# How do you recognize Ni in everyday life?



## Stevester (Feb 28, 2016)

I know what Ni is, so don't bother posting an 8 paragraph explanation on it. I mean, actual, concrete, every day examples of it from Ni users you know (Dom and Aux only).

I'm asking because I'm not sure I ever met an INxJ or ENxJ that I was fully aware of probably because I assumed they were Si.


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## umop 3pisdn (Apr 4, 2014)

I guess it's basically a withdrawn or spacy vibe alternating with intense contact with the world. Ni is sort of an idling thing, you know how you get ideas while in the shower, because you're not really doing anything, so ideas can just spontaneously announce themselves? Ni types do that even while they're a part of the world, it's basically a particular kind of withdrawnness. Like people may be withdrawn for various reasons, maybe they're shy or socially inhibited, etc, but with Ni it's a kind of withdrawnness where they're not really engaging with the sensory world, they may seem to be gazing at something, but they're not really seeing it, they're somewhere else. 

And that's alternating with Se environmental scanning for the most interesting stimuli, so in some ways there's a pretty strong contradictory energy. Basically Ni-Se axis is 'intense', or generally serene and remote with internalized awareness, and making sharp or focused contact with the world when not. Si-Ne axis in contrast is way more playful, exploratory, and likely scattered also.


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## VagrantFarce (Jul 31, 2015)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronicity

It's about having strange, slow hunches that "work themselves out" over time, but make no real causal sense. It's about having a sense of the internal rhythms of things - the way things repeat or transform, or resemble each other in ways that aren't all that obvious.


You might be working at a company and see someone proudly announce a new project, with a gigantic budget and super-talented team - on the surface, everything looks great, and it's sure to be a runaway success. But something about the way they spoke makes you feel that their intentions are misguided, and that they will ultimately lead the project into a brick wall. Two years later, it turns out gigantic corners were cut in its implementation, and everyone is made redundant.


When you leave university at age 21, you apply for a job at a particular company - but you don't get it. Something tells you that if you change your profession, you will get another chance at age 30. 9 years later, when you turn 30, you happen across the company again, apply for another job in your new profession, and get it without much effort. You can't decide whether this is just a silly coincidence or a deeply-synchronous event. You wonder what might happen in another 9 years.


You may have a recurring dream as a child where you're sitting in the right-hand back-seat of a car. Your father is driving, and in the dream he drives it off a cliff. In real-life you become very mistrusting of your father when he drives, and also very superstitious about sitting in the right-hand back-seat when in a car. You have no good reason to think this way, but you trust it.

There's obviously nothing concrete or verifiable about any of this - you _could_ just be going insane. You worry that if you talk about this, people will think you _are_ insane. You worry that if you spend too much time thinking about this, you _will_ go insane.

Ultimately, the attitude that Ni engenders is this: Is it just a coincidence, or a sign of something greater unfolding over time - something hidden behind the surface appearance of things?


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## L'Enfant Terrible (Jun 8, 2014)

Stevester said:


> I know what Ni is, so don't bother posting an 8 paragraph explanation on it. I mean, actual, concrete, every day examples of it from Ni users you know (Dom and Aux only).
> 
> I'm asking because I'm not sure I ever met an INxJ or ENxJ that I was fully aware of probably because I assumed they were Si.


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## darkmatter (Jul 18, 2016)

I'm not sure how, but I can spot an Ni user from a mile away. I just get this vibe from them that if I asked them a theoretical question, something interesting is going to come out of their mouth. Ni users appear to be withdrawn when you engage them in small talk, but will become more lively if you bring up something abstract. I don't think the general public would be able to tell who uses dom Ni unless they asked them theoretic questions. They don't have to be deep, just as simple as: what are your thoughts on aliens.


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## goodthankyou (Mar 25, 2016)

Here. The Ni moment happens at 3:00 just before the pause in conversation.






Context: The Borg have taken over the enterprise, and everyone thinks they should evacuate and blow up the enterprise, but Picard adamantly refuses and insists that everyone stay and fight. Lily, a civilian from the 21st century decides to argue with the captain. The argument seems fruitless until she has an 'aha' moment and knocks some sense into Picard. 'Captain Ahab has to go hunt his whale'. And then Picard realises what he's doing. He's going to get his ship and crew destroyed, just like Ahab did. So he concedes with Lily, and they evacuate and blow up the ship.


