# How open-minded are you?



## Vivid Melody (Apr 25, 2011)

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most open-minded and 1 being the least, how open-minded would you say you are, overall? And what is your MBTI type? Why did you rate yourself that way?


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## soop (Aug 6, 2016)

In the true sense of open-mindedness, very, in my younger days, probably more than was good.

Edit: ISTP, I was willing to consider almost any position and sometimes credit the positives too much and overlook the negatives too little...lately I've gotten better about seeing how these things fit the larger picture faster and am then able to take and leave what I like.

Now: 6.
Previously: 8.


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## Cal (Sep 29, 2017)

INTP
I think I'm about a 3 and for good reasons. Though I maybe wrong...
I can be somewhat stubborn about things, though everyone is.

So far, from what I've noticed though, is that most people who claim to be super open minded are usually the most closed minded individuals out there. There are very few people out there who we can say are *truly* open minded.


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## Jaune (Jul 11, 2013)

ISTP

Honestly, I don't consider myself to be open-minded. I'm very stubborn when it comes to my views and simply tend to block out opinions of others that I find stupid/irritating. I have a tendency to seem more receptive than I really am because I can tolerate being around people whose viewpoints I don't care for, simply because I don't listen to/read their positions.

I'll give myself a 4/10. I've met really closed-minded people and I don't think I'm one of them. I come to recognize many of my mistakes over time, but I need to understand them myself instead of relying on what other people tell me.


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## ANAXEL (Feb 16, 2017)

ENTP
9
I have a few questions though.
What exactly do we mean by "Open Minded"?
Does it extend beyond not being narrow-minded?
Are we taking into consideration the negative (lack of judgement) of open-mindedness?
Taking that into consideration was what made me rate myself a 9.
I am actually pretty open minded to everything.
This is not really always a good thing. I want to be able to have a more discriminative mind so that I'm not flying everywhere.


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## ThatOneHipsterDude (Sep 6, 2017)

I would say I'm the open-mindedness god! Anything is possible, so blocking out something or someone is unfair without fully hearing it out. I've had people be closed-minded towards me and it's so frustrating to talk to them, so I try to be the change I want to see!


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## Aluminum Frost (Oct 1, 2017)

I consider what people have to say but I look very dismissive cause most people just come at me with the same shit I've heard a million times already so I get annoyed and impatient. I'm pretty tolerant of people who disagree with me, so long as they make sense. I don't judge people for their preferences and stuff. The word "weird" virtually doesn't exist to me. 8 out of 10 I guess. I'm an ISTP btw.


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## atamagasuita (May 15, 2016)

10.

I am able to see things in different views. I'm not very one sided 

Like psychology helps me understand the why of stuffs more


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## Chatshire (Oct 12, 2017)

ISTP
7/10
I find it easy to see things from different perspectives which actually makes it difficult to stick to a certain viewpoint because everything seems valid to some extent. I guess I can appear stubborn at times because I tend to not openly sway my opinions, but I do adjust my mindset inwardly.


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## Catwalk (Aug 12, 2015)

8.5-9. INTJ.

(I will try anything once & am highly flexible -- flexibility / adaptability / experimentation is essential to my essence to maintain low levels of depressive-states / stress). If I am very "close-minded," about (X) - it is because_ I already did _(X); or at least, worked out the equation that (X) is inexplicit / and/or simply stupidity, or I have a sufficient understanding of both points. I am am efficiently able to _demonstrate _ how and why I rationalize my rejection to (X, Y, Z) and so forth. Not merely 'closed-off' because _I do not like what I am hearing_. 

If I haven't any knowledge about (X); and I _know this_, it makes no sense_ to decide to be_, "closed-minded," to it. How can I decide to reject something I have no 'understanding/knowledge' of (&) sit comfortably on (X)-decision on such concepts, ideologies, strategic methods, and et al.

If it is _feasible_ - and quite many thing(s) are feasible, it is worth it to entertain it for awhile in low-grades / trial-error / experimentation. Hit me._ Hit me hard_. Get risky. Be brave. Take a chance. Dive in. How deep / eccentric / taboo / weird_ can you go_. How much of these "open-minded," thought(s) you keep so discreetly personal are you_ tough enough _to admit to, eh (?)

