# instinctual stacking and career choice



## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

I am a sx/sp instinct. with a strong sp. 

its funny because just the other day I was telling my husband how I think I have a "strong sp" and how I feel like the one word that really describes me (at heart) is: wanderer. amusingly enough, I recently happened upon this description. 

"sx/sp (strong sp) Wanderer - the most clasically 'blocked' of the sx's, often exchanging intimacy in favor of the more immediate pleasures of the body. paradoxically the most wandering and restless of the sx/sp's. pulls from sp/so to ensure the sx flood is contained by the sp levee, which can provide a sense of stability at the expense of seeming put off by others. sex can mean a hollow satisfying of the instinct while more vulnerable feelings are suspended. quietly charged but muted, and can seem self pres first. 
sp/sx"

also this ... not as pertinent- "sx/sp: Intense, often a stab-in-the-chest sensation, leaving me in tears without knowing why. Fantastical but much more concentrated in a few inner images. Can be abstract, animating dead objects into their field of contemplation. Embodiment of another human, thing, or idea is common in their writings."

I really relate to the stab-in-the-chest-cry bit. a lot. 

I'm also INFJ 9w8 tritype 974 ('the healer')

anyway ... I am fickle. and easily bored. I tested initially as a type 7 on the enneagram before figuring out I was a 9. I feel so much of my head 7w8 its ridiculous. and sexual 7's seem to have issues with moving from one thing to another. I also have the burning 4w5 bohemianesque heart center that feels like its ruining me some days. It can be so strong. perhaps my sx/sp's desire to wander is part of the intensity/unrest I am attributing to the 4w5. bohemians are essentially wanderers and adventurers, as are 7's, no? 

I feel like its somewhat hopeless. it feels every part of my typology points to being a weirdo.
Ni dom. 
Introvert
sx/sp-crazy
the flip/flop of 9&8 - though I love my 8 wing.
that need for individualism -4 heart triad.

it could be worse. I've read about more conflicted typologies. guess I'm being dramatic. except for my instinctual stacking. that is the stuff of conflicted individuals. which reminds me of the description for the 9w8sx/sp - "unless they can find something to keep them sane"... 

anyway I like weirdness and all. but its not helping me chose a career path. I'm also not particularly motivated by status, or money, alone. and I want to make a difference in the world- but more then wanting to help others I want to feel alive/passionate for myself. and helping others, though rewarding, is not what makes me feel truly alive for me. I have discovered. The only thing that I can think of that makes me come alive is going to new places and learning. anything that leaves me feeling free. unattached. not "needed". no pressures or obligations that are overwhelming. 

I think I might go to school to be a health care professional. PA or RN. I read that sexual 9's can be just as caring as type 2's. and mix that with my Fe and my 974 ... I really am the type of person to want to be some type of 'healer'. I can be very empathetic and nurturing. I have thought about working as a midwife. and I don't have much interest in the more alternative health fields only because I doubt I would be able to make enough money to cover the cost of training/schooling. although i love alternative health stuffs, just not as a career for me. I have no interest in be in mental-health services, too much of a downer. ... but the problem is: I am worried I will get bored with it. And irritated that I don't have a proper creative outlet in my work. And I will feel like a sell-out, because I want to travel and create and express myself. along with autonomy. ... and a regular paycheck. I might like a job being a nurse or something, but I don't think in 10 yrs I will feel fulfilled. and that is fuel for a midlife crisis. Also, I don't know if its because I am a somewhat messy type 9 INFJ, but I have no interest in being responsible for a business of any type, either. I don't want the constant work and organization of doing my own thing. I would like to have a boss, less worry that way. I want to work to live, not live to work. I have considered jobs that involve travel, too. but because I have a family I can't be gone for months at a time. perhaps working as a flight attendant would be a low-stress (low-mental-requirement for me) type of job that enables travel with free flights. but I don't know if that is right for me either. maybe. I've thought about maybe working for a bakery, but I am sure that would get old fast - too much detailed work. even though I occasionally enjoy baking/decorating treats. 

