# The functions, in layman's terms.



## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

I'm still trying to figure out the functions in layman's terms. I read about them but they never make sense (probably because all the descriptions are written by incomprehensible INTP's, haha). Please feel free to add your input. I believe every function has some special trick that all the others lack. Sorta like superpowers. So far the only examples I can come up with are Se, Ne, Fe, and Fi.

Ti- filling out a logical chart in your mind, or believing conclusions to be fact so long as they follow logic, heavy skepticism.

Te-taking logic and acting on it, tend to think out loud

Fi- personal involvement, really makes a good gambler, its voodoo to me (that's about all I can come up with)

Fe- feeling the feelings of others, and knowing how your actions will affect others?

Si - inner sense of rules one follows (an example with british WW2 pilots: don't fly level for more than 30 seconds in a dogfight), able to recall facts extremely quickly, and have an enormous storehouse of facts available, ranging from vocabulary to history to science etc.

Se - more voodoo, even to myself (ISTP). Acting on instict, spidey sense in sports, curiosity, loves pretty colors, being able to FEEL your memories, visualizing the feel and physics of objects before you touch them. I have a theory that people weak in Se like earth tone colors while Se doms love fluorescent colors, while one ISTJ (doesn't have Se) I asked, didn't even know what his favorite color was (with an aggravated tone that indicated it was a stupid question to ask him). I believe that everytime you hear yoga instructors or kung fu masters say something like, "feel the rock, become the rock,"
that's them trying to teach INFJ's how to utilize their weak Se and sense their environment.

Ni - I'm still trying to understand this one. I think it connects the dots between facts, sees correlation as causation. Ni doms require less facts to reach a valid conclusion and can sift through facts quicker understanding what is the most important, Ni weaklings require many facts to reach the same conclusion (percievers typically). An example: I'm in the woods looking at a map, I'm looking for every map, river, hill, contour and landmark to validate where I am on the map. An Ni dom would notice that the tallest peak on the map is also the tallest mountain right next to us, and using this one fact would reach a conclusion.

Ne - More voodoo, seen as very presumptuous because even the Ne users themselves don't realize if what they're saying is true or not, even though it often could be so long as its supported by their other dominant function (ENFP's spewing information based on their Te or Si is usually wrong, while information about other people's feelings is almost always correct; that's my theory at least). Ne doms can spew information and learn all by themselves, and pull facts out of thin air. I'm not sure how it works with sports, but my INTP brother said it served to determine probability of the other person's moves in a sparring match and help him prepare accordingly. Usually pretty abstract thought, loves to think about the ESSENCE of things while Se users like to think about what its like to interact with them.

So those are my current understandings. Please feel free to add your own.


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## Frannyy (May 27, 2010)

my favorite colors are lime green, yellow, and pink :mellow:


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## OmarFW (Apr 8, 2010)

My definition of Ne is that it is intuitive thoughts mostly spoken out loud that involve going through a deductionary process of analyzing probabilities and information from what exists in the world around you to come to conclusions about what will happen in the future, long term and short.

imo Ne is the reading function and Ni is the writing function. Ne can be used to manipulate to some extent, but it's in more of a "i've read this book before and I know what will happen already" kind of thing, whereas Ni isn't like reading a book, it's like writing a book. The author can put whatever he wants into the book as long as it's understandable.

understanding the differences between function types follows a simple guideline

Introverted functions deal with implementing ones internal mind onto the world and seeing how the world reacts

Extraverted functions deal with reacting to what already exists in the world and reflecting it off of ones internal mind


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## Vaka (Feb 26, 2010)

> Ne - More voodoo, seen as very presumptuous because even the Ne users themselves don't realize if what they're saying is true or not, even though it often could be so long as its supported by their other dominant function (ENFP's spewing information based on their Te or Si is usually wrong, while information about other people's feelings is almost always correct; that's my theory at least). Ne doms can spew information and learn all by themselves, and pull facts out of thin air. I'm not sure how it works with sports, but my INTP brother said it served to determine probability of the other person's moves in a sparring match and help him prepare accordingly. Usually pretty abstract thought, loves to think about the ESSENCE of things while Se users like to think about what its like to interact with them.


If it seems like Ne-users can pull facts out of thin air, it's because everything ENPs take in is put into a process by which they try to apply it to what they already know to make sense of it. If they can fit it in with what they already know, then they have a new understanding of that subject. I often experience intense 'omg! I get it!' situations. And that's my Ne putting things together. After that, I might start trying to apply that new understanding to other things. 
Like this:
>I get it now: Blah blah blahbity blah! I think that's why blah blah blahbity blah blah!