How much courage do you _really_ have. You say you are a high-functioning close-minded personal protector of your belief(s). Let's see it. I fancy seeing _how far such specimen(s) will go to protect them_. (re: ritualized-stupidies).

My dread of routines/nothing new/different; but love for structuration & precision always bites me in a_ painfully _ good way.


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## Wild (Jul 14, 2014)

ESFP

Probably a 10 honestly. I don't recall ever being offended/turned off by an idea after considering it. I might not instinctually like or agree with it, but I don't really pass judgment ever.


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## Sybow (Feb 1, 2016)

I gave it a 7. I'm quite open minded, but I can be somewhat stubborn, hence not a full 10.
ISFP


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## jamaix (Sep 20, 2013)

Vivid Melody said:


> On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most open-minded and 1 being the least, how open-minded would you say you are, overall? And what is your MBTI type? Why did you rate yourself that way?


I'm most likely an ISTJ. Not really sure how to rate my open mindedness, but I guess perhaps an 8. 

I've observed that people mean different things when they say I'm open-minded or you're not open-minded. 

In general open minded merely means willing to consider new ideas. When you get my age (53) there aren't that many new ideas to consider. I've heard and considered most of them already. So this can lead some to accuse me of not being open minded, but when you've already been there and done that many times before the fact that you're not willing to go there again for the 100th time doesn't mean you're close minded. Every once in a great while I encounter a totally new way of looking at an old idea and the analyzation process starts again. 

Now if I actually encounter a new idea (happens every once in awhile) that seems to have some degree of merit, I will definitely consider it. In fact sometimes I have troubles arriving at a conclusion because I try to look at new ideas from multiple angles. I tend to analyze new ideas until they bleed, taking forever to form a solid opinion. My propensity for doing this is actually a bit annoying at times. If I jump to a conclusion without thoroughly examining a new idea from multiple angles, I will find myself continually questioning my conclusion and lacking confidence in it.


ETA I admire those who obviously lay aside personal biases and preferences when analyzing ideas. It's all too easy to look for only those things that validate and reinforce what we prefer to believe. I think many if not most unconsciously screen out those things that don't fit their narrative while viewing themselves as open-minded. I think most are guilty of this to varying degrees. I personally strive to avoid doing this, but I'm not going to claim I'm always successful.


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## my melody (Nov 3, 2009)

I'm an ISFJ and I chose 7. I pretty much agree with @jamaix . I think I'm fairly open minded because I'm willing to listen to new ideas and different perspectives. I don't think open mindedness necessarily means I'll agree with the other person though, or think all ideas/perspectives are necessarily 'worth' the same, just because everyone is entitled to their own opinion. http://personalitycafe.com/members/jamaix.html


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## Vivid Melody (Apr 25, 2011)

Thanks for the responses so far, everybody. Everyone's doing great on their responses  Here's how the dictionary defines open-minded:

*open-minded*

adjective

1.having or showing a mind receptive to new ideas or arguments.

2.unprejudiced; unbigoted; impartial.


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## Snowflake Minuet (Feb 20, 2016)

INFJ, and I gave myself a 7.

I definitely consider myself to be a very open minded person in general, and open mindedness is a very important value to me as well. Same goes for it being quite important in others I want to have close relationships with. 

Maybe I should have said 8, it's always hard to do these! (but fun. 

I can be pretty opinionated, and strong willed, and when I've made up my mind about something and feel strongly about it, in many cases good luck convincing me otherwise...especially if you've gotten even a little on my bad side somehow! But that's pretty much only in quite small-scale situations. I also can be a little bit of a snob in taste and all, but I'm quite aware of it and try not to appear as such, and I see it as a negative thing too, so I guess that's still being relatively open minded--about my semi-closedmindedness in some cases, lol!


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## Deseret (Dec 6, 2017)

I'm probably close to middle of the road. I'm not fundamentalist close-minded, but I can be at least privately judgmental about what I think is good or sane and what I think is bad, destructive, counter-productive or so on.