... I feel like there isn't anything I could commit to. and maybe that is my answer. there will be more than one job. but a part of me feels like that is not reaching my full potential. but another part of me feels like slowly-dying in an unfulfilling job is not my reaching my potential either. 

its easy for me to slip into a sp/so role. i feel that in me. for years I tried that role on. and I had trouble with feeling unfulfilled. which leads to a lack of happiness, or self-love. which leads to not being present for others, or feeling truly alive. and eventually ends in a breakdown. or spiritual awakening. 

anyway... tangent. 

I just want a few ideas... career ideas for a Wandering Soul. 

"not all who wander are lost" 
"a lack of passion is fatal"


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## RepairmanMan Man (Jan 21, 2012)

This is the kind of thing that makes me lean more towards sx/sp instead of sx/soc. I am certainly a wanderer.

You always could do what I do and be a wandering English teacher--though with a family, this may be difficult. The nice thing, though, is that you can settle down and stay in a chosen country as long as you want.


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## Entropic (Jun 15, 2012)

Interesting. I typed as sp/sx for the longest type, part because people told me I seemed sp first, part because I scored sp first on online tests and part because sp first kind of made sense because I had a hard time seeing how the sx part of seeking relationships attributed to me and I do identify with so blind spot. I don't even fundamentally understand what so is about... Which suggests strong sp and sx to the point where so is entirely supressed. But then I had an even harder time seeing how people seem to define sp as financial security and so on to describe me either.

Upon further analysis, I think the easiest way to detect sx/sp over sp/sx is where your motivation is headed in times of sx and sp conflict: do you feel sp is keeping you away from sx stuff or do you feel sx is keeping you away from sp stuff?


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

Typewatch Enneagram

Typewatch's: the 3 ranges of sx/sp:


sx/sp seducer (weak sp) - sx in full command produces an active recruiter of potential mates; but being sx/sp this remains in the yin mode of seducing. charismatic and overtly sexualized, arguably the most purely sx of all stacks and ranges. draws from so/sx shadow to liven up sx into an erotic playfulness and to keep sx far ahead of their relatively nominal sp. an emotional yearning to their mating ritual; an inherently unstable range that can lead to a pattern of serial heartbreak. often confused for sx/so. 


sx/sp mystifier (midrange) - the range where the mystique of the sx/sp stack is at its strongest. unconsciously attracts with intense eye contact and other sx feelers, but holds back enough to give them a kind of untouchable or hard to get close to quality. depending on their true intentions this can either frustrate their sx or reward their functional sp cooling system. like midrangers of all stacks, there's a seemingly casual approach to meeting their variant needs as the secondary instinct is kept both in play and at bay, and others may wonder what they really want. 


sx/sp wanderer (strong sp) - the most clasically 'blocked' of the sx's, often exchanging intimacy in favor of the more immediate pleasures of the body. paradoxically the most wandering and restless of the sx/sp's. pulls from sp/so to ensure the sx flood is contained by the sp levee, which can provide a sense of stability at the expense of seeming put off by others. sex can mean a hollow satisfying of the instinct while more vulnerable feelings are suspended. quietly charged but muted, and can seem self pres first. 
sp/sx


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

and ... sp/sx

Quote
I believe ezra, you are what I call an 'ascetic' sp/sx. the range of sp/sx where sx is the weakest relative to the other two ranges of sp/sx, and sp the most dominant influence. thus an orientation to meeting personal needs above all else, rather than seeking comforts and indulgences above other concerns. ascetics are usually markedly more disciplined and dry than the other end of sp/sx, the decadent range (where sx is nearly even with sp) - and can even pass off as sx last.
--------
decadent sp/sx (weakside sp) - shifts to sx/so (secondary) - borrows sx energy to keep sx second strong
binger sp/sx - true sp/sx
ascetic sp/sx (strongside sp) - shifts to so/sp (shadow) - borrows sx-last energy to keep sp firmly in control


sp/sx

Quote
the sp/sx decadent range tips almost even between sp and sx, so the sx/so burns through more easily, and everyone kind of expects it. sp/sx ascetics are the furthest away from sx within sp/sx, but when the moon is full and they break into sx/so mode, it's pretty funny and/or scary.

the infamous staring tendencies of sp/sx's seem to vary according to the sx level. decadents might stare flirtatiously and inadvertently give the wrong signal. ascetics might be intently watchful in a way that seems colder or more vigilant. midrangers should seem a bit casual or lazy about it by comparison.


