# The intuitive-percieving scatterbrain.



## JPX (Aug 10, 2012)

Is there any else that has debilitating scatterbrain at times? i.e forgetting where you put things (keys/wallet/phone) or details about what someone has said to you?.. etc. I'm assuming it's an intuitive/perceiving thing, and I've come up with a few strategies for it such as mental check-lists before I leave places. What other strategies for improving the retaining of dry but necessary details have other intuitives come up with?


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## LiquidLight (Oct 14, 2011)

Sounds like a Ne-dom thing.


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## reckful (Jun 19, 2012)

I think N's generally have a tendency to be absent-minded compared to S's. My understanding is that, all other things being equal, NPs tend to be worse than NJs, but a strong-N NJ might tend to be worse than a more borderline-N NP.

I don't know that I'd expect an EN_P (Ne-dom, if you're a functions believer) to be worse than an IN_P (Ne-aux). I think of INTP as the quintessential "absent-minded professor" type.

I'm a strong-N INTJ and I'm pretty absent-minded. Thank God for checklists (fuck "mental checklists"; I need the written kind) and having "a place for everything" so things are where I expect to find them (well, most of the time...).


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## AstralSoldier (Jun 18, 2012)

I'm a complete scatterbrain: My preference for intuition is HEAVY, and I'm so up in my head about the world going on around me, finding systems that will help me establish a more fully functional and organized life, generating questions and answers to the great mysteries of life, death, and the universe, that I didn't even notice I left the house without my keys, my phone, or both...while it's cool that I can put alot of mundane, and petty things in perspective by equating these issues to the cosmic level, I'm an INFJ, so the little things tend to escape me in my physical/concrete life and it happens, to everyone but it happens MUCH less to me as I do my mental check-lists, and I thank GOD for sticky notes; my brain for remembering things is partially swish cheese from dissociating (spacing out, it's a LONG story) and I'm working on being more integrated (thinking coherently, and being fully conscious in the moment) I think my issues are more based on my past which makes me a scatterbrain, but I would have to say doing things that engages your concrete senses, knowing what goes on and in your domain/environment and having a GOOD sense of humor helps ENORMOUSLY rather than chastising yourself for being a scatterbrain.

I've learned with exposure to new kinds of physical/concrete sensations and situations such as operating within rule-bound structures and domains helps with memorization (I know a good few intuitives who HATE rules....I know I do) and data organization/collection as well. Playing memory matching games, physical games that increase hand-eye coordination in conjunction with rules (sports in general help here). I've always been fairly athletic playing basketball when possible, I box too (I know strange right?) but it's taught me how to remember rules while using my body, as opposed to neglecting my body in favor of the boundless pursuit of engaging purely in cognitive/intellectual pursuits....it NEVER hurts to broaden your understanding of both your kinesthetic and intellectual abilities....more knowledge equals more power in my book, and MORE POWER, is always a good thing.​


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## Vaka (Feb 26, 2010)

I have big problems with my memory and forgetting things,where things are, etc., I always assumed it was ADD or me just being stupid


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## JPX (Aug 10, 2012)

AstralSoldier said:


> I've learned with exposure to new kinds of physical/concrete sensations and situations such as operating within a rule-bound structures helps with memorization (I know a good few intuitives who HATE rules....I know I do) and data organization/collection as well. Playing memory matching games, physical games that increase hand-eye coordination in conjunction with rules (sports in general help here). I've always been fairly athletic playing basketball when possible, I box too (I know strange right?) but it's taught me how to remember rules while using my body, as opposed to neglecting my body in favor of the boundless pursuit of engaging purely in cognitive/intellectual pursuits....it never hurts to broaden your understanding of both your kinesthetic and abstract abilities....more knowledge equals more power in my book, and MORE POWER, is always a good thing.​


