Adviser INFJ

Typology description - Adviser

In comparison to INTJ, Advisers (hereinafter INFJ) are more aware of the influence they have on people around them. They put effort into understanding the sense of events and influencing them positively. Thanks to their deeply felt and personal approach they find common ground with others more easily than other introvert types. Although they do not seek popularity, fame and functions they often gain these without their own endeavour. What people appreciate is their ability to listen, sense the feelings, the atmosphere, and to take into account values and desires.

Although they can show sincere interest in how others think and feel they normally reveal a little from their own inner selves. No matter how the welfare of others is important to them they are not, in respect of their introvert nature, so communicative as are ENFJs. They are profound, complex and sensible persons who can best understand and cope with very muddled interpersonal problems as long as these do not concern themselves. In respect of their sincere interest in other people we can only regret that they are scarce in the population – around one percent.

Since their tendency is to take things personally they are more vulnerable than others which is one of the reasons of their introversion. We may have known them for many years, however, in spite of this they can surprise us one day with unexpected features of their character or lifestyle. In spite of this it cannot be said these people are mysterious or contradictory. On the contrary, they are consistent and they follow their own personal integrity. They respect devotion to values and principles.

As far as school times INFJ are efficient. They are good students with creative abilities. They take study and later work very seriously. Sometimes they are hindered by a tendency to have excessive perfectionism, and they often put disproportionate efforts and work into their activities. Until the very last moment they worry about the result even if there is no reason to worried. They normally do not push themselves forward and can exert their influence behind the scene, e.g. like 'grey eminence'. If there is someone with a clear ability to understand psychic phenomenons better than the others, it is mostly INFJ. What is characteristic of them is their powerful ability to empathize with the feelings of others. Using their sixth sense they can precisely sense in other persons either their good or bad character, even if they are not able to explain how they came to this conclusion.

INFJ are not happy to be the messengers of bad news. On the contrary, they love to please others and they strive to contribute with the best in them. They like to agree. Conflicts or their possibility is what they normally go through with pain because they consider them destructive. Any form of conflict and disagreement whether open or hidden is very destructive for their psyche, and they cannot stand such condition in the long run. This can result in them making good news up, denying the existence of conflicts and getting involved in their fictions so much that they stop distinguishing thoughts from reality and the lie from the truth.

They have a great imagination and a fantasy unrestrained by reality. They can give their surrounding an ingenious, sometimes even mystic, impression. Unconstrained imagination allows them to create deeply felt, elaborated and aesthetically perfect artistic works which can have a form of musical, poetic or prosaic, dramatic but also mathematical or physical system as well as pedagogical form.

It can be said that INFJ are the most poetic and romantic ones among all types. They can not help not to dream about emotions, fantasy and visions that are far beyond the conventional thinking.

INFJ choose as their employment places where they meet intensively people but preferably individually since masses do not suit them. They can be therapists of all kinds: psychiatrists or psychologists. Spiritual sphere may also have an appeal for them due to its depth; they can start writing. Metaphors both in written and spoken language are their favourite aid, and they can use them with unusual elegance and through them to express realities which are otherwise not shareable.

Not always do they cope well with adversity and criticism because they are apt to take it very personally, not like an objective appraisal of their work. If disproportionately excessive, negative appraisal can hurt them easily whereas what they imagine under 'disproportionately excessive' is a soft definition. On the contrary, they positively react to appreciation and praise and they often use both as a means to motivate others. If they are forced to be in an environment which is perceived as cold, insensitive even hostile, they lose self-confidence; melancholy takes over them; and they can even start deteriorate physically or fall ill. Such environment includes e.g. campus or military service.

INFJ have among all types the strongest predisposition to suicide: intensive inner life, abundant feelings and concluding ability to see far beyond and at the same time not to see any solution.

As partners but also as colleagues, superiors or friends INFJ are ostentatiously faithful and devoted. They pay attention to feelings of comfort; they care about their environment; they make efforts for the environment to be comfortable, cosy and pleasant also for others; they sincerely take interest in the health of others as well as in their mental balance.

As for their beliefs and feelings they often manifest themselves indirectly, allusively, as if they relied on the fact that others would think through everything. Excessive openness from the other side may discourage them and pull them up short, mainly if it concerns something they do not like. Rather than straightforward description they prefer symbols, indications, reference and metaphor. Circle of friends is limited, lasting, relatively closed, and relations in this circle are very deep.

In order that their arsenal of rich inner abilities can be beneficially utilised it is useful if an extrovert person is in their surrounding. Otherwise their rich world of inner ideas and imagination could remain hidden. Those who make it to the intimate closeness with INFJ may sometimes even be desperate to find out how much treasure is hidden in them. They can create such perfect and attractive imaginary inner worlds that they often lose interest in the real ones. On one hand, the mankind receives immortal artistic works but on the other hand it is not the best guide to practical life.

Although INFJ are not very logically critical to opinions which 'do not suit' them, however, they have an exceptional tendency to encircle themselves with people whose argumentative abilities are weaker than their own ones which gives them the opportunity to gain approval of their surrounding and the chance to influence fates of others with their advices.

In a general sense INFJ are very rare people in terms of both their occurrence and qualities without which our world would be a lot worse and brutal place thanks to their often discreet but irretrievably positive impact.