In honor of Hiroshima Day, I’d like you to take a minute to reflect on just how absurd it is for America to maintain 10,000 nuclear bombs. They’re simply aren’t needed and by reducing the nuclear arsenal our country could save billions of dollars in maintenance costs.

Take a few minutes to watch the video below, courtesy of TrueMajority. (For the lazy among you, there’s a 30 second one on the TrueMajority site. You can manage that, right?)

After nearly 8 years of a man who can’t string a sentence together sitting in the Oval Office, I sincerely, sincerely hope that we will have learned something as a nation - public speaking ability is a core requirement of the job of President of the United States. Period. If you can’t speak, you can’t inspire. Oration ability should not be overlooked.

I know he’s old, I know he’s tired, but get the man a speech therapist, get him a nap, and send him home. I don’t want him as President and neither should you.

If you do take a look, I’d appreciate comments on a few things:

• Are the photos any good? Do I have any right to be selling things?
• Are the prices reasonable? (I’m trying to balance a desire to earn a little bit of cash for my next camera upgrade with the desire to actually sell something and not rip people off.)
• How should I organize things? (The categories are still kind of a mess.)

I’d also really, really appreciate it if you could rate the photos. When you mouse over a photo, you’ll see a thumbs up/down button the right side of the picture. Click one! This will help me understand which photos are worth keeping up and which should come down.

Thanks! (And BTW, thanks to folks who left positive comments on the recent Wordless Wednesday posts. The ones not of the kids were mine.)

I’ll get back on the two wheeled contraption again next week and post about whether a week off is a good or bad thing.

The Extrovert
The obvious difference between Julie and I is the introversion/extroversion difference. Julie got one point for introversion: writing (which to her, doesn’t count - it’s still communicating). I received zero points in extroversion.

On the negative side, Julie is constantly talking. Let’s be honest - she never shuts up. You would think talking at the brick wall of her introvert husband would get old, but it never seems to. Not only does she keep talking, she talks loudly. (While a worldly person, Julie’s one truly American tendency is to talk louder when people don’t understand or don’t immediately respond.) Julie has learned to start conversations with “did you hear me talking to … ” - because despite the fact that I’m in my office, at the other end of the house, with the door closed, I probably followed the conversation. In turn, I have learned that if I really want that quiet contemplation and concentration, I either need to leave the house or wear ear plugs. (For me, the noise is also the hardest thing about having children.)

The other point of conflict is likely emotion. To Julie, I don’t show enough (or even have enough). And NO, NO, NO, NO, I do NOT walk to “talk” about how I’m feeling. Especially if it’s something you just sprang on me that I haven’t yet had time to contemplate.

Another facet of Julie’s extroversion, and generally a positive one, is her drive to meet new people and get out to do things. It is entirely thanks to Julie that we know our neighbors and are friends with them. She is the social chair of ChezArtz and, though it takes some prodding, she manages to update the calendar so that I know what I’ve been signed up for this weekend, next weekend, and for the 12 weekends following. (Which would be the negative by the way - my Perceptive side sometimes struggles with the fact that I’m tied down to the things Julie has signed us up for.)

The Feeler
Feelers tend to decide based on personal, subjective values. Put simply, they decide with their hearts (as opposed to gut or is that the same?). At the more extreme end, the impact of decisions on people (and their subsequent emotions or feelings) are paramount with a strong desire for harmony.

The Mentor/Champion (The NF)
The combination of NF frequently leads toward individuals with personal charisma who are committed to people. They’re enthusiastic and focus on people’s strengths and potential. As such, they’re frequently seen as mentors and champions of others. They’re strong in getting work done through people and appreciative of others when things get accomplished.

Julie, the NF
I’m fortunate that Julie isn’t a strong Feeler. I think she has a lot of Thinker tendencies and that serves me well. (It also serves her well - she works with engineers.)

One word to describe the ENF: pushy (they would use “persuasive”). They have opinions, they’re enthusiastic about them, and they’re not afraid to share them. God help you if you’re not also enthusiastic and in line with the ’suggestion’.

We do periodically have conflicts about harmony and relationships. I’m not terribly concerned about the impact my not showing up to something might have on the host, nor on the perception of our family from outside. Having some casual acquaintance of Julie’s, who will have no ongoing relevance to my life but is important to hers, have an opportunity to meet me for an awkward and short conversation, is not adequate reason to get in the car and drive somewhere to attend something I’m not interested in. Continuing to tolerate a fool (that incompetency thing again) simply because you’ve known them for years or because you don’t want to hurt their feelings is absurd and trying to “improve” an idiot and bring them up is a waste of energy. (You can see where NTs get their reputation for being aloof and impersonal!)