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## KalimofDaybreak (Aug 6, 2015)

Stevester said:


> I know what Ni is, so don't bother posting an 8 paragraph explanation on it. I mean, actual, concrete, every day examples of it from Ni users you know (Dom and Aux only).
> 
> I'm asking because I'm not sure I ever met an INxJ or ENxJ that I was fully aware of probably because I assumed they were Si.


I mean, to some extent, your assumption that any function can be easily described in a couple of concrete experiences is false. Introversion by definition is abstract, and intuition is difficult to express in a language like English which, culturally, has a strong bias towards extraversion and sensation. This isn't to say it's impossible, just incredibly difficult, and I'd be concerned about the quality of the responses of this kind.

That said, I'll do my best to explain it.

The only really easy way to put it is that Ni focuses on inner images. I know that these statements are a dime a dozen, but they literally mean that we focus on images inside our minds. That can be a strange thing to get one's head around, especially if they do not have the function themselves, but if I'm walking down the sidewalk and my intuition decides that speculating about visual symbolism in the Christopher Nolan _Batman_ movies is what I'm going to be doing, I'm going to be paying more attention to the image of the bats swirling around Bruce Wayne than I am the ground in front of me. I say speculating for a reason as well; Ni is creative like Ne is, just with inner stuff. Half the time my "thinking" consists of the ungrounded speculation, which can sometimes pay off and sometimes doesn't.

So to give concrete examples from my own life is a little difficult because I do this all the time. It's asking a fish what water is; he responds "what's water?" It's basically that sort of thing, the hyper-focus on one or two images (note that I used the _Batman_ films as a concrete example. Half the time the image has not existence in reality) and playing them over and over in my brain, and focusing on them over what's in front of me. I do also like what @umop 3pisdn said: this is contrasted with intense contact with the world at random intervals. I've been driving and become suddenly aware of the fact that I am in a car, there's a steering wheel in front of me, and it's cold because the A/C is on. This lasts for maybe five minutes before my brain squirms back into its normal spacey mindset.

Something that might help to contrast Ni with your own Si. Si focuses on the abstract side of sensory experience, which means that often times Si apprehends the emotional weight of an object, or randomly anthropomorphizes objects. For instance, Si will apprehend the immediate feeling-impulse of an object, such as if that water bottle is pleasing (aesthetically or emotionally), and does this with all manner of objects, mundane or otherwise. Likewise, it can ascribe human qualities to objects as well, like if that water bottle is male or female. To me, as an Ni-dom, such notions are ridiculous. The closest I get to sensing that something is pleasing to me is when I look at the sky. But the notion of my water bottle being male or female is silly to me. (I actually once had a long conversation with an ISxJ about what gender the driveway was.) Ni does the same thing (the emotional weight apprehension and anthropomoprhization), but rather with sensory things, it does so with intuitive things. Those images I see in my brain are clearly pleasing to me or not pleasing to me, and half the time if I appreciate some natural beauty, it is because what I'm seeing in reality aligns with some inner image I have of the perfect setting of light gleaming through the leaves on a tree (a la Plato's Forms). I could also clearly tell you that such an image of light and a tree is feminine and morally good, whereas the image from Batman is clearly masculine and morally ambiguous (dark, sure, but neither good nor evil). Anticipating the claim that such a though process concerning Batman is Ne, I would say that this ascribing of human quality only occurs when the image (if it comes from without) assimilates into the unconscious. Images that come from within already have this emotional/anthropomorphic quality.

Anyway, I know you didn't want eight paragraphs, but hopefully this helps.


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## kinkaid (Jan 26, 2016)

The tricky part is Ni dominants are introverts so we keep a lot to ourselves.

Personally speaking some clues might be: Speaks in metaphors. Tangents that eventually come back to make sense (at least to me) are a good clue. Knowing something but having no idea why they know it. Looks sad or mad when they don't know anyone is looking. Can talk about any subject for any length of time. If you say something dumb they will correct you and if they don't, they either aren't allowed to or have lost faith in you. You'll notice an aversion to small talk. I'm allergic to it. It is hard for me to hide how much small talk frustrates me. Won't discuss celebrity gossip or tabloids. Either want to know everything about you or nothing at all. Becomes wore out after too much socializing. Tries to stop you from doing dumb things...

It's hard to give concrete examples of Ni because we are unaware of it. It is who we are. It shapes my thoughts and beliefs, but I don't notice it. I don't think it turns on and off.


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## ColdWindsRising (Feb 11, 2016)

Stevester said:


> I know what Ni is, so don't bother posting an 8 paragraph explanation on it. I mean, actual, concrete, every day examples of it from Ni users you know (Dom and Aux only).
> 
> I'm asking because I'm not sure I ever met an INxJ or ENxJ that I was fully aware of probably because I assumed they were Si.


