[nevermore]

People usually gravitate to those who they have more in common with, who communication is easier with - its not a prejudice, but a preference.

Absolutely. But sadly, there is a lot of really disgusting Sensor prejudice on these forums.

Not having much in common with someone is fine. I don't generally have that much in common with Sensors (weirdly, even ISTP's, who are also Ti-doms...I find I actually have more in common with ENFJ's than I do with ISTP's). I really wish it weren't so, because most people are Sensors and I would not feel so isolated, but I'm stuck really only ever being able to understand fellow N's well.

Considering your personality "better" than theirs, however, is a whole other kettle of fish, and that happens a LOT here. And a lot of the prejudice isn't even accurate. I actually saw a thread not too long ago titled: "do Sensors daydream?"...



I felt like banging my head against my desk.

[faeriegal713]

Do I have a prejudice against Sensors? No, there are too many in my life for that to be possible - mother, father, brother, roommates and all but a handful of friends (only one friend that lives in the same state as me is an Intutive, the others are all in different states/countries) - but there are times when I feel like I just live in a completely different world from what they do. My perception of the world is different, and really, it's not a bad thing, just really annoying when we're unable to communicate effectively with each other.

I have found that I have a harder time communicating with STs, but that has much more to do with Fi dom butting up against concrete Thinking and I have learned how to go around it since that sort of thinking is what dominates our society. If I don't want to be made a victim or make myself into a victim, I have to adjust and adapt where necessary in my work/public life, and it truly has helped in my private life as well.

I do have to admit that there are times when I want to *headdesk* over trying to explain something that to me is really quite simple and easy to understand, but which seems like it must be rocket science to others. Intuitive leaps only serve us where they can be easily shared, and sometimes that sharing bit is not so easy. But it's worth the effort since that new idea can then be shared more easily with the rest of the group/community/world and that is awesome.

Plus, I'm sure many Sensors, especially the STs get pretty irritated with me and why can't I just spit it out and tell them what is going on in my head in plain English? Or why is it so difficult for me to see what is right in front of me? And I'm trying to figure out why they're not looking at this shiny thing way the heck over here, so... we're even I suppose.

[ItsAlwaysSunny]

I can get along with sensors, and they can get along with me. The only problem is when a sensor is not compromising to the bigger picture or is indulging in everything, rather than doing what they should be doing. Similarly, I assume that they get annoyed when I ignore what's right in front of me and don't try to experience new things.

We're even.

This. ^^^^^

Edit: I have no prejudice against them.

[SnnyYellow]

I don't we're all necessarily prejudice or anything. Like mentioned before, it's just harder to connect with S's that's all. I have a significantly more difficult time connecting with S's on a deep level. I find that all the sensors I know are WAY too preoccupied with going along the familiar path in life, too preoccupied with achieving stability, and less accepting of seemingly far-fetched thoughts. It doesn't make me prejudice in thinking so, I've just felt this way. As a result, my preferred choice of people to surround myself with are N's--but I don't hate the sensors in my life. I have two sensor friends, an ESFJ and an ISTJ friend, all of whom I care deeply about. I just prefer N's because they "get me" more, and I understand them better too. But I don't believe that I'll like every N I meet either...

[dagnytaggart]

I've noticed that I myself have a preference for fellow intuitives and become rather frustrated and drained by most high sensor types. I understand they have a more practical intelligence for concrete things in nature but I do tend to notice that I think of them as rather simple and I feel rather arrogant that I don't view them as intelligent... Do any of you find yourselves doing the same?

Good for you for admitting it. Strictly S people annoy me, but at the same thing, I envy their attention to detail. Forgetting details has tripped me up a lot in life.

[Aelthwyn]

I can see a tendancy toward this in myself, although I try not to let it come out. It comes from many of the ones I know not being able to really track with me and stick with me while I talk about ideas. It's pretty disappointing when I really like someone and want to enjoy the shared energy of getting swept up in an idea and thoroughly discussing it, but they're getting antsy, or not really comprehending, or taking it all the wrong way. I can't help feeling a little bit like they're not as smart. I know it isn't true, and I'd never say that any of them was stupid. It really is just being different, and not being able to truely understand eachother.