I've thought of the rule bound structure, but have yet to implement it to a great degree. It's harder for me, because I'm a perceiving type. 
With my natural tendency of needing to see things clearly and intently I find it difficult to concentrate on multiple things at once, especially when I am under stress this mixed with my tendency to procrastinate (P?) results in me doing everything as fast as I can to compensate for the lack of preparative measures, which causes me to cut corners. Resulting in passively clumsy and forgetful behavior. Even at times where I use a mental checklist I will end up leaving and realizing that I forgot something when its too late -.-
I manage to overcome some of these things when I bartend, so it's possible. The problem is not as much physical as it is mental with me. I'm naturally very agile and reactive which Ne helps with a lot. But I find that when I rush things (natural habit), my physical and verbal actions become stuttered and backtracking. When I am familiar/comfortable with what I'm doing my actions are smooth, deliberate, and intuitive. 
Its also worth a mention that I have a pretty bad habit of not seeing things that are right in front of my face when I'm searching for them (Intuitive?). It's almost as if I cannot process what I'm seeing beyond a general level sometimes. You say you boxed? That's cool, I myself have been involved in martial arts now for about 2 and a half years. (MMA and Kickboxing) I feel I have a good sense of kinesthetics and the natural rules that weave the physical universe together. I exercise daily including running and weightlifting.


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## LiquidLight (Oct 14, 2011)

JPX said:


> I've thought of the rule bound structure, but have yet to implement it to a great degree. It's harder for me, because I'm a perceiving type.
> With my natural tendency of needing to see things clearly and intently I find it difficult to concentrate on multiple things at once, especially when I am under stress this mixed with my tendency to procrastinate (P?) results in me doing everything as fast as I can to compensate for the lack of preparative measures, which causes me to cut corners. Resulting in passively clumsy and forgetful behavior. Even at times where I use a mental checklist I will end up leaving and realizing that I forgot something when its too late -.-
> I manage to overcome some of these things when I bartend, so it's possible. The problem is not as much physical as it is mental with me. I'm naturally very agile and reactive which Ne helps with a lot. But I find that when I rush things (natural habit), my physical and verbal actions become stuttered and backtracking. When I am familiar/comfortable with what I'm doing my actions are smooth, deliberate, and intuitive.
> Its also worth a mention that I have a pretty bad habit of not seeing things that are right in front of my face when I'm searching for them (Intuitive?). It's almost as if I cannot process what I'm seeing beyond a general level sometimes. You say you boxed? That's cool, I myself have been involved in martial arts now for about 2 and a half years. (MMA and Kickboxing) I feel I have a good sense of kinesthetics and the natural rules that weave the physical universe together. I exercise daily including running and weightlifting.


This all sounds like the words of a dominant intuitive. I mean this post almost screams inferior sensation function.


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## Vanishing Point (Oct 2, 2012)

I'm an INFJ with a high N and I can be so terribly scatterbrained it's not funny. I might forget what day/week etc. it is and my appointments and such just seem to spring on me when I'm going through a more introspective phase. Stress does the same. If I'm stresses things start falling out of my hands, I don't put my keys etc. to their "assigned places" and consequently everything is lost all the time. I'm late for everything, my house becomes a huge mess (usually I just make myself focus on keeping it decent) and I used to be too absentminded to bother cooking and just ate some weird dish like plumbs and fish for a week. 
I find exercise helps, as does painting. Funny that martial arts thing: I had a huge thing for martial arts as a child but my parents were less than encouraging as I was a petite bookish girl. I always wanted to do Kendo, Karate and boxing. From what I've kind of gathered atleast alot of male INFJs seem to have a real soft spot for martial arts. I did too though I'm not a guy. My husband is a Ne-dom and he did Kickboxing in his youth.


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## Entropic (Jun 15, 2012)

I think it is also part a problem for all introverts in general becaues introverts focus more on their internal world over the external. I have an ISTP friend who is a bit clumsy and forgetful too, but nowhere near as clumsy and forgetful as I am. I think the key to anyone who experiences this is mindfulness - it helps you to learn to focus on what's here and now instead of what's in your head so you remember where you put those keys next time because your focus is on the keys, not why it's so cool if you could build a hover bed.