It's also an awareness that going into a new situation or learning something new can provide information that can be used to come up with new patterns and understandings. 
Oftentimes when I'm writing an essay for school, I opt to just free-write/brainstorm as much as I can because I know that that will get my Ne going into writing more and more and pulling it all together. 
ENFPs are the inspirers and ENTPs are the visionaries because they are bent toward looking at how things can be changed and then evaluating how that change may effect things and whether they should pursue it(Ji). 

That's just in basics and I'm not sure if I'm communicating it clearly


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## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

Frannyy said:


> my favorite colors are lime green, yellow, and pink :mellow:


That's good. Maybe the guy was being obstinate and already chose to shun myers briggs as I talked about it. People do that some times.


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## Frannyy (May 27, 2010)

DJArendee said:


> That's good. Maybe the guy was being obstinate and already chose to shun myers briggs as I talked about it. People do that some times.


I never know how to respond to a lot of your postings....


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## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

Frannyy said:


> I never know how to respond to a lot of your postings....


Huh? Did I offend you?


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## Aerorobyn (Nov 11, 2009)

Frannyy said:


> my favorite colors are lime green, yellow, and pink :mellow:


BFF!!!!!! Three of my favorite colors!!! 

Along with sky blue and orange!!! :laughing:


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## Frannyy (May 27, 2010)

DJArendee said:


> Huh? Did I offend you?


No. I just never understand what you are trying to say. I could be the dumb one, not sure.


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## Just_Some_Guy (Oct 8, 2009)

I just think of the four MBTI groups and then piece them together.

E/I: Es conform to reality while Is insist reality conform to them. Both have their strengths. Es are are more flexible and adaptive while Is are more self-aware. The extreme stands too where Es can be so washed out they're barely aware that they are alive while Is can be overly withdrawn. 

S/N: Details/specifics vs the theory or the system that supports the details. I think of walking across a stream. Am I concerned with the rocks I can see, or what I imagine is going on beneath the surface. The S is far more practical, down to earth and quick to act, but the N is far more apt to anticipate unstable rocks. 

T/F: Ts see things from afar and outside of time using symbols abstractly, thinking about logically definable concepts where Fs base their thinking on feeling. Both are "rational" in the sense of the Greek _ratio_. Think of a/b. For the T, a & b are logically definable principles. Cost/effort, etc. For the F, a & b could be happiness now (a) and happiness later (b) so that one should always act such that a/b approaches 0. 

J/P: Js take hard positions while Ps notice. This then has more to do with dominant functions. Ti, Fi, Se, Ne are Ps while Si, Ni, Te, Fe are Ps. 

To get the functions, I just mix the above together like paint. For me, I've found a tremendous amount of meaning in learning the differences _and the similarities_ between the various I/E variants of the four sub-functions.


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## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

Frannyy said:


> No. I just never understand what you are trying to say. I could be the dumb one, not sure.


What don't you understand?


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## Vaka (Feb 26, 2010)

What an interesting conversation...


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## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

EmotionallyTonedGeometry said:


> Es are are more flexible and adaptive while Is are more self-aware. The extreme stands too where Es can be so washed out they're barely aware that they are alive while Is can be overly withdrawn.


I agree with most of what you said but I disagree with this statement. I personally believe feelers are much better at analyzing themselves because I believe emotions to be the signal flags from the soul. They tell you what your body is feeling and why, therefore its much easier to decode yourself, as opposed to poor IXTP's whose feelings are so low on the function priority list we have no idea wtf is going on.


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## Just_Some_Guy (Oct 8, 2009)

DJArendee said:


> I agree with most of what you said but I disagree with this statement. I personally believe feelers are much better at analyzing themselves because I believe emotions to be the signal flags from the soul. They tell you what your body is feeling and why, therefore its much easier to decode yourself, as opposed to poor IXTP's whose feelings are so low on the function priority list we have no idea wtf is going on.


Yeah, I worded that poorly. :frustrating: I'll think on this later, but now it's time for bed.


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## DJArendee (Nov 27, 2009)

EmotionallyTonedGeometry said:


> Yeah, I worded that poorly. :frustrating: I'll think on this later, but now it's time for bed.


coward!

just teasing... sweet dreams.


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## Frannyy (May 27, 2010)

DJArendee said:


> . Maybe the guy was being obstinate and already chose to shun myers briggs as I talked about it. People do that some times.


This part. I lost you. Couldn't connect it to your original point of asking the ISTJ about his favorite color. Though, at this point, I have already lost interest...


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## bonesseries (Aug 19, 2010)

*thanx*

thank you for your info.


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