I'm probably going to make wrong generalizations here, but here's a few thoughts I've had on this issue.

I feel like our society places a lot of value on being intellectual in a very abstract sense. People seem to respect those who theorize and philosophise, often assuming that because they can't understand it it must be really profound, heh. I'm not saying that Ss aren't scholars, or aren't intellectual, but that they are more often perceieved as not being so. I think perhaps their ability to give practical examples, and to be organized and specific, may make their explainations of things seem more clear and simple - rather than 'out there' and unattainable, thereby making people percieve them as less impressively intellectual. Also in the 'information age' those people who have greater ability in physical skills are very underappreciated, and my guess would be that Ss would be more likely to be great at working with their hands, using tools, and things like that, while Ns would be more likely to be attracted to working with ideas. Think about grade school P.E. classes, the kids who have good aim, the kids who enjoy activity - they're the stars, while the kids who space out and miss the ball, the kids who aren't gracefull at interacting with their environment, the kids with two left feet get made fun of or left out. If society expected people to commonly have more skills which required such things as awareness of one's surroundings and interaction with physical objects, I have a feeling that Ns might be the ones often percieved as 'slow' or stupid. I know a lot of times I look stupid to others because I am totally oblivious to things right in front of my face, run into walls, don't know how to do stuff, etc. I think that's related to N anyways.

[Beta Male]

I get along really well with my ISTJ parents and ESFJ sister (who routinely comes up with witty comebacks and is just a silly blast to hang out with).

I've also been able to connect fairly well with some ISFJs.

I don't think I've ever been able to hold a conversation with SPs. It isn't for a lack of trying. An SP and I can't go 30 seconds without both of us wanting out of the conversation. The feeling is mutual. We'll nod, smile, shake hands, and then go talk to someone else at a party. I rely heavily on my Ne for social situations.

[chaeriean]

wtf how do you "not relate" with sensors? is there some secret sensor code to doing things that is completely different from an intuitive? do you both not speak the same language or do the same things? oh, or maybe you guys all just think these amazing, deep, philosophical thoughts that we clearly are unable to comprehend...

i'm sorry but this post, like the same post of the same name in the nt forums which was promptly verbally crushed by everybody there, is ridiculous.

Considering your personality "better" than theirs, however, is a whole other kettle of fish, and that happens a LOT here. And a lot of the prejudice isn't even accurate. I actually saw a thread not too long ago titled: "do Sensors daydream?"...

it's things like this that are so common among this board and they are starting to piss me off. these intuitives who basically think they are better than sensors, and they try to hide it by saying "oh, well, i just can't get along with them, i just don't understand them, that doesn't make me prejudiced or anything.." the only reason you can't get along with sensors is because throughout your life, you have been "different" from everybody else and "misunderstood" which means basically "omg every sensor on the planet ~~hates me~~" which has now morphed into the classic Intuitive Superiority Complex Defense Mechanism Against Outside Sensor Civilization.

to this board:

we're not less intelligent than you are. we just have enough common sense not to talk to people who think we're morons. when you show you can genuinely respect us and our opinions, then we'll talk to you. when you enter into a board and yell "sensors just...you know...seem a little less bright..." wow, man, that was some prime opening there! gets the conversational juices flowing, all the sensors are coming out of the woodwork to sit down and have a nice long intelligent discussion with you, huh? NO. we're not. because you're presenting yourself like an idiot. you pick out all the people in your life you think are stupid and slap SENSOR on their metaphorical foreheads. we can pick up on that kind of stuff, and don't really have any use for doing it.

if people didn't understand you as a kid you were probably weird. we are not that stupid that we don't understand abstraction. you are not some big giant mystery. i understand the nfs in my life perfectly fine. i don't relate with their style of thinking but it's not so Horribly Removed From Reality that i cannot actually comprehend it. there are dumb sensors, just like there are dumb intuitives. we think about things differently, something i've learned a lot about since interacting with an intuitive, my wife, every single day. but that doesn't mean i can't understand how she processes the world, even on a purely intellectual level.

sorry that we're this mystical race that you can't seem to get, but that doesn't make us stupid. it just makes us different than you. to be perfectly honest, i don't really see that as a bad thing if you're going to insult our intelligence based on one letter of mbti.