The worst thing is of course when you try to remember to write down whatever you need to remember so you don't forget, but then you forget to write down the note.


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## AstralSoldier (Jun 18, 2012)

JPX said:


> I've thought of the rule bound structure, but have yet to implement it to a great degree. It's harder for me, because I'm a perceiving type.


Well, I've learned when it comes to implementing a new habit, structure, or routine, as long as there's a benefit to reap from the point of implementation, it's worth engaging in, if there is no benefit, it's discarded. I take in what is most useful, and discard what isn't. But seeing how I'm a J, I do prefer to bring things to a close so I can progress forward. In the interest of logic, what is the point of simply generating possibilities if they aren't focused upon a set goal for use/execution? Remember, you're dominant function is Ti, (my auxiliary function) logic should always be your comfort center when working, logic produces tangible/workable/objective data and results by taking note and observation of what currently IS, does it not? Keeping that in mind rules, logic, and data are apart of your functional structure.



> With my natural tendency of needing to see things clearly and intently I find it difficult to concentrate on multiple things at once, especially when I am under stress this mixed with my tendency to procrastinate (P?) results in me doing everything as fast as I can to compensate for the lack of preparative measures, which causes me to cut corners. Resulting in passively clumsy and forgetful behavior. Even at times where I use a mental checklist I will end up leaving and realizing that I forgot something when its too late -.-


Being an INFJ, and having Ti as your tertiary function (one in which I'm extremely skilled at using) I prefer to have a pristine understanding of what I'm engaging in but I use schedules as a means to reflect the limit of the amount of time needed to be spent looking for data per task. Meditating is a good way to clear your mind, and I do it everyday as a means of clearing my thoughts, and keeping them off things that distract my focus so it razor sharp. Procrastination can, work against you, especially when it comes to needing to have contingency plans for situations; I usually plan in advanced, and don't actually do much spontaneously, (unless there's time for it, which isn't spontaneous at all really) but it saves me from cutting corners, and encountering situations that warrant a (for lack of better terminology) 'Fuck it' response and winging it...Seems to me that you need something concrete to anchor/connect your thoughts to as needed since you flit so fast through ideas in your mind; a pen and pad is something that you can feel/hold and use to record needed items that can be triggered by your long-term/habitual memory to look at when doing your check list so you don't forget...you'll have to work at being more organized and prepared ahead of time as that's the ONLY real way to beat out the procrastination, and corner cutting.




> I manage to overcome some of these things when I bartend, so it's possible. The problem is not as much physical as it is mental with me. I'm naturally very agile and reactive which Ne helps with a lot. But I find that when I rush things (natural habit), my physical and verbal actions become stuttered and backtracking. When I am familiar/comfortable with what I'm doing my actions are smooth, deliberate, and intuitive.


Yep, it is possible to overcome the scatterbrained, procrastinating ways we all have. Organization and preparation is the key, but I can also see how to some NP's that pre-prep/organization can be irritating because you guys tend to be reactive, and usually when you're in your 'flow' you guys are the first to respond when it comes to discovering a protocol for how things should work I trust INTP/J's, and when you see the potential pitfalls, and logic present you guys are fast damage controllers, but I've learned when one puts a conscious effort into thinking consciously through something and being an introverted intuitive, there is a 'delay' between the time of reception, of the information needed, and the output of the data received and intent deduced through Ne; as you said, once you have a protocol established, everything runs smoothly and intuitively; so I take it your intuition isn't 'on the fly' and more 'system sympathetic' in that you design/seek most efficient protocols for dealing with what is currently in front of you?



> Its also worth a mention that I have a pretty bad habit of not seeing things that are right in front of my face when I'm searching for them (Intuitive?). It's almost as if I cannot process what I'm seeing beyond a general level sometimes. You say you boxed? That's cool, I myself have been involved in martial arts now for about 2 and a half years. (MMA and Kickboxing) I feel I have a good sense of kinesthetics and the natural rules that weave the physical universe together. I exercise daily including running and weightlifting.