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

and this: http://theenneagram.blogspot.com/2007/09/instinctual-variant-stackings.html


sx/sp: *Mindset*: "If I can make (us) have an orderly & pleasing lifestyle, I can keep up and escalate all this merging/intensity."

sp/sx: *Mindset*: "I can have merging/intensity without having to leave my orderly & pleasing lifestyle." (imagination, safe people and relationships, when the safety of these are challenged they withdraw)


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## Lotan (Aug 10, 2012)

The "binger" sp/sx description on Typewatch fits me very well.

In terms of careers, it's been difficult for me because, well, I'm an sp 7. When I see career suggestions for 7s, a lot of them involve freelancing, having your own business, jumping from job to job, riskier professions where you either make it or break it (actor, comedian) etc all of which conflict with my sp want of stability. So basically, I want a job that isn't too constraining or limiting on my freedom but is also stable and secure so I don't have to be worried about whether or not I'll still be employed next month all the time.

Eventually I settled on computer programming because technology is an ever-changing field but the skills it takes to work with computers are also high in demand in most employment markets.


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## bluekitdon (Dec 19, 2012)

Careers for INFJ Personality Types

Possible Career Paths for the INFJ:

Clergy / Religious Work
Teachers
Medical Doctors / Dentists
Alternative Health Care Practitioners, i.e. Chiropractor, Reflexologist
Psychologists
Psychiatrists
Counselors and Social Workers
Musicians and Artists
Photographers
Child Care / Early Childhood Development


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

bluekitdon said:


> Careers for INFJ Personality Types
> 
> Possible Career Paths for the INFJ:
> 
> ...



doctor, artist/actor, photographer. 

those are the only ones I could do. though i have considered most all of them. 

maybe a wildlife photographer for a magazine. 

-thanks


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

Lotan said:


> The "binger" sp/sx description on Typewatch fits me very well.
> 
> In terms of careers, it's been difficult for me because, well, I'm an sp 7. When I see career suggestions for 7s, a lot of them involve freelancing, having your own business, jumping from job to job, riskier professions where you either make it or break it (actor, comedian) etc all of which conflict with my sp want of stability. So basically, I want a job that isn't too constraining or limiting on my freedom but is also stable and secure so I don't have to be worried about whether or not I'll still be employed next month all the time.
> 
> Eventually I settled on computer programming because technology is an ever-changing field but the skills it takes to work with computers are also high in demand in most employment markets.


thanks. 

it sounds like we are pretty much the same in that regard. want for freedom/change, etc. but still wanting security. I think actor sounds like a good one. but. i dunno. fame is almost slightly appealing and completely repulsive all at the same time (not that fame and acting always co-exist). I want so badly to keep the flame in me burning, its hard to keep it up when you are completely secure. which sounds dysfunctional, but its the truth. I think. anyway thanks for sharing


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

Sp/Sx Accounting Major here. stereotypically Sp, not exactly stereotypically Sp/Sx (actually, most of the ones I know are So/Sp or So/Sx ironically enough)


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## Kito (Jan 6, 2012)

holyrockthrower said:


> This is the kind of thing that makes me lean more towards sx/sp instead of sx/soc. I am certainly a wanderer.


Me also. The idea of doing a job I don't enjoy simply because it's safe makes me want to cry. (sp/sx)


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## Entropic (Jun 15, 2012)

I can't choose a job for the sake of security. I've been told by most of my relatives now that it doesn't matter if I have to deal with shit pay and shit work hours if it's a job and I can eventually work my way up the ladder and get better conditions. Sorry, I can't. If it's not enjoyable, I just can't do it. I can't go to a job where I know I'll feel unhappy. I would have a mental breakdown so then what's the point? I didn't achieve anything and I'll probably end up worse than my initial situation even.


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

LeaT said:


> I can't choose a job for the sake of security. I've been told by most of my relatives now that it doesn't matter if I have to deal with shit pay and shit work hours if it's a job and I can eventually work my way up the ladder and get better conditions. Sorry, I can't. If it's not enjoyable, I just can't do it. I can't go to a job where I know I'll feel unhappy. I would have a mental breakdown so then what's the point? I didn't achieve anything and I'll probably end up worse than my initial situation even.



