[abigaleblues]

Good post! Well, one thing's for sure--INFPs can truly write or express ourselves creatively!

Thank you! And yes, writing is a wonderful thing for INFPs. It's pretty much my favorite form of communication.

[Belovodia]

I'm fascinated with the way the Amish live their life - their values of self-sufficiency
and placing the spiritual life above the material life.

One might have to be born to that way of life though, as it runs so counter to
our contemporary culture's mindset.

[niki]

the 'curse' of being too Imaginative , a person with too high/vivid/lively Imaginations , want to live inside his head only...

dragons, magic-techniques and Magi-wars (just like in video-games and 'ancient'-type of movies), castles in the sky, shape-shifting dimensions, etc etc......you name it!

this "Law-and-Order"-like, all-about-money Reality/real-world fucking sucks, boring, 'dry', and mundane beyond words!!...

[Sapphyreopal5]

I'm not an INFP but I will say I do agree with you. It seems that money makes the world go round. While I am for being practical and that I do want a good amount of money one day when I am living on my own, I don't believe that having a lot of money should be a primary goal. I too have a problem that it seems society "progresses" in most aspects based on people's material gains. Society's progresses should be based on learning better ways of doing things (economically, with the justice system [that's a whole other topic ha ha], etc.), not based on a hierarchical system based on who's got the most green.

It seems to me that "success" in a lot of people's eyes is based on what one has, rather than what one has contributed if that makes sense. Of course, the idea of success assumes that the more you contribute, the more you get, which I think we all know is not how it really works.

In my opinion, our political system, education system, etc. was designed by SJs for SJ types. In other words, it seems society is more designed to suit SJ types (said to be the most common temperament type) as far as norms go. In my opinion, the other temperament types have to work at least somewhat harder (or work harder to find a different way of learning and "climbing up the ladder") in society in order to be considered successful. That or they seem to come up with their own idea of what success is to them if they feel that society's definition of success isn't for them.

[only1meR]

the venus project is mega cool on paper, but would have to be closed off, and so who gets in??
and who decides who gets in??
the corrupt, or corruptable are the ones in power, need a power to set up and supervise, so soon its back to where we already are. (at least as i see it)
i will add one small point. (or 2 as the case may be), that being, in current work scenario,
the ability to get satisfaction of being tops in your field, {or shift, or however calculated)
of the ability to turn nearly all tasks into some sort of game,
to tune out the petty and narcissim,
to run hard and be absorbed into the task at hand,
to do routine while the brain is operating somewhere else.
not least to see (or convincingly fabricate) the sense of doing a service to others.
very likely i had the fortune to fall over some jobs that filled my sense of purpose.
when you are facing or on the street, you cannot help but learn some coping mechanism.
dont worry about having too much money, you will quickly give it away, if they ever get you to take any xtra at all.
the one true flaw, is burn out, one can only tilt at windmills for a finite time, sooner or later,
sancho convinces you to stop early, and go lift a pint or two.
(and the one thing not taught in school, its who you know, and sometimes,
what you know about the man behind the curtain)

[xEmilyx]

Money is just paper, it's not good or evil, but the purposes it's used for can be for good or evil.
So instead of getting money to get gain for yourself, get money thinking of how many people you can help with it. Charities, churches, poor people etc. I mean, don't go and blow ALL of your money on charities lol you have to live too, but make the focus on helping others not yourself.
being selfless=happiness/joy
being selfish=misery/pain

Society does have this thing about getting money, it's ALL about money. How much money you earn, what kind of possessions you have, what cars, boats, etc. It's all about being better than someone else. This is where selfishness comes in. It's not that you can't have a nice house/car it's more about why you do it and if you have money to help others.

I wish that I could just have some part time job, and go volunteer most of my time to help/teach other people. I just need enough money to have clothes, gas, a place to stay etc. lol Just what's necessary, and then I'd love to help other people with the money i earn. And i would love to help others/do service. That's where I get my happiness.
Just to earn money for the rest of your life and that's all you focus on...that is not a happy life, it's a very hollow and sad one.

focus on others, not the self.

