INFP personality

November 13th, 2011 | 6 Comments

INFP personalities are usually perceived as calm, pleasant, somewhat reserved or even shy. However, such an exterior can be deceptive – even though INFPs can be somewhat cautions, their inner flame and passion is not something to be taken lightly. People with this personality type are really affectionate, a trait not often seen in other types. This compassion can be really fervent and long-lasting – but the INFP will use it quite cautiously, directing their energies towards a few selected people or a worthy cause. Idealism is the banner of INFP personalities – and they are proud of it. Unfortunately, it also means that INFPs can often feel misunderstood and isolated, as they are relatively rare (only 4.3% of U.S. population).

People with the INFP personality type have a clear sense of honour, which emanates from their many different beliefs. The noble Prince or Princess in a mythical tale, the King’s bodyguard, the defender of the faith – these are the typical INFP images. Look at one of the Knights of the Round Table, Sir Galahad or Joan of Arc – and you will understand what heroes inspire and motivate INFPs. If someone wants to get to know an INFP, it is crucial to know what drives them, to understand their chosen cause – INFPs are able and willing to make incredible sacrifices in the name of their cause.

INFPs seek harmony in their lives – harmony of their body and mind, their emotions and intellect. There is often a subtle tragic motif seen throughout the INFP life, but it is very rare for an outsider to notice and recognise this. INFP dedication to good, noble causes forces them to defend themselves from everything they see as evil. Paradoxically, it can result in INFP constantly looking at bad things over their shoulder – in contrast to their constant quest for purity.

INFP personalities tend to see things and actions from the idealistic perspective, rather than the prism of logic. They respond to beauty, morality, virtue rather than utility, effectiveness or value. INFPs can easily speak in metaphors and parables, and they also have an amazing gift of creating and interpreting symbols – for this reason, INFPs often find it natural to write and enjoy poetry. This personality type does not worship logic, unlike the NT types – from their viewpoint, logic is not always necessary. It is also likely that an INFP will not enjoy hypothetical or never-ending discussions.

Regarding jobs and careers, people with the INFP personality type are quite flexible, able to adopt new ideas and new information and keen to understand and appreciate others’ feelings and unique traits. INFPs can easily find new friends among their colleagues if they want to (they will, however, maintain a psychological distance). They loathe phone calls that interrupt their workflow, and they may function just as well alone or as a team. INFPs are patient when it comes to coping with difficult situations, but they cannot stand routine work. They can make factual or logical mistakes, but their intuition will almost never be wrong where moral or ethical decisions are involved. INFP often choose careers related to religion, education, psychiatry, psychology or architecture – and do their best to avoid dealing with the business world. They are willing and able to commit to being high achievers in the academic community, sometimes falling behind at school but usually reaching much better results at the university.

Furthermore, INFPs have the trait common among NF types – their aptitude for foreign languages is unmatched. INFPs also often become great writers and actors, as they can easily reflect and convey their own personalities using the fictional characters.

At home, INFP personalities radiate extraordinary dedication and commitment. They like to live in harmony and consequently do everything they can to avoid conflicts. INFPs are sensitive to other people’s feelings and there are very few things more important to them than seeing happiness in the eyes of their closest people. However, INFPs can find it difficult to reconcile the romantic and idealized notion of living with the often bleak and challenging reality. Sometimes INFPs can even avoid seeking the attention of another person, worried that they will be hurt later. Furthermore, INFPs generally prefer expressing their interest indirectly.

Johnny Depp INFPINFP home is their fortress. As parents, they will always fiercely defend their closest people and remain dedicated to improving the wellbeing of the entire family. INFPs convey everlasting devotion, compassion, and flexibility; therefore, it is very easy to live with this type of people. INFPs do not care much about routine rituals and they often allow someone else to make daily decisions on their behalf – but only as long as those decisions are consistent with their value system. If this is not the case, then there is a very little chance the INFP will budge. INFP will do everything to defend their moral values and persuade others to agree with them.

As for the romantic relationships, it is likely that INFP will have more difficulties than any other character type. INFP is a relatively rare personality type and consequently few other types share the INFP approach to life. According to INFPs, “life is a very serious thing”. Regularly fighting in one of their personal crusades, INFP may slightly complicate the relationship with their chosen partner if they are not careful.

INFPs may also often retreat into their “hermit” state (this personality type can easily switch between the two states), withdrawing from the world and getting lost in their deep thoughts – their partner may then need to spend quite a lot of effort to energise and “awaken” the INFP. Ironically, this task is most easily handled by the opposite ENTJ and ESTJ types, who are well entrenched in the real world and are often driven by far more pragmatic goals than INFP. Both the ENTJ, commanding their inner forces and leading them towards a distant goal, and the ESTJ, with their solid, reliable and traditional management skills, can provide the INFP with a stable ground and direction that can be lost so easily in one of their crusades.

INFP personalities are extremely creative, innovative and goal-oriented. They radiate a soft and pleasant aura of humour, but it is not always easy to get to know them on a deeper level mainly due to many reasons outlined above. INFP are also very intuitive listeners, with a clearly expressed intention to learn more about the other person – this is clearly recognisable and consequently INFPs find it very easy to become valued friends and trustees. In addition, most INFPs have the ability to see even the slightest hint of good in other people. In INFP eyes, even the most revolting person will have something worthy of respect or, at the very least, sympathy.