On the positive side, I see a lot of the mentoring and personal champion side of Julie in her interactions with the kids. I think that’s why she’s such a strong advocate of the Attachment Parenting - it just seems to fit with her view of how to interact with and develop (people) children.  NF is a great combination for a mother.

And of course, it’s nice to have someone caring, appreciative, and empathetic who loves me.

J/P Confusion

I mentioned the nuances of my Perceptive-ness in the last post. Julie is ostensibly also a Perceptive, but in quite different ways.

Julie and I both like order (a non-Perceptive trait). I like order in things. Julie likes order in people, events, and timelines. Julie is the consummate project planner and list maker. Can we check things off, what did we forget, what do we need next time? But her desk, bookshelf, and belongings are a mess. Things stuffed into drawers, things lost, every flat surface is a location on which to stack things, ironing is something that only happens if she would be seen as socially negligent for not doing so. On the other hand, I lose sight of details in plans (dates, locations, names, numbers) but freak out that the countertop is cluttered or that Julie’s been cooking again (what the hell happened to the kitchen!?!).

As mentioned above, Julie likes to schedule every free moment of her time (and frequently mine). Social events, volunteer programs, play groups, you name it - if she has a free moment, she’ll fill it. While this is stifling to me (you mean I have to schedule time to think?), after 10 years of marriage, it’s getting into a rhythm. She’s now got herself so overscheduled that I need only wait - I’ll find a time when she’s busy and I’m not. This isn’t necessarily a good thing for either of us though and will take some work to unwind. (BTW, if Julie volunteers for something in your presence, slap her. She doesn’t have time!)

And there you have it - the combination of an ENFP and an INTP in real life. Any questions?

I’ve surprised a few people with the depth of my interest in Meyers-Briggs and personality assessments in general. Typically, they note that they just don’t see me as someone with an interest with people (the irony is ripe here: I work in Human Resources). To me, it’s actually pretty straightforward - MBTI (and to a lesser extent, other assessment vehicles) represent a way to put logic around something I find to be inherently illogical: people’s behavior. As smarmoofus rightly noted in her comment to Julie’s post, being logical in dealing with people is a core element of the INTP personality type and MBTI aids that behavior by putting a logical framework around communication style and interaction requirements.

MBTI is also of interest to me because of the pattern recognition it provides and the nuances that develop you dig a little deeper into it. Combinations of letters exhibit patterns across personality types. For example, Intuitive Thinkers (the “NT” piece at the center) tend to have a lot in common, despite difference in the first and last character. You also find that there are sub-facets within each character which may go against the broader type. For example, Julie being flexible, but also demanding closure and decision; me starting things way in advance, but then never finishing them; Gabriel being immensely talkative, but also introverted. Think about these things in the context of an INTP personality (which we’ll get to in a minute) and it all makes total sense.

Given that I have a bunch of material to work from, here’s some additional detail on how these things fit together, the the pros (and yes, cons) of INTP-dom, and some personal anecdotes.

The Intuitive Thinker
According to the materials that I have, approximately 12% of the population are intuitive thinkers (NTs). A quick scan shows a large number of inventors and theorists in this category. People like Thomas Edison, Einstein, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

At a high level, NTs tend to be visionaries with a firm belief in competency as a measure of worth. They tend to be very principled and will honor decisions and agreements. NTs are very intellectually curious (lots of “what if…” questions) and tend to be strong conceptualizers, taking a systems view of things by focusing on and quickly identifying patterns (interrelationships, interactions, the whole and its parts, short- and long-term implications). NTs are often high achievers who are architects of change and who plan and construct with ease. Frequently pioneers and early adopters.

NTs tend to define for themselves what competency is and thus often define others as incompetent. Because authority is derived from competency alone, it’s not uncommon for NTs to disregard traditional authority/hierarchy. Thus they are often viewed as non-conformists who are disrespectful of authority figures. (You’ll find non-conformism is viewed as a positive and NTs like the term “authority independent” - it implies objectivity as opposed to blatant disregard for authority. We discern the power base in a very impersonal way - we just don’t see it as something we must comply with.)

NTs are often seen as impersonal and aloof; too busy thinking to notice people, too tied up in their theories to give a simple answer (lots of “shades of gray”), and completely oblivious to the immediate needs. When they do notice people, they may be argumentative and competitive. Wordsmithing and splitting hairs is all too common - nuances are important.

A few personal anecdotes…

Smarmoofus rightly notes (again) that INTPs like to be knowledgeable about everything. It’s highly likely that I will do significant amounts of research on even simple things, like what kind of car rack to buy or the 8 different ways we could drive between here and our vacation destination (with associated mileage, time, and scenery impacts). While these are likely annoyances to others, to an NT they’re a core part of making an informed decision.

It’s also highly likely that I will react negatively (typically defensively) when confronted with something that I know nothing about. For example, when Julie asks me, “Why does the wireless phone keep connecting from the base station?”, she may have no expectation that I can/will/should know the answer, but the fact that I don’t have any idea is immensely frustrating. I feel that I should know the answer, regardless of what others think. This is definitely a weakness of the NTs - we will feel personally harmed by things that challenge our competency (i.e. make us feel incompetent) even if there was no intent from the other person. Self-doubt is a common personality facet (after all, authority is derived from competency - am I competent enough to be an authority figure?).

Something that I don’t see in the literature, but which I have seen in myself and in other NTs I’ve interacted with is the tendency toward aficionado status among NTs (ahem…snobs). Because we do lots of research, grasp concepts, and like to be the authority, we tend to get (too?) absorbed in things. An anecdote: in a meeting this week, a conversation started on coffee. It rapidly escalated until the three NTs in the room were discussing the flavor profile differences in the beans of various Central American countries and correcting misconceptions of Fair Trade and Organic certifications. The person who started the conversation was obviously not an NT and had long since moved on to a different conversation before we noticed their absence. This has been a repeating pattern in my life. (I was voted “Class Snob” in high school - and took it as a compliment.)

The Introvert
The popular perception of an introvert is someone who is quiet and not social. In MBTI, it’s not so much that introverts are asocial, but that they derive their stimulation from within. The inner world of thoughts and reflection are of more value than the outer world of people and things. Introverts feel pushed inward by external claims and intrusions (such as phone calls).

It’s important to note that it’s not generally black and white - people have both extrovert and introvert tendencies and can act in both modes. What the indicator notes is preference - where the individual will spend most of their time and where their comfort is.

It is true introverts are going to be less likely to thrive on making new social contents. They will forget names and faces (unless the person is particularly competent or is material to the work an INTP is doing). Because they’re more reserved and are more likely to keep emotions internal, they will be harder to get to know. That said, introverts tend to develop deep relationships with a small circle of friends and tend to be highly loyal to them.

Being an introvert tends to compound the NT items noted above. Working on projects without interruption, being interested in ideas behind the work and putting depth to those ideas, liking to think a lot before acting, questioning ideas and wanting to understand the world (all introvert tendencies) all dovetail with the NT tendencies and, at least in my view, accentuate them.

The Perceptive
In MBTI, the perceptive lifestyle is flexible, adaptable, and spontaneous. Perceptives like to go with the flow and experience life as it happens. They enjoy being curious, discovering new things, and exploring without limits or constraints. They feel comfortable maintaining openness and are quite comfortable with ambiguity. Perceptives may seem disorganized, messy, irresponsible, procrastinators to others.

I’ll focus on personal anecdotes on this one as I’m an odd mix and it demonstrates the nuances inherent in the various tendencies.

I noted earlier that I’m an “early starter” perceptive. I’m quite comfortable with ambiguity and mid-stream directional change, may never actually drive for a conclusion, but I’ll definitely get started early. To me, this makes sense with the NT - I like to do the research, even if I never get around to finishing. So in contrast to the traditional Perceptive, who may do everything in a last minute rush (strong tendency toward (productive) procrastination in Perceptives), I’ll do 80% immediately, but leave the rest open to account for changes and to give myself flexibility to make last minute changes.

I also have a healthy dislike for chaos and disorganization. I like to put order to the world and don’t like things to be messy (as in cluttered, dirty). I do tend to organize things and reduce clutter. I’m not rigid in it, but it’s definitely there, and it’s more of a J tendency.

And there you have it - more than you probably wanted to know about the life of an INTP. Thanks for reading and I welcome any comments from fellow INTPs on where I’m right and wrong, or from non-INTPs on the negatives I’m glossing over.