I did have a mental breakdown. Literally. for the better part of a year. the job was stay at home mom. there were a number of factors, health went down hill, etc. etc. ... it ended in a midlife crisis at age 32. f*ck that. I dabbled in other things before having kids, mostly was a student before. some banking. some restaurant work. then married & babies. 

Now I'm on the prowl for a job for me. that makes me feel alive --> not drained. 

I'm not an SJ/SP. I'm not extroverted. I'm not soc/sp or sp/soc. and I don't have any supportive family to help me. So, that pretty much sums up why being a mom essentially put me through a meat-grinder. I truly believe there is no more difficult job I could ever do because it left me so compromised; I have wracked my brain and there is nothing I can fathom that would be more difficult. Tea bag in scalding water. I've never had a night away in 9 yrs of parenting, there hasn't been anyone we trust, or enough money to go.


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## Entropic (Jun 15, 2012)

OhTHATgirl said:


> I did have a mental breakdown. Literally. for the better part of a year. the job was stay at home mom. there were a number of factors, health went down hill, etc. etc. ... it ended in a midlife crisis at age 32. f*ck that. I dabbled in other things before having kids, mostly was a student before. some banking. some restaurant work. then married & babies.
> 
> Now I'm on the prowl for a job for me. that makes me feel alive --> not drained.
> 
> I'm not an SJ/SP. I'm not extroverted. I'm not soc/sp or sp/soc. and I don't have any supportive family to help me. So, that pretty much sums up why being a mom essentially put me through a meat-grinder. I truly believe there is no more difficult job I could ever do because it left me so compromised; I have wracked my brain and there is nothing I can fathom that would be more difficult. Tea bag in scalding water. I've never had a night away in 9 yrs of parenting, there hasn't been anyone we trust, or enough money to go.


I also highly doubt I'm fit for parenting.


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## meridannight (Nov 23, 2012)

OhTHATgirl said:


> but holds back enough to give them a kind of untouchable or hard to get close to quality. depending on their true intentions this can either frustrate their sx or reward their functional sp cooling system.
> 
> there's a seemingly casual approach to meeting their variant needs as the secondary instinct is kept both in play and at bay, and others may wonder what they really want.


damnit. how do they know this? it's so damn true. i feel weird a stranger would know this stuff about me just through my type alone.... or is this some more general sort of thing that could apply to just anybody?


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

meridannight said:


> damnit. how do they know this? it's so damn true. i feel weird a stranger would know this stuff about me just through my type alone.... or is this some more general sort of thing that could apply to just anybody?


yeah. but I envy you. in a way. being more in touch with the sx. with my essentially equal sx/sp I spent the last 10 years properly denying myself my full sx expression. DAMNIT I'M NOT A SP/SO !!!!!! F U WORLD ... I feel myself slowly slipping back in. to. it. f*ckkk

its effing easy when you live in the suburbs and have a few kids. and have laundry and dishes. and... I don't know how to properly hold on to my sx desires and fulfill them so I can feel the kind of peace I did last year when I was in touch with it. I'm terrified.

all types have a way of self-forgetting. not being their true self. but are 9's at an especially high risk? given their vice is self-forgetting? not an ego-driven inflated image of their truth, but a loss of their truth all together. 

you know what though. I am a damn good 9. from what I have been reading over the last couple of years. I surprisingly intellectual, growth-oriented, non-conflict-avoidant, angry at times, and willing to express my needs/wants, and driven. and introspective. Especially since learning about enneagram I pour over the tools I've acquired to monitor my internal clarity, love, peace, excitement/creativity/alive-ness. 

Somewhat obsessively I guess. but it seems thats what it takes in our society that almost condones (and forces) my draw towards the numb. F U NUMB. NO. I just want passion. pain and joy. everyday. and most days its there -- enthusiasm. creative juice. excitement. love. peace. Its probably my torn-sexual instinct, & consequently strong line to 3, and strong effing 8 wing. I imagine. ... I can't take all the credit. My mom said when I was a toddler I had the WORST tantrums, and if she wasn't looking at me and cooing at me in my high chair across the kitchen I would notice the lack of attention from her and stop. hold my breath. turn blue. and let out a blood-curdling scream. So - sometimes we are born with belly-fire. even if we are a Nine. other than toddler-hood I was a easy kid apparently. teen years we fought. 