[Btmangan]

the only reason you can't get along with sensors is because throughout your life, you have been "different" from everybody else and "misunderstood" which means basically "omg every sensor on the planet ~~hates me~~" which has now morphed into the classic Intuitive Superiority Complex Defense Mechanism Against Outside Sensor Civilization.

I have found, generally, that I get along better with ISFJs than w/ most other sensors. Or maybe I just got lucky w/ my two ISFJ friends... as they are probably some of the sweetest friends I've ever had and we have excellent conversations.

I appreciate your view, I really do. A lot of intuitives carry on claiming to be "better than Sensors". If I were a Sensor with my own strengths and weaknesses, I'd resent the shit out of that sentiment. But this is just about where your logic leaves me behind.

People should be judged on their merits, not their titles. However, that doesn't change the fact that an INFJ generally carries himself in a different way than an ESTP. There are overarching style differences. If there weren't any differences at all, then MBTI would be a worthless pile of dung.

As long as there are style differences between the types, people are allowed to have preferences, and to have other styles they "Do not like." or "are not comfortable with".

Let me present a hypothetical: A girl wants to date a feeler, because she wants to date a man who is more strongly led by emotion and passion than by intellect. So she endeavorers to find herself a feeling man.

Is it cool for a T type guy to roll in and start shouting at her for being typist. "ZOMG YOU HATE T TYPES. YOUR RACIST. WHY DONT YOU DATE A T TYPE."

Would that be fair? No, it wouldn't be fair. In fact, it's downright logically authoritarian, and it's fucked up and no one should have to deal with their preferences being scrutinized.

Not just in relationships, but preferences in all walks of life are immune from scrutiny. They are simply subjective choices.

if people didn't understand you as a kid you were probably weird. we are not that stupid that we don't understand abstraction. you are not some big giant mystery.

Okay, this sentence is a problem.

Define: Weird

Tell us what weird means. Does it mean "not like you"?

[chaeriean]

As long as there are style differences between the types, people are allowed to have preferences, and to have other styles they "Do not like." or "are not comfortable with". Let me present a hypothetical: A girl wants to date a feeler, because she wants to date a man who is more strongly led by emotion and passion than by intellect. So she endeavorers to find herself a feeling man. Is it cool for a T type guy to roll in and start shouting at her for being typist. "ZOMG YOU HATE T TYPES. YOUR RACIST. WHY DONT YOU DATE A T TYPE."

...this would make sense if i were talking about whether or not people preferred intuitives over sensors. i've never implied or stated anything to the contrary. i'm talking about people who make assertions to the fact that sensors are unintelligent and believe they are better. if you're referring to my very obviously sarcastic statement up there, the underlying message was fairly simple to grasp and i don't think you have grasped it. the pattern for many intuitives who dislike and/or feel better than sensors are intuitives who feel oppressed by sensors and want to rebel against the idea of a common sensor society. i'm not talking about people who genuinely don't understand us, but yeah, going "i don't understand them. gtfo," is not exactly the most logical and interpersonal viewpoint. you really think everybody should shun everything they don't understand? i'm not talking about dating, i'm talking about interaction. refusing to interact with somebody based on one letter of their mbti status is judgmental and closed-minded. i'm not sure where you thought i was referring to anything else. as for being "weird", i mean weird in the generalized sense. most intuitives feel misunderstood because of how they perceive the world, their big-picture thinking, the fact that they're often more in their heads, how they make connections between random things, how they like to talk about "in-depth" things, whatever you naturally associate with being an intuitive. except. that isn't really the most difficult thing to understand. so if someone is misunderstanding you, they're an idiot - or you were just really weird and you're blaming it on your intuition. and by the way, if someone said, "i'd rather date an intuitive - because sensors are stupid." yeah, that is typist. so there you are.