INFJ Part 2

INFJs continued...

Now that we've skimmed what it's like for me as an Introvert, it's time to move onto the next letter...

Why I am iNtuitive:

• I focus on the big picture & possibilities. I have this tendency to plan ahead. And while yes, that can sometimes mean zoning in on the details, oftentimes, I am contemplating a big picture. This is a bit harder to describe. It is like...I contemplate the idea of going into a career of photojournalism. This is huge. It's life-changing! Once I have this big picture in my mind of me as a photojournalist, I then explore the possibilities and paths I have laid out before me in order to get to that big picture. Perhaps this is a trait of my synesthesia, but in my mind this is laid out very much like a big circle with various lines sticking out of it, like paths. I have to choose one of those lines/paths to lead into the big circle. 
• I admire creative ideas. Creativity amazes me. Crafts, art, the way my prof. comes up with all these makeshift gadgets to replace actual equipment in the photography studio. Seriously...tin foil? Easy-peasy...it's a barn door OR it's a reflector. 
• I notice anything new or different. Oh, yes, do I ever. One day before I got to work, my boss switched a bookcase around. It was a small bookcase, one that really wasn't that noticeable and it really wasn't too huge of a change. And yet, as soon as I walked in the door, I noticed it. It's like an unconscious PING! on my disturbance radar. Something sayin, "Hey, hey, something's different here...someone messed up the pattern!" 
• I think about future implications. All. the. time. I am the girl that thinks, What if. I am constantly exploring what could happen if I did such and such a thing. "If I get this assignment done early, I can do such and such tomorrow..." "What would happen if I..." It's the never ending question in my head. I'm starting to realize that I may over-think more than most people...
• I trust my gut instincts. If something feels wrong, then something is WRONG. Not always, but it's a feeling I cannot shift. Again, my synesthesia seems to play a part in this. If someone has a bad color, generally, at the same time I have a "bad feeling" about them. I go with my gut instinct and avoid them. If I feel like something is a bad choice but cannot express a reason why, then I prefer to not do it. If I feel like something is a good choice but cannot express a reason why, then I prefer to do it. I don't know how many times I've said, "Just because..." annoying the heck out of someone. It can't be just because! They may say. But sometimes that's just how it is. It's my gut instinct. 
• I like to learn new skills. If I like a skill, I wanna learn it. To this day, I would love to learn: a second language, to play guitar, to dance, to shoot a firearm, to garden, to make films...I have this love/hate relationship with learning. I *love* the satisfaction of learning to do something *well* but I do not always enjoy the work it takes getting there. 
• I like to figure things out for myself. This is not completely true. I best learn by imitation. But I also learn best by getting my hands on whatever I'm learning and just trying it out myself. So all I need is for someone to show me how and then give me the time and patience to try to imitate. 
• I work in bursts of energy. So so true. I tackle projects. I say to myself, "Okay, we're going to get this done." Then I put ALL of me into it and get it done as quickly and efficiently and well done as I possibly can. I sat down and spent 6 hours straight working on my big paper. Remember how I have to work myself into concentration mode? If I break that concentration mode then I have to work back into it. Seems like such a waste. Which is why breaks only come once I've finished a project. 
  

Perhaps this is where I may get to say, "It's my woman's intuition." This is where a lot of the inner-conflict comes in. I like reason, I like knowing the details and the how and what and why. I like understanding. But I also have an instinct. And this instinct conflicts with my desire to know WHY. I had an English teacher who pulled me aside after I had finished her class and told me I have a really great insight when it comes to people and writing. At the time I shrugged it off because it just comes easy for me to guess the how and why behind a character's feelings and actions in an essay or short story. But perhaps this is my intuition. 

On the downside, I prefer to trust myself rather than other people...and in order for me to change my mind about something, someone has to be very convincing in a differing opinion. Backed up by facts and reason. I'm trying to be much more open to considering differing opinions, especially since I know I was so wrapped up into being right as a teenager. And now that I believe much differently than I did as a teenager, I know that I have to be open to change. 

Next time...Feeling.