^^ should I erase that? ehh. whatever. 

I need tools to access my SX/sp everyday. and I want a career that encourages that.


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## OhTHATgirl (Oct 11, 2012)

LeaT said:


> I also highly doubt I'm fit for parenting.



God- How I Love the 5's Boundaries. in knowing they would not like it or do well at it. in just knowing that feeling in themselves. I don't know if its a true clarity or true self. or a fear within. but its a boundary of preference << which results in the sweet taste of a sense-of-self. 

I don't like parenting. Thought I didn't know I wouldn't before hand. I had clues that I might not like it, but I suppose I blocked them out. Though to others I suppose I SEEM like a nurturing, social, type 2. ENFJ more than I seem INFJ -- to the world. Not to my husband. or kids. But in my role in the world. Not so much anymore. because I am brutally emotionally-honest about anything I am feeling (with cooth, but still). 

And my faith is one that encourages families. And I believe a lot of happiness comes from families. And I thought I would regret never seeing my child's face. etc. I wanted the experience of having a family. grand kids. etc. 

And there are times I have enjoyed it. for a space of time. 
and holding a friends newborn does bring a big smile to my face still. 

But overall -- for me, parenting has been akin to hell. Mainly because of my personality, but also largely due to my own lack of extended familial support, and health difficulties resulting from creating human beings with my body. 

I know having kids has made me discover my true self. true colors. and has been very growth-inducing refining fire. So I am grateful for the lessons I have learned about myself, and life. And how it has made me who I am today. I am most grateful for that. << because with it comes peace. and a heart full of love. and, just happiness. 

But I envy the women who are natural mothers, fulfilled by it. Sad when away from their kids. ... I want to be them. so for years I judged them and felt superior to them (I'm too smart to just be a mom, etc). But really I just envied their happiness. Now I feel a love and respect for them, and for myself. and I also validate how I am different and that is okay, too. 

if it wasn't painful for me I would be much more blinded by my own personality, comfortable in my life. the fires of parenthood have made me a better me. or a broken me. fine line. 

I dunno. 
Maybe it would be easier to be a 5 and have the courage/fear or ? to just have said no. 

but then I wouldn't have my kids. or the version of me that I am now. 

(and my kids are seriously the best people. truly. they're amazing.)

but I would have My Freedom. ... I don't know (<< aka I need more time to really come to a definite conclusion ). 

I'll do the 9w8 thing and say >> "well, it is what it is. I did what I had to. It doesn't matter now anyway" . even thought It Does.


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## Coburn (Sep 3, 2010)

None of those stacking descriptions fit.

But I'm an sp/sx working in multi-media.


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## Entropic (Jun 15, 2012)

OhTHATgirl said:


> God- How I Love the 5's Boundaries. in knowing they would not like it or do well at it. in just knowing that feeling in themselves. I don't know if its a true clarity or true self. or a fear within. but its a boundary of preference << which results in the sweet taste of a sense-of-self.
> 
> I don't like parenting. Thought I didn't know I wouldn't before hand. I had clues that I might not like it, but I suppose I blocked them out. Though to others I suppose I SEEM like a nurturing, social, type 2. ENFJ more than I seem INFJ -- to the world. Not to my husband. or kids. But in my role in the world. Not so much anymore. because I am brutally emotionally-honest about anything I am feeling (with cooth, but still).
> 
> ...


Well to me, I think my entire tritype just plays out in such a way that it would be very difficult to have a child. Too much personal committment. I am the owner of two cats, I feel it's just enough. They manage on their own for most of the part and I just need to play with them, feed them and clean the litter box once in a while. It's manageable. But even with my cats I sometimes feel like I don't want to and it's only my love towards them that keeps me doing it. Yet it can be straining. With a child that requires attention 24/7, I don't think I could do it. I need my independence and self-sufficiency. I'd rather marry a guy whose a stay home dad and have myself working than the other way around if I must have a child.


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