Ditto when it comes to finding stuff; I could literally be looking at something I need, and look right past it as if I didn't even see it because my mind might have shifted to another random thought, which somehow the thought of the keys get's dislodged, and then I ask myself 'what the HELL was I just looking for?!'...THAT just goes to show you how bad my Se is, but that also coincides with some 'past issues' that I'm still trying to work through...that effected my use/familiarity with Se, because I wasn't ever functionally involved with anything going on outside of myself, so my Se, is coming back and I want to strengthen it to enjoy what goes on around my physically, but I get what you mean. I have boxed since I was 14, and engaged in other forms of Martial Arts and it GREATLY improved my kinesthetics, and helps with my dissociative spells. I have to ground myself, and irronically, a punch to the face is enough to keep you on your toes to throw a good round house kick to the other guy. Running's good, but I've found that anything that triggers 'highway hypnosis' through drifting thoughts, doesn't really help you focus on concrete absorption of your environment...

I don't know about you, but when I used to run, I would always get this 'runner's hypnosis' that would involve me sort of listening to my feet beating a set rhythm against the ground, and I would just run on automatic, and think, but I wouldn't take in surroundings...kinda like 'highway hypnosis' but with running...as I said, the amount of disconnect that I have between my awareness and body is a result of my Se (external awareness of things) function being so weakly developed because of my past. I REALLY need to lift though, and believe it or not, because I miss it, and I've got the body for weight-lifting. I already have the shape needed, I just have to hit the weights, maybe get a trainer/nutritionist, do some research on my body type (Mesomorphic) and put it all to work.


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## saturnne (Sep 8, 2009)

I journal. (And read them over, which is the more important part.)


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## renna (Jan 28, 2011)

It has to do with N's in general and the balancing of chemicals in our brain. 

Want more of a scientific reasoning? Here is something elvis2010 had quoted somewhere else but is still applicable to this:



> Dopamine has to do with focus and pleasure. People with low dopamine are always forgetting where they place household items because they are so distracted contemplating the universe. That behavior shows me the lack of focus.
> 
> After having typed thousands of people and treated hundreds of Ns, it is patently obvious to me that what makes Ns Ns are low dopamine/high glutamate and what makes Ss Ss are more normal dopamine/glutamate levels.
> 
> Instead of the politically charged phrase ADD, I just ask people how often they lose their wallet, keys, or phone. Recalling where items are requires focus that low dopamine Ns usually lack. Again, I am not talking misplacement, but actually losing said keys where a locksmith needs to be called.


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## JungyesMBTIno (Jul 22, 2011)

The only reason I can see this playing into the persona of an NP would be if, in a Jungian sense, the person was very extraverted. I don't actually think Ne is the scatterbrain function from a Jungian standpoint at all (this might be more of an inferior Si manifestation of not paying attention to the actual details around, perhaps, or getting caught up in impressions) - analysts like Marie Louise Von Franz made out the inferior Se types to be likely some of the most randomly-functioning people out there who do things very improvisationally to the point that outsiders might see them as disorganized. Scatterbrain tendencies in general probably have no bearing on type - they might just reflect mental processing quirks of the individual. Calling someone a scatterbrain in today's world very often carries some kind of persona connotation (e.g. if you act hyper, people tend to jump to conclusions that you're a scatterbrain).


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## LiquidLight (Oct 14, 2011)

Yea @JungyesMBTIno makes a good point. Scatterbrained as compared to what? Says who? At what point is someone not focused enough to be considered 'scatterbrained' and who is determining this. It could be this is just a normal person in a too-rigid environment.


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## mell (Aug 9, 2012)

LeaT said:


> I think it is also part a problem for all introverts in general becaues introverts focus more on their internal world over the external. I have an ISTP friend who is a bit clumsy and forgetful too, but nowhere near as clumsy and forgetful as I am. I think the key to anyone who experiences this is mindfulness - it helps you to learn to focus on what's here and now instead of what's in your head so you remember where you put those keys next time because your focus is on the keys, not why it's so cool if you could build a hover bed.
> 
> The worst thing is of course when you try to remember to write down whatever you need to remember so you don't forget, but then you forget to write down the note.