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## The Pikabot (Nov 19, 2017)

I gave myself an 8. I'm usually willing to consider new ideas and approaches, and I value open-mindedness very much as well. However, I don't always live up to that ideal. Sometimes I catch myself getting a little "triggered" in my mind when reading/hearing something I strongly disagree with.


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## Igor (May 26, 2010)

I'm guessing I'm a 6. Also, I'm an INFJ. Now as to why I picked a 6, well, I try to treat everyone well. I acknowledge freely that everyone's point of view is going to be subjective to their life experiences, brain chemistry, physical condition, etc. I accept that cultural, linguistic, and religious differences create inherent biases that people will unconsciously project in stress situations. I also accept that my lifestyle choices bring me solace, but may cause someone else put into them an unbearable level of duress, and vice versa.

All that said, I just didn't feel right rating myself super high, mostly because I've known people who I feel put me to shame on how open minded and accepting they are. Or at least that was the facade they presented when I knew them. Either way, I felt a 6 was sufficient a rating for myself in this case.


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## johnnyyukon (Nov 8, 2013)

Vivid Melody said:


> On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most open-minded and 1 being the least, how open-minded would you say you are, overall? And what is your MBTI type? Why did you rate yourself that way?


I'm open-minded as fuck. But here's the thing....

I'm also a grown ass man that's probably lived 4 lifetimes. So while I am very open minded, I simultaneously have very strong opinions cuz I've experienced this life with extremely open eyes.

If some evangalist tries to convert me to Christianity, I will decline and if their douche bags about it, I will Hannibal Lecter they're imposing beliefs. 

Now does that mean I'm close minded? No. In this scenario, I was raised Baptist and live in the Bible Belt and have seen, over and over again the absurd hypocrisy of that religion and....well I could go on, but point is I'm not closed minded to that religion, I've just tried it and don't like it.

Like I'm not close minded to eating mushrooms on my pizza, I just think they're slimy, gross, and taste like ass.


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## Soul Kitchen (May 15, 2016)

This is kind of a loaded question, to be honest. If a person was open minded, they shouldn't have to say to others that they were, because it would show in how they engage with different ideas and viewpoints, as well as how they learnt from experience.

But that's just my take on it, so feel free to disagree. For what it's worth, when I look at my perspective on a number of issues over the years, I know I've made a complete 180 on a large number of things. I've even got a Socrates quote for my signature showing the paradox of wisdom is in being aware of how little you know. If I was to rate myself, think I can justify an 8, despite a penchant for scepticism.

My type is presumably ENTP, a type renowned for being highly open in their viewpoints and for valuing free thought.


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## Peppermint Mocha (Jun 19, 2011)

7 and ISFP

I am willing to listen to what others say. Doesn't mean I believe everything but it does give a different point of view
When I'm by myself I'll see if I believe it, away from others influence


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## faithhealing (Dec 20, 2017)

I'm either an INFJ or ISFP most likely. I'd say I'm about as open minded as they come! But, because I can be stubborn and critical sometimes I decided to give myself a 9.


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## DrNRG (Dec 19, 2017)

I went with 5 because of the ambiguity of what is meant by 'Open-minded'.

If open-minded == willingness to accept any idea: my openness would be very low, probably 1, as I'm highly selective of ideas that I accept.

If open-minded == willingness to regard any idea: my openness would be very high, around 9, though, I won't waste time with anything clearly erroneous or banal.

I'd be willing to revise any idea that I have, if it can be shown that there is a genuinely better or more correct way of understanding something. But, I can only be convinced with facts and with reasonable extrapolations, conclusions, and abstractions from those facts.

To me, things like beliefs, traditions, opinions, and ego, mean very little; the main goal is cognitive accuracy in respect to objective reality.


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## Acrylic (Dec 14, 2015)

Vivid Melody said:


> On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most open-minded and 1 being the least, how open-minded would you say you are, overall?


It isn't on the poll. It is a number north of 10 :tongues:



> And what is your MBTI type?


ENFP



> Why did you rate yourself that way?


Because given that you only have one life, it's the only way to be. 

