people view us. It's like, "They already know I'm bald, so why bother wearing a toupee? I ain't fooling anybody." At the same time though, we may still wear a toupee and not care that everyone knows just for the simple fact that we like to pretend we still have hair.
7. You know what you want.
True. I would like millions of dollars, a buxom, devilish-saucy wife, and for my writing career to take off. Although, I'm not really sure what the advantage is in having this trait. I mean, my sister does drive me crazy when she can't make up her mind (she's an INTP), but out in the world, I don't know how I benefit from this.
It may give one focus and direction as I once was interviewed for an insurance salesman position and the interviewee asked me what I wanted in the future and I gave him a very detailed vision of my perfect home. He believed I would work well in the industry because I was able to have so detailed a vision, meaning I really wanted what I wanted, meaning I had a goal I wanted to achieve.
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| Obviously though, I didn't pursue that career. |
8. You're self-confident.
Generally. I had my self-confidence shattered back around Christmas and I'm still recovering from it. But, there's very little doubt in my mind about what I should do with my life. As I like to say these days, I didn't choose writing, writing chose me. And I feel that way about many other aspects in my life. That is to say, I have so much confidence in those aspects that it almost seems like I'm destined for them. (Although, I don't believe in destiny.)
9. You're open-minded.
Sort of. Depends how you define it. We can definitely entertain a new line of thinking or a new perspective without rejecting it immediately. However, that is not to say that we won't reject it at all or that we won't reject it pretty damn quickly. Once that has happened, it's no longer up for discussion unless new evidence can be brought before us. Otherwise we close our minds entirely to it after that perceiving it to be nothing but the drivel of lesser minds, poor choices, or some feelings bullsh*t. (Don't get me started on the liberals again.)
10. You have difficulty expressing your emotions.
Enh, not really. If it's the right person, I can express my emotions just fine. Believe me, I've got plenty of melancholy poetry that proves I'm just an emo, Goth kid at heart that was never totally accepted by society. Although, in person I do find it awkward to talk about my emotions, or even talk at all. Writing is much easier.
11. You're a hard worker.
Sometimes. Other times, it's just that we're so good at something that we just don't feel the effort we're putting in. Example: I've been helping my uncle with a writing project. One day, it took him three hours to write 500 words. Before Christmas, while working on one of my opera, I wrote 2000 words in one hour. Now, I'm not always capable of that, but that's not the first time it's happened.
However, there are other times when hard work is necessary for us. I'm not entirely sure why we have a propensity for hard work. To some extent, it feels good. It makes us feel accomplished. Other times, it's fun and pleasant to get into a flow while working at something hard. It's like a meditative trance. I guess working hard can be an mental experience for us. Also, because we feel accomplished when we're done, we may feel like we've improved ourselves in some way, and you know what high-esteem we have for self-improvement.
12. You're independent.
People let you down. Not necessarily on purpose, but when you're by yourself, you only have yourself to blame which isn't easy to do, so you're more likely to push for success and often get it. As a result, independence looks infinitely more appealing than working with others. Not too mention, with fewer people involved, there are fewer possible complications. It's a hell of a lot more efficient.
13. You have a dark sense of humor.
Phew! I just tried committing suicide. I'll never do that again. I almost killed myself!
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| I guess you have to have been there. |
CONCLUSION
So, as you can see, there are twelve of these traits that I definitely agree with. If you see one or two of these in a person, I wouldn't say he or she is definitively an INTJ, however, if he has at least ten or more, I'd say it's a pretty likely he is an INTJ. Problem with that though is whether or not you'll know this person well enough to say if he has ten of these qualities. Good luck with that.
Anyway, for my next article, I think I'll be taking a look at the top seven gift ideas for INTJs. Some people out there have the balls to say we're difficult to shop for--I disagree. But, anyway, until then...
Keep writing, my friends.
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