How To Recognize Each Myers-Briggs Personality Type In Real Life | Thought Catalog
This will answer your question quite neatly. Instead of giving an abstract explanation of the core of each function (which you get most often, but doesn't really help to type yourself/others), it gives you symptoms in simple language. For each type, it pays special attention to what kind of advice these people would give you.

I recognise your situation. I also found Ni the most difficult function to spot, but this link has helped me quite a bit. Intuitively, I used to use a person's intelligence to distinguish Ni and Si, not having a better way - which is completely outrageously inaccurate. Another difference, one I still use, is that Ni-users tend to set more ambitious and idealistic goals that are further removed in the future. This may not be completely accurate, but it's still a help.

I know only one Ni-user in real life, an ENFJ. Si-users are way more abundant. Most of it I got from fictional characters. For example, lord Varys from Game of Thrones strikes me as a Ni-dom user, or Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks. Both INFJs.


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## Ksara (Feb 13, 2014)

Stevester said:


> I know what Ni is, so don't bother posting an 8 paragraph explanation on it. I mean, actual, concrete, every day examples of it from Ni users you know (Dom and Aux only).
> 
> I'm asking because I'm not sure I ever met an INxJ or ENxJ that I was fully aware of probably because I assumed they were Si.


A few examples I have taken note of:

I'm on the phone to my partner, we are discussing an tense topic where we have previously had conflict. Part way through I see in my minds eye the sun breaking through the clouds, and I know the conversation is going in the right direction to be resolved. As we move through the conversation things are looking good and I get a sense of understanding from the other party. But then again The sun I had seen has disappear behind the clouds and with a sinking feeling know the conversation is going to take a turn in the wrong direction. This did happen and I think that day the phone call ended poorly with very little resolved.

I don't always 'see' an inner image, sometimes i't just a fleeting thought. Such as I'm having a good time with a person. We are joking and having fun, and randomly a niggling thought enters my head, "somethings going to go wrong, they are going to be upset over something". What is interesting is there is nothing to really indicate the situation will turn sour. A few days later, just something I have done by accident has in some way upset this person.
It can also be an 'odd' feeling that alerts me to something off or not right, or about to happen.

When listening to music I am most aware of the images that come to mind. I am not focused on the music itself, rather how the music affects me and from this the images that emerge. These images are very surreal and probably won't make sense to anyone else. 
Whilst this does also happen throughout my day to day life I have noticed when impacted by a strong emotional response an intense an vivid image comes to mind as if symbolizing the subjective experience.
It can be 'weird' (for lack of a better work) when I can see something in my minds eye that brings complete understanding of a subject, yet this image has no form. I could not draw what it looks like, which can make it very hard to describe.

There have been quite a few times when my mind 'shifts' to see the same situation from a completely different perspective. It is kind of like transforming how I see the event. Sometimes this happens on its own, other times I have had an image come to mind that embodies this transformation. The event itself has not changed, but how I see it has. A situation that at first appears hopeless is now and event that appears as opportunity.



This is something I do trust. These images do hold weight, whether that be for my own entertainment, contain some meaning, or the actual predicting of events. This does not mean they are correct. I can be sure of something and how events play out is completely different haha. It is often where my attention naturally falls.

This is something difficult to see in another as it happens within the individual. I don't talk about these experiences. I feel no need, and it's not going to make sense to others. People aren't usually interested in how mine, or their, head works.
The products of these mental images, be that understanding I have gained or the potential likely hood of an even happening, I may communicate to another.


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## yet another intj (Feb 10, 2013)

Don't worry, somebody who have it will recognize you.


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## Liriope (Aug 11, 2015)

I'll try to draw comparisons between Si and Ni in the way that I've tried to understand Si. I might be off since I can still manage to understand Si only conceptually, but I hope it makes sense at least.

People often describe Si as something in the environment reminding the Si user of another thing in another environment. Anyone can have something remind them of something else, though; that's just how memory works. I think that description can be tweaked a bit to highlight the common denominator between the Pi functions; it's that the experience is _identical to_, not just reminiscent of, another experience.

So maybe the Si user is visiting another country, and the combined sensations of the weather (the warmth of the sun with the chill of the brisk air) is exactly the same as this kind of sensation back home, even though the environment is completely different. Eh, that's probably oversimplified but it should work.

