[jack in the box]

I've read in a few forums that people describe INFPs as sensitive . . . which I am definitely not. Everything else, however, I fit perfectly. Does this still mean I'm not an INFP?

[kateykinz]

You don't have to be the archetype INFP to still be INFP
Do you identify with any other type at all?

I'm not at all sensitive either, but I'm not sure whether I am INFP or ENFP.

[infpblog]

I've never liked any of the descriptions of INFPs. They're very general.

I know I'm an INFP because

1. I focus my energies internally (I) and definitely get tired being around other people even though I'm very social.
2. I gather much of my information intuitively (N). Doesn't mean I don't trust my senses, but it's decision about people and preferences comes from some weird other sense.
3. My decisions are usually based on how I feel. It doesn't mean I don't think about things. I weigh plus and minuses, but in the end how I feel about something plays a big part.
4. I have a my own schedule (P).

Figure out each letter individually instead of reading the descriptions. Try this test instead:

www.personalitypathways.com/type_inventory.html

It's four questions, halfway down.

[starfruit]

Does anyone completely fit the descriptions?

I sure know I don't.. even when I talk to INFPs I don't feel really connected to them.. but I'd say I am one more than any other type.

[karmagenerator]

I dont think that INFP's can fit any of offered descriptions, simply put, because i don't think that they can be categorized or "put inside the box" or anything...

[GreenCoyote]

Does anyone completely fit the descriptions?

I sure know I don't.. even when I talk to INFPs I don't feel really connected to them.. but I'd say I am one more than any other type.

I love your signature.

I like that movie a whole frickn lot.

[Miraji]

you dont need to fit any discription people can never be the same, there is always some differences

[Nebbykoo]

I know I'm an INFP. It was a perfect fit when I was younger. Now the descriptions seem condescending and maudlin to me...
Life has a way of equalizing your personality, despite your temperament. I have definitely been burnished by serious pain over the course of this endeavor, into a harder, much thicker-skinned person than the one who got called cry-baby on the playground.
So yeah, the descriptions don't fit all of us very neatly, especially males.
Gentle poets? come on.
Ever seen the TV series Deadwood? I sort of related to the character of the sherrif. He's the quiet ethical warrior/avenger of the camp. He will take on anyone who perpetrates an injustice on an innocent. He's probably not an infp to most people, but he is to me. Is he holy? no. He has a child out of wedlock from a fling. He also married his brother's widow to protect her honor. He's no poet, maybe not even a feeler on the surface, but he has deep, inviolate principles which he is willing to die and kill for. he does not hate an indian warrior for trying to kill him to protect his own brother's honor. He feels empathy for the man's willingness to die for principle and for another.
Anyway, to my eyes, he is a warrior and protector, and maybe a good, though imperfect, starting point for male INFP's to find a new description.

[OrangeAppled]

I don't think anyone fits a description perfectly. I see the descriptions as caricatures of how a set of given functions often appear. This is why I think it's good to consider the functions when typing yourself.

For instance, there is no "J" or "P" function....those letters simply determine whether your extroverted function is a perceiving or judging one. The J/P dichotomy was created based on patterns of observable behavior. A person with extroverted iNution or extroverted sensing in the dominant or auxiliary position (ie. ExxPs & IxxPs) will usually exhibit less structured behavior, but interestingly, the IxxPs actually have dominant judging functions (Ti or Fi). For me, this makes sense, as I almost always know how I feel; my internal world is structured, even if not in a linear way that would make sense to others.... Externally, though, I am pretty content to go with the flow, and structure feels confining - that is, of course, unless something hits on an issue I have strong internal feelings about, and then I suddenly have major backbone and definite ideas.

[heart]

The INFP profiles actually describe me amazingly well...it's kind of scary.