So let's say an introverted intuitive, like an INTP, wants to focus on the here and now and stop focusing on his inner world so much. So this guy starts practicing yoga, meditation, mindfulness, etc which seem to be "perfect" for the Ni-Se user rather than an Ne-Si user. I'm not totally clear on this but it seems like mindfulness is about placing your full attention to the present moment without placing any judgement upon it. Sounds like Se to me. I would assume being mindful of your present situation would also build Ni. But what about our INTP who doesn't have Se in his stack but Si instead. How would those practices affect this person or maybe other people without Se or Ni like ENFP, ISTJ, etc.


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## LiquidLight (Oct 14, 2011)

mell said:


> So let's say an introverted intuitive, like an INTP, wants to focus on the here and now and stop focusing on his inner world so much. So this guy starts practicing yoga, meditation, mindfulness, etc which seem to be "perfect" for the Ni-Se user rather than an Ne-Si user. I'm not totally clear on this but it seems like mindfulness is about placing your full attention to the present moment without placing any judgement upon it. Sounds like Se to me. I would assume being mindful of your present situation would also build Ni. But what about our INTP who doesn't have Se in his stack but Si instead. How would those practices affect this person or maybe other people without Se or Ni like ENFP, ISTJ, etc.


INTP is not an introverted intuitive. INTP is an Introverted Thinking type (abstract theorist), so consequently should have significantly less issues around his sensation function than a true introverted intuitive (INFJ, INTJ). INTPs issues (those that you could trace back to functions) will tend to revolve around the feeling function.


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## JungyesMBTIno (Jul 22, 2011)

LiquidLight said:


> INTP is not an introverted intuitive. INTP is an Introverted Thinking type (abstract theorist), so consequently should have significantly less issues around his sensation function than a true introverted intuitive (INFJ, INTJ). INTPs issues (those that you could trace back to functions) will tend to revolve around the feeling function.


True. My twin seems to absorb sensory detail involuntarily (accurately, especially in more of an Si sense of universal kinds of appearances), while I always feel like some deliberation (however conscious) is required to zone in.


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## mell (Aug 9, 2012)

LiquidLight said:


> INTP is not an introverted intuitive. INTP is an Introverted Thinking type (abstract theorist), so consequently should have significantly less issues around his sensation function than a true introverted intuitive (INFJ, INTJ). INTPs issues (those that you could trace back to functions) will tend to revolve around the feeling function.


Excuse my wording. I meant an introvert who has Ne-Si. Well I suppose this could apply to any type with Ne-Si or Si-Ne. So an INFP or INTP shouldn't have much problem with their sensing but what if they want to be more like the Se user and take everything for what it is in the moment. Are they still going to be using the Ne-Si to accomplish that goal of being completely in the present moment or are they awakening some sort of hidden Se?


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## JungyesMBTIno (Jul 22, 2011)

mell said:


> Excuse my wording. I meant an introvert who has Ne-Si. Well I suppose this could apply to any type with Ne-Si or Si-Ne. So an INFP or INTP shouldn't have much problem with their sensing but what if they want to be more like the Se user and take everything for what it is in the moment. Are they still going to be using the Ne-Si to accomplish that goal of being completely in the present moment or are they awakening some sort of hidden Se?


I would think "awakening," but I'm not sure in terms of Jung. Se conflicts enough with Ne that I doubt that these types would be driven to an Se mentality purely for the sake of it (maybe if they have to, but if we look at this from the Beebe perspective, Se would be some kind of trickster complex that would unconsciously take hold of the person under specific circumstances).


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## JPX (Aug 10, 2012)

I feel like I take the general picture of something in before I take in the details. It almost feels as if Ne is absorbing the whole frame and Si pinpoints things that are familiar.. Unfortunately, since Si is my tertiary function it is not always the most accurate. It's got a lag almost and I have to consciously picture how something looks in my head sometimes just to find it (Another trick I've used)


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