With Ni, instead of sensations, it uses themes, meanings, outcomes. For example, English literature often uses allusions to biblical stories. Maybe an Ne user would notice the allusions and say, "The progression of the events in X-story is very similar to the progression of events in Y-story." The Ni user, on the other hand, would say, "The themes and messages in X-story are the same themes and messages in Y-story." If you watched the clip posted by @goodthankyou Picard is doing exactly that, as he realizes that a story of revenge leading to downfall will also be his own story if he continues his course of action.


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## Aladdin Sane (May 10, 2016)

Liriope said:


> I'll try to draw comparisons between Si and Ni in the way that I've tried to understand Si. I might be off since I can still manage to understand Si only conceptually, but I hope it makes sense at least.
> 
> People often describe Si as something in the environment reminding the Si user of another thing in another environment. Anyone can have something remind them of something else, though; that's just how memory works. I think that description can be tweaked a bit to highlight the common denominator between the Pi functions; it's that the experience is _identical to_, not just reminiscent of, another experience.
> 
> ...


I still dont understand Si tbh, what you are describing sounds like Deja Vu.


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## Liriope (Aug 11, 2015)

Aladdin Sane said:


> I still dont understand Si tbh, what you are describing sounds like Deja Vu.


It's more like those sensations (and other things that come of those, like physical actions? I guess?) get stored in a large catalog or library, and they're all categorized but unattached from their sources. The memories are more of a secondary effect, after pulling a book off the shelf, as the method of comparing experiences with each other. Then the new information gets placed in the same book, so all these similar experiences get merged into a single concept.

It's not so much "this has happened before" as it is "this is a consistent thing that happens regardless of time."


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## Aladdin Sane (May 10, 2016)

Liriope said:


> It's more like those sensations (and other things that come of those, like physical actions? I guess?) get stored in a large catalog or library, and they're all categorized but unattached from their sources. The memories are more of a secondary effect, after pulling a book off the shelf, as the method of comparing experiences with each other. Then the new information gets placed in the same book, so all these similar experiences get merged into a single concept.
> 
> It's not so much "this has happened before" as it is "this is a consistent thing that happens regardless of time."


I cant really imagine how this works, I can only relate to it on a basic level, like the 'this food isn't as salty as it usually is' example.


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## Liriope (Aug 11, 2015)

Aladdin Sane said:


> I cant really imagine how this works, I can only relate to it on a basic level, like the 'this food isn't as salty as it usually is' example.


I can't relate to it either. I figured since OP is ISTJ they would understand the Si comparison, but I don't have any personal experiences to clarify it further than those analogies.


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## Stellafera (Jan 19, 2015)

Aladdin Sane said:


> I cant really imagine how this works, I can only relate to it on a basic level, like the 'this food isn't as salty as it usually is' example.


I guess a good example would be a recent experience I had reading _Farewell to Arms_ (no spoilers, I'm not very far in). The main character seemed to be a mediator between the other military personae and a priest in one scene. My mental image was them sort of passively hanging on the sidelines of the scene, lightly fitting in with everyone and nobody at once.

A lightning jolt in my brain. _Wait, this is the same mental image I had of Nick when I was reading the Great Gatsby_. My brain replays how I read those scenes; Nick on the outskirts of the conversations, listening and talking to everyone without really fitting in. Woah!

I perk up and say to my classmates, "The narrator's the Nick of this book!" and everyone's eyebrows raise and they start nodding.

--

I ended up making a symbolic connection in my example. Just the kind of stuff that's traditionally Ni, right? But what was actually going on was something more sensory. I get attached to these little visual or auditory bits and use them as a reference. Or smell, or whatever. I can play them in my head like little movies.

It's why I'm way better at, for example, noticing color symbolism that I am at noticing stuff like "this person is a Christ analogue". Color symbolism relies on a visual and how it affects me. I'm excellent at that. Whereas I'm not very religious, so I don't have a lot of physical or sensory connections to Jesus. Just because it's a pattern doesn't mean that it means anything to me... it has to have the component that can play in my head like a record.

I'm learning calculus and am finding the concept that the derivative is an instantaneous rate of change tricky. I can look at the math with limits and understand that it works, but conceptually I have such a hard time with it because... how are you supposed to have a rate of change that takes place in a single moment? That's crazy. I can't play that mental image in my brain. I just have to unhappily accept that it works. 

I think this is where the idea that SJs dislike theoretical things comes from. I don't like ideas that I can't conceptualize in some sort of sensory way, create some sort of "movie" for. It screws with my head.

_(If it helps, I don't really understand Ni. As far as I'm concerned this is just the way that brains work. Apparently there's another way but I don't see it.)_


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