Thanks for all of your support. This is such a nice place to visit and express ideas.
I've taken the Myers-Briggs personality test, the Kiersey Personality Sorter test, and many others on the internet for years. I most often get INFP (sometimes INFJ). Interestingly enough, SO is an INFP as well.
I'd love to hear what your personality test results are!! Post them in your blogs or here in the comments field if you have a chance.
I've been looking up ideal INFP careers this morning and found several interesting websites. If you know what your type is, here's an extensive careers link: Ball State University's personality type & careers page.
There's also a Jung Type Descriptions page that tells you what you're like and what careers would be good and not so good for you, based on your type.
I found this site fascinating as well: Murray State Myers-Briggs information page. The descriptions are very detailed.
I found a few lines from the last website interesting:
- People with INFP preferences have a great deal of warmth, but may not show it until they know a person well. They keep their warm side inside, like a fur-lined coat. DEFINITELY - is that why I've made no friends at my current job?
- They stick to their ideals with passionate conviction. I'm not going to sell my ethics for a $5 book!
- They want their work to contribute to something that matters to them--human understanding, happiness, or health. They want to have a purpose beyond their paycheck, no matter how big the check. although if the check is big, I'm not going to complain!
-In the long haul, what INFPs choose as a career must serve their own idealism. If it doesn't, they can become restless and stressed and their work can become sloppy and counterproductive. restless - CHECK! stressed - CHECK!
According to all of these websites, I'm on the right path with my job search. My "favored careers" are all things I'm interested in. I just have to pick something new and run with it, I guess! What to choose...that is the question.
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October 4th, 2007 at 11:35 pm 1191540956
Glad to know I'm not the only INFP in my 20's struggling to find a good career, pay off the loans and find the meaning of (my) life.
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July 23rd, 2008 at 09:08 am 1216804098
Contemplating on changing my carrer and move to more satisfying job. I wish I will turn to Academic work.
Recently I took Kirsey test as a part of Team building workshop and this opened new avenues for me.
I am reading a lot on career-change online as well as print material. And hope to post some information/summary regarding this online.
Watch out ...
August 8th, 2008 at 02:54 am 1218164093
I have been working in the accounting field for the last 12 years. I have not had much success with my career. There are too many deadlines, and the work is downright tedious and boring. I do nothing that really contributes to society. I have been miserable with my career for the last 12 years. I have mostly either quit or have been fired, and only once in all my jobs did I have a chance for a promotion, and even that fell through. It's been very stressful on my health. I've been suffering from depression, anxiety and stomach ulcers. I am only 34 years old.
I have been thinking about a career change, not just a job change. I feel like after getting that accounting degree and the 12 years of experience, I would just be throwing that all away and starting fresh again. This is why I haven't changed careers, and I am afraid of what the future holds. But maybe I would be happier, more successful, and healthier with a different career path.
I always loved animals a lot (I own 2 cats and a fish), nature and anything with medical science. I thought about studying veterinary science. I would be helping people's pets, so I would be contributing to society in a meaningful way. Seems like a more interesting avenue, and I would be doing something I enjoy more. Better than punching numbers into a calculator or computer all day - so boring.
August 8th, 2008 at 06:11 am 1218175863
You can think of teaching Accounting to younger kids , may be part-time that will really help.
Further you can think of helping as a accountant part-time for some NGO that works for animals that will give you access to these fields and you can transfer your skills.
Slowly you can switch to another area.
am thinking on similar lines -
Hope this helps.
Santosh
September 1st, 2008 at 05:43 am 1220247822
I was considering a career in photography, but the more I get into it, the more I realize that it would not satisfy my drive to help people, eventually I would grow to hate it. I would prefer to keep it a part-time hobby that makes a little money.
Considering going back to school but also having to pay off debts, not sure if I want to put off having a family to go back to school or if my husband and I will have a baby first, then go back to school about 2-3 years after that.
I am still not sure exactly what program of study I want to pursue. Most appealing to me is Counseling Psychology, eventually going into private practice, however my research tells me that that would require a Ph.D. (approximately 9-11 years of school). I'm not sure I'm prepared to be in school until I'm 40! So I'm researching other options that would still involve helping people one-on-one.
Krista
September 1st, 2008 at 05:44 am 1220247862
September 9th, 2008 at 06:29 am 1220941758
For my creative side I'm thinking about taking drafting and design. Maybe photography as a hobby. Somewhere I read that INFP's do not like details, but I really am someone who is into fine details.
For office work, I'm thinking about Human Resources or Career Counseling.
Other careers I think I'd be interested in are nursing or teaching.
Someday I do want to settle down and have a family, but for now the focus is on myself. Sounds funny, but I am really looking forward to being a soccer mom type and be very active in my kid's lives. I can see family being a top priority in my life.
September 19th, 2008 at 06:05 am 1221804343
September 20th, 2008 at 08:10 pm 1221941450
I feel like there is no "real friends" almost. But I won't abandon hope.