I should say though, I am literally the number in gave myself... there's 7 people that said 9 or 10, but it makes me think, are you really? Because this has kind of the same usage that 'weird' has. People always say "I'm so weird!", but most times you see someone saying that, it's this sheltered upper class drone saying it in reference to how they don't like a lot of ice in their soda.


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## faithhealing (Dec 20, 2017)

Despotic Ocelot said:


> It isn't on the poll. It is a number north of 10 :tongues:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I can't speak for others but I choose 9 because it's very accurate. I think people who know me might be quick to say 10 but I like to leave things open ended without setting up strict expectations of myself. When I think of being open minded though, I correlate it to progressiveness, non-traditional thinking, accepting of people unlike myself and celebrating differences. Always willing to keep an open mind when introduced with new information that could heavily impact your worldview. I am skeptical sometimes and I can take hard stances on certain topics, so I wasn't willing to give myself a 10 that's why.


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## Vickysworld (Jul 1, 2017)

I'll place myself at 7. For the most part I can be open minded but only on a given circumstance since I tend to be a very skeptical person but I try not to be a close minded fucker like my parents are lol. Trying to smack some sense out of people like them is like talking to yourself and yet you wonder why no one is responding but your own imaginary self. I can also be a grumpy old fart when things don't go through my way in terms of how i prefer to analyze things (particularly on my worse days). INTP


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## 481450 (Aug 13, 2017)

I'm opening my mind, with a key!


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## 481450 (Aug 13, 2017)

I quite literally have an opened mind!


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## martinkunev (Mar 23, 2017)

INTJ, I voted 9.

I'm not sure this is objective though. I grew up in an environment where people are quite inflexible and conservative and lack critical thinking. Having access to the internet and travelling is what made me different from such people. I got that 9 by comparing myself with others, but I'm not sure I have an objective idea of how open minded others are (maybe my environment has made me believe I'm more open minded).

I have strong opinions which are backed by reason and logic, but I don't believe this makes me less open minded. I'm open to hearing arguments that will prove me wrong. This doesn't mean I'll accept such arguments lightly. I base my convictions on my experience and it would necessitate a very strong argument to trump my experiences.

I accept people doing whatever they want unless it enters into conflict with what other people want. However I'm keen to point out ignorance when I observe it. I have some personal preferences that I base on my convictions. This applies mostly to the way I use a computer. My convictions may be more idealistic than the world would permit for. I guess sometimes I may not be willing to accept something that contradicts my convictions. That's why I voted 9.


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## Strelnikov (Jan 19, 2018)

INTJ... 5

I voted 5, since I don't really care much about open-mindedness. To me it's a concept which is used more like a buzzword, instead of having any real value. I usually think in terms of objectives, resources, strategy, logistics, outcomes, power, etc. I don't care whether my ideas are conventional or not, whether I'm open minded or not. Just like I don't care about being non-conformist (I've also noticed a similar concept).

I've met people who thought being normal is a bad thing, it's too mainstream, you have to be nerdy, you have to be unique, etc. I just like what I like, whether it's original or authentic or not, I don't care. Take music for example, I like some mainstream songs and I like some lesser known songs... I just like them and that's about it.

So yeah, does that make me open minded? I don't know! 

PS: Fun thing: how come people trying to be unique, authentic, nerdy, geeky, etc. all think alike and are really, like copy-pasted versions of each other?


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## Mrs.ESFP_224 (Jan 31, 2018)

Vivid Melody said:


> On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the most open-minded and 1 being the least, how open-minded would you say you are, overall? And what is your MBTI type? Why did you rate yourself that way?



I am an ESFP and I am easily an 8 or 9


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## ilovewordsthatstartswithp (Jan 29, 2018)

Infp: 10/10


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## nO_d3N1AL (Apr 25, 2014)

INTJ. I'm not really sure. I went for 6. I find it hard to distinguish between open-mindedness and having a strong opinion. I guess empathy and being able to step out of one's view point defines open-mindedness, which is ultimately a good thing.


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## Preciselyd (Mar 18, 2018)

ESFP - voted 8

I am open minded in hearing, seeing, believing and experiencing what is out there to a degree. I believe anything can be possible. I love to hear people's views and I'm not one to shutdown anyone's views.


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