[Lovely Agony]

Cary Tennis is an advice columnist for Salon.com. He is a radical, former hippie, ENTP visionary, activist, and writer. I admire and respect his work and read his column daily.

Sometimes, I find that his advice is too nebulous and abstract, ostentatious, and ultimately self-serving. But, when he's good, he's f*cking good.

Today, he is f*cking good.

My favorite parts:
I’m sorry if you just want to be shown how to fit in. If you stick around you will sort of fit in a little bit. But I don’t want to see you just fit in. I want to see you find your destiny. That’s not crazy talk. It’s very real, down-to-earth talk. It’s just that your destiny may not be some world-shattering discovery. Your destiny may be something quiet and true, but you will know it. It won’t make you insecure. It will come with a kind of “aha” feeling, and a sigh of contentment.

And this:
You’re uncomfortable there because you really don’t belong.

This too:
What does it mean to be clean and comfortable if you are dead in the spirit?

And finally:
It takes a lot of courage or maybe you could call it cowardice, sometimes they look like the same thing, depending on whether you’re walking toward something or away from something, so I think the essential thing is just to be walking, and it takes courage to get up and walk.

Below is the link to "I'm Going Crazy in My Job."
I’m going crazy in my job - Salon.com

[niki]

All I can say now is:

Money entraps people/human beings, much more than we could ever initially think of.

It entraps all your talents, gifts, etc, much more than you know, because now you have to think the *how* of making/creating more MONEY with all your talents, gifts, etc.

It entraps all your freedom, much more than you know, because now instead of being an "Explorer" who are free to roam & explore this planet, you're now being slaved (almost for your entire f*cking life, even!) to make some 'cash-out' and money,
not to mention the rising interest rates, debts, taxes, and all those supposedly HELPING 'government and corporate-regulations'.......yeah right!

and this is I think perhaps the saddest, and most important thing:
It (Money) entraps so much human's POTENTIALS to do MUCH MUCH MORE, ]morethan you know, because now just simply look at when you're applying those so-called "jobs, schools" etc....and be real honest with me: how many (or very FEW!) of you're applying school/jobs because of your Potentials,..instead of just for "getting MONEY to cover your rising costs of basic needs, school's debts, rising hospital, insurance costs, etc etc" ???....

.
Things seriously need to CHANGE. in the near-future!
Money-system is a very obsolete system that we need to discard, especially not to mention how much 'wreckages' and BADthings it causes all "in-the-name-of-f*cking-MONEY-and-PROFITS", also to our environment and Mother Earth!
that's all I can say for now.
Period.

and after all of these stuff that I'm mentioning above, you STILL 'defending' the Money system, then be my guest: provide your arguments.
But one final thing I would like to address: surely you must be blind & ignorant, if you never see (or choose to NOT see) all the *LIMITING* problems the Money-system have that I've addressed above!..

All one have to look for how f*cking messed-up we are now (or perhaps actually for MOST people in this board/forum, since I'm not from U.S or Europe. I'm from Indonesia) , is just look at the global-financial crisis situation and all the HUGE worldwide protests going-on right now in many parts of our planet!

If you're wise, you surely can't deny how this whole Money (and Capitalism, all-for-Profits blah blah) system is really seriously causing all these *Limiting* problems.

think about it...! and think more of the BIGGER-picture ("see the forest instead of the trees only").
Open your mind for much much more of the BIGGER-picture. that's what I'm talking here, mostly, when I made/created this OP/thread long time ago (and still now, this recent 'deep-sh*t rant' I'm posting!)

I'm out of here.

-regards from Indonesia-
-Nik-

[crocodilescry]

I'd like to pull a Henry David Thoreau and live to observe nature. Nature doesn't worry about money.

[Veda]

This thread reminds me of some statistics I read, which polled the 'reasons' people went for higher education in the '70's versus now. The majority of people then cited "to cultivate a world philosophy", whereas now the majority of students choose response "I wanted to make more money". I think the power and economic (in)balances became much worse in the 80's...anyways, my point being that I couldn't agree more with the things being said here, and I think the dominant ideology is the reason why creative types tend to suffer from bouts of depression.