I am 22 and still looking for that "perfect" career. I feel so restless and like I will never settle down. Love is a completely hopeless issue. I have never been in a relationship - is it because of ideals? No, I don't think so, I just want to feel something.
I am so frustrated. Good to know I'm not alone.
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November 29th, 2008 at 11:22 pm 1228000977
I am now looking at retraining as a massage therapist, make up artist or something else more holistic! I am 26 and used to just chase the highest pay. After dropping out of several jobs I realise it is more important to work with things you actually like otherwise you will never stick with it. I feel like I have been very flighty, but eventually I am sure I will find a better path.
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November 30th, 2008 at 06:44 pm 1228070669
I love your blog and having found similar minded people? Yes I often feel alone and isolated. The winter blues doesn't help either. Kashi I hope u managed to find a better job? Hi Sam - thanks your advice has been comforting. Sorry to hear about your job. You sound like me, I always leave, theres a horrible pattern on my CV. It's taken me a while to realise why I've been a quitter, I am probably chasing the wrong career. At the moment I am reading "How to get the job you love" and I hope it will help me find a new action plan. I have a telephone interview to train for a part time massage therapist, I am very excited by this, doing something involving health, beauty or fashion. Or writing! I will keep you posted.
December 3rd, 2008 at 03:28 pm 1228318095
My situation mirrors that of Krista. I'm now 27, having just left my course to become a medical doctor because I was too unhappy with it. I stuck by it for three years because i was training to help people. However, it didn't satisfy my need for creativity. My ventures into photography is not satisfying my need to help people/the environment.
Right now working in a temporary secretary role just to get the money in and have no idea which way to go. I don't fancy more study because I already have to pay the student loan from my medical studies!
What about things issues like procrastination, difficulty starting projects etc? I was reading into attention deficit disorder because I seem to fit a lot of these criteria (http://sharischreiber.com/ADD.html) but I'm curious about what other INFP'ers think about overlaps with an INFP personality. Any thoughts?
As for relationships, I am relieved to know that INFP's tend to feel lonely when they have no reason to! It's not only me! So thanks for that, Sam.
With love, I've tended to wait until I feel a certain depth with someone before I get into a relationship with them. My last relationship was with a guy who was sensitive to others and perhaps even an idealist, though I'm not sure. Seems like I'm not willing to settle for the mass majority of personality types!
December 3rd, 2008 at 06:20 pm 1228328453
I completely sympathize with the working just for money issue. I've worked as a secretary and a few other jobs as such but I get burned out before a year is up!
Okay... I've read a lot about INFP's looking for the "ideal" mate. I didn't think I did that but... maybe I do. Does anyone else feel that they do this?
December 3rd, 2008 at 06:22 pm 1228328526
Well it is a brave thing to leave a course/job you don't like and at least the process of elimination gives you more ideas about the reality of different jobs.
I feel I am getting more of an idea of what I like and dislike but the process is still very unclear. Basically I mean that today we have so much choice - you can really do whatever you want to do, but the problem is finding work that makes you happy!
LOL I can definitely relate to procrastinating. Do you also find that you are enthusiastic at the start and then can't see it through? I guess this applies to many plans or projects.
Relationships geez that's another big thing - well don't we all have problems.. but one thing I noticed is reluctant to trust people. Tendency to be too sensitive or passive. How about you?
I don't like someone who is as sensitive as I am though. I love the opposite, a real manly macho man! lol!
December 3rd, 2008 at 06:55 pm 1228330536
Just to update, I did quit my cushy job (in Arizona) in May after saving enough cash to feel comfortable doing so. In the meanwhile, I have attempted to carve out a spot in the creative fields. I have done photographer assisting, photo shoot production, wardrobe and prop styling.
Like others on here working with the creative fields, I feel creative and inspired, but sort of empty. I crave more "meaning" in my life. Working with photographers, fashion and models is fun, but I know that ultimately, it doesn't matter.
I also feel a little icky about working in fashion because it's all about creating an image, a fantasy...but that fantasy is something that many people aspire to create in reality and find they cannot do. Basically, the message is that if you aren't a tall, unusually slim 15 year old with perfect skin wearing $2000 boots, then you clearly aren't the ideal of beauty and you are too poor to dress fashionably. Not my cuppa.
So now...I'm finding myself still searching. Perhaps it's my inability to follow through? ADD? Glass is half empty? Who knows?
I'm not depressed about it, just frustrated that I'm STILL searching. My whole adult life I'm searching...will that ever stop???
On a random note...in response to Cheryl. I too have a tendency to be too passive and I'm extremely reluctant to trust people. AND I am attracted to manly, macho men myself. Luckily, I found one who is a great complement to me and really GETS it!
December 22nd, 2008 at 11:53 am 1229946789
Anyway, after a cruising through a linguistics-social science degree obtