Personality Tests Revisited

So one of my favorite Youtubers (I have a lot of favorite youtubers), fizzylimon, just made a video about his personality type, INFJ.


And I was watching this, and I thought, "this sounds a bit like me (especially the internalizing of stress).  I think that I'll retake the Myers-Briggs test."  So I did.  Turns out that I'm actually an IXFJ (or an IS/NFJ), which means that I'm pretty much equally strong in Intuition and Sensing.  So that's interesting.  I guess I'm both a Guardian and a Counselor?  Hmmm.

Follow up to Personality Tests

Okay, so this is going to be a follow-up to my last blog post. Thank you Kiersten and Emily for replying. It made me feel good. I do want to clarify a few things. I don't normally feel unappreciated or undervalued, but for some reason I've just been emotional for a week and a half. When I'm emotional, sometimes my head knows things that my heart doesn't believe. And when I'm at college, away from all of you, I sometimes just need reassuring that you love me and are there for me. (Wow, it's really hard for me to articulate my own needs. Maybe I should work on that. I think maybe I just assume that people will understand what I need. Or maybe that they'll look at what I do for them, and reciprocate. Hmm...)

To Emily: You didn't give me the wrong idea in your post. This post has nothing to do with your post. I wasn't even thinking about your post when I was contemplating writing this. I know our friendship can survive even when I'm a hundred miles away. And I knew that I haven't abandoned you, and that even if you did feel like it one time when you were lonely and sad, it was just a passing thought. You're my bestest friend. How could I abandon you? I have invested time into our friendship because it's important to me.

And Kiersten: Even if you don't have an official title like Bestest Friend, or BFF, or Best Friend, you are one of my best friends. You're just Kiersten, and I can't think of a name or title better suited to you than that. I love you lots and lots, and I try to invest time and effort into our friendship, especially because I'm in a different city. Which is one of the reasons I'm always trying to comment on your posts, because that way, we're using these blogs to communicate and converse (I wanted to say conversate, but apparently that's not a word) and that strengthens our friendship.

I try to comment on Emily's and Gwen's and Kiersten's blog posts every day, because I know how good it feels to know that someone took the time and effort to sit down and respond to what I had to say, even if it's a couple sentences. So I made this rule for myself that I'm not allowed to read your NaBloPoMo posts unless I have the time and energy to write a response directly after reading. That way, I comment every day, because I want to read every day. And this past month I've been taking the time every day to blog and comment, which has been really good. I feel like our friendships have been getting stronger this month. Or maybe it was just that we were still spending time and energy to connect, even though I'm a hundred miles from Kiersten and Emily, and Gwen is in a completely different state.

Actually, I try to invest time and effort into any friendship that I really super value, which is basically youth group people. I really value my friendship with Emily, Kiersten, Abby, Aaron, Gwen, Megan, Ava, Brenna, and Monica. There are others, but I don't have such a strong bond with them, or we're just starting to form a strong bond, or I don't have to take time out of my day to devote energy to them, because I live with them (Maggie).

Because of this connecting and keeping friendships strong thing that has happened over the past month, I'm going to try to continue to post every day. And I know that there will be days where I don't post, but I'll keep trying. And I know that my journal will suffer because of it, but I'm kind of okay with that. I don't feel like I'm in a journaling season, and as long as there is some record of my life, written by me, I'm okay.

Personality Tests

So this is going to be a post about my personality, and a personality test I took a while ago. I took this Meyer-Briggs personality test last month, and I'm an ISFJ, which means Introversion Sensing Feeling Judgment. I'll use the wikipedia definitions of each to describe them and the type as a whole.

"I – Introversion preferred to Extraversion: ISFJs tend to be quiet and reserved. They generally prefer interacting with a few close friends rather than a wide circle of acquaintances, and they expend energy in social situations (whereas extraverts gain energy).

S – Sensing preferred to iNtuition: ISFJs tend to be more concrete than abstract. They focus their attention on the details rather than the big picture, and on immediate realities rather than future possibilities.

F – Feeling preferred to Thinking: ISFJs tend to value personal considerations above objective criteria. When making decisions, they often give more weight to social implications than to logic.

J – Judgment preferred to Perception: ISFJs tend to plan their activities and make decisions early. They derive a sense of control through predictability.

Myers-Briggs description

According to Myers-Briggs, ISFJs are interested in maintaining order and harmony in every aspect of their lives. They are steadfast and meticulous in handling their responsibilities. Although quiet, they are people-oriented and very observant. Not only do they remember details about others, but they observe and respect others’ feelings. Friends and family are likely to describe them as thoughtful and trustworthy.

Keirsey description

According to Keirsey, ISFJs, or "Protector Guardians", are most concerned with taking care of people by keeping them safe and secure. They are modest caretakers who do not demand credit or thanks for their efforts. But while they are essentially compassionate—and in fact exercise more patience in dealing with the disabled than perhaps any other type—their shyness with strangers can lead others to misread them as standoffish. Only among friends and family may this quiet type feel comfortable speaking freely. ISFJs are serious people with a strong work ethic, not inclined to self-indulgence. They believe in being meticulous and thrifty. They work well alone. While they may enjoy taking care of others, they do not enjoy giving orders."

I know this might be a little boring and long, so stick with me. Or you might find this fascinating. I don't really know. I myself think that this is fascinating, and helps me understand myself better. And I would really enjoy hearing what you guys are, if you feel like taking the test. Because I enjoy nurturing people, and having an idea of what other people need can help with that pursuit. I'm having a hard time weeding out what I really want to highlight about the descriptions of my personality type, though, so I'm sorry about that.

"The ISFJ feels a strong sense of responsibility and duty. They take their responsibilities very seriously, and can be counted on to follow through. For this reason, people naturally tend to rely on them. The ISFJ has a difficult time saying "no" when asked to do something, and may become over-burdened. In such cases, the ISFJ does not usually express their difficulties to others, because they intensely dislike conflict, and because they tend to place other people's needs over their own. The ISFJ needs to learn to identify, value, and express their own needs, if they wish to avoid becoming over-worked and taken for granted.

ISFJs need positive feedback from others. In the absence of positive feedback, or in the face of criticism, the ISFJ gets discouraged, and may even become depressed. When down on themselves or under great stress, the ISFJ begins to imagine all of the things that might go critically wrong in their life. They have strong feelings of inadequacy, and become convinced that "everything is all wrong", or "I can't do anything right".

The ISFJ is warm, generous, and dependable. They have many special gifts to offer, in their sensitivity to others, and their strong ability to keep things running smoothly. They need to remember to not be overly critical of themselves, and to give themselves some of the warmth and love which they freely dispense to others." (http://www.personalitypage.com/ISFJ.html)

I have to say that I do feel a little undervalued sometimes. While my head knows that you guys love me and care about me, sometimes I need some proof. I was fine when I could see you guys every week, but now that I'm no longer in Kalamazoo, it's harder to get the proof that I crave. So basically, I would really appreciate it if you just took the time and energy to maybe write a comment or two on my blog posts. It would mean a lot to me, little as it is.

If you want to read more about my personality type, here are some links:

http://keirsey.com/4temps/protector.asp

http://typelogic.com/isfj.html

http://www.personalitydesk.com/type-profile/isfj-protector

Also, if you want to take the same test that I did, here's the link:

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp

Thanks for reading this. I appreciate it a lot that you read to the end.

On mother lionesses and personality tests

So I have this personality that can be described as a guardian protector. I guard and protect those I care about, I create circles and groups of people I believe need protecting. And even if I never show or tell them that they exist in my circles of caring, I do care very much about them. Four or five years ago, God told me that my "title" was mother lioness, which goes very well with my personality. I'm fierce when I feel like someone in my circle of caring has been hurt, I want to protect and support them. And right now, I feel like a mother waiting up late for her child to arrive home. My best friend who is staying with me for the weekend is out with her boyfriend, and I'm sitting here, making scarves and watching the clock, waiting for her to come back. I'm a mother. Not literally, but figuratively. My roommate has started to jokingly call me mom when I remind her that she should do something. I have quite a strong mothering instinct. And I'm just a teenager.

(Sorry is this is rambling. It's a little late)