a bad habit and the INFJ

Photography Challenge, Day 8 of 30: A Bad Habit.

No lightning bolts or eureka moments but I managed to avoid the nose pickers! :) Bad habit: the consumption of said cupcakes. I do make a lot of these babies. Which inevitably means that I eat far too many. I am relieved to be able to inform you, however, that the number of wrappers displayed in this photo equals the number of cupcakes consumed by multiple adults today. I am not that much of a pie. Although I could probably be if pressed. :)

Other bad habits of mine that I could have photographed are: tearing my nails, leaving food in the fridge well after it's 'use by' date, serious lollie consumption or the size of my laundry piles before I finally do something about them. To name only a few. And since I am being open and honest about my flaws why don't I give you a bit more of an insight into me. (I feel a roll coming on after all.)

I am an INFJ. To a tee. I have never been one for personality tests in the past. I would always come out smack bang in the middle of everything, or a little bit of all the types. That is, until I did an authentic Myers Briggs test at a leadership course (not the internet test but the proper one that you have to pay for. Sorry.) Reading this profile almost makes me cry, it is so very me. But even MORE ME is the authentic profile I have attached in images at the bottom of this post.

Here are some of the things that this type test tells me about myself (that I already knew but that make me feel 'normal' to see written in a profile):

• I can happily alternate between (and live with) both extreme mess and extreme tidiness.

• I am often mistaken for an extrovert when really I am, most definitely, an introvert.

• I am always right. (But I knew that already.) ;)

• I have always found it easier to communicate through words on a page than words in the air.

• I often don't know how I know something, I just know. I make intuitive leaps across logic and land at the same place as the linear thinker but via a different route. The best way I can think to explain it is that I think in a 'sphere' as opposed to a 'straight line'. Which makes it a challenge to verbalise what I am thinking at any given moment (the polar opposite of my linear thinking husband).

• I feel things very deeply. I feel poems. Songs make me cry. Books make me cry. Lots of things make me cry. When I am excited I literally feel like I am going to burst with the sensation. (And often need to run or dance it out.)

• I am extreme. I call it the 'Anne of Green Gables Syndrome'. Any of you Anne lovers out there will know what that means--in raptures one minute and in the depths of despair the next. My daughter is most definitely inflicted too. :)

• Only those who are close to me ever see these extreme emotions surface. When I am with strangers or people I don't know well (or are guarded from) they are generally always internal. The poker face remains but inside I am flipping out!

• I am an incredibly private person which makes it a little ironic to be posting like this. But since I find it so difficult to explain myself verbally, and hardly ever do, it feels good to use this non-verbal space as an outlet.

• I am shocking at spelling. I couldn't function without a spell check. So, who cares, I have spell check. ;)

• I can't tell my left from my right. Well, I can but it doesn't come naturally, I need to stop and think every time. When my husband asks me to show him the way I generally always just point. Much easier and saves the hassle of saying 'left' when I meant 'right' and needing to pull a u-turn.

• Did I mention that I am extreme? When I have a hobby I don't just have a hobby I have a LIFE'S PASSION which becomes nearly all I can think about (hence photography at the moment). This ultra enthusiasm will generally wane given time (and the introduction of new 'hobbies'). Balance is something I am continually working at.

• I thrive on creativity. I always have. I am an english major, and in another world (or maybe even in the future), a perpetual student. I'm obsessed with reading and writing and all things Englishly. (Also obsessed with creating my own new words.) :) I have a diploma in graphic design. I am a jack of all creative trades, master of none. (I wish I was a master of one, I just wouldn't be able to choose which!) I trained to be a primary school teacher at 17 because I wanted to make a career out of teaching kids art and reading them books. Unfortunately I had to teach them maths too so it didn't last long. :)

• I am in some ways a perfectionist and in other ways not. I.e. I got one B+ at university and cried (more than cried actually--I am still not over it). And, at the moment, one bad photo can ruin an otherwise perfectly fine evening. YET I am not a details person in the slightest--I hate following patterns and reading manuals, I am an ardent trial and error type and am usually happy with shabby construction so long as the end product looks good. Another example of this is the fact that I am a grammar nazi when writing an essay, yet when using social media I choose to blitz out on exclamation marks, made up words, and sentences that begin with 'and' because I am not writing an essay. One thing that I adored about the creative writing papers I took at university was the freedom to structure sentences in any way that pleased me so long as I was intentional about it. I bring that to the blog baby!

• I am difficult to get to know (and to understand) and I hate being 'put in a box' EXCEPT when that box is right. Then I feel OVER THE MOON to A) be understood and B) have a box I can show people to explain myself. Hence my loathing of personality tests pre the discovery of the INFJ. :)

• I get feelings about people and situations. I go with them and they usually turn out to be grounded in reality and not just feelings.

• I am as stubborn as an Ox. I will say yes to your face but I will mean a flat out NO! Family trait. Couldn't help it. ;) The reason I will say yes to begin with is because I have the strongest aversion to conflict E V E R. Saying no to your face is practically impossible for me. Reconciling the 'yes' that I have said with the 'no' that I have meant can prove a bit of a challenge. Sigh. Again, working on it. :)

• Unbearable feeling: being misunderstood.

• Makes me angry: feeling controlled or manipulated. Seeing others be controlled or manipulated.

• Elation: when I feel seen. (And international travel.) :) Oh, and my husband sees me better than anybody which also makes me very lucky and grateful!

And for some non-INFJ points, just 'me' points:

• My worst irrational aversion: listening to or watching someone brush their teeth. Even the thought of it makes me shiver.

• My worst irrational fear: ocean liners. Or rather, the thought of being on them in the middle of a seemingly endless icy black sea. (One that is also home to large scary creatures.)

• Favourite forms of comfort: lattes in take away cups. DVDs or good books while lying along side my husband. Chocolate. Snuggling under a duvet (or in front of a fire) on a rainy day. Walks in the wind.

• Favourite things: too many to list, but I am beginning to build a catalogue here.

Phew, if you made it this far then thankyou for listening! I would love to know if any of you relate. Or if you are also an INFJ. Or if there is a profile type that speaks to you. OR for any reason really. I just LOVE feedback. [Note: see an awesome post here on commenting. We bloggers thrive on it. And you don't need to be a member of blogger to comment!]

Here is the official profile in case what I wrote spoke to any of you. If you click on the page you should get the full-sized file.

Oh, and I'll be back tomorrow with: 'Someone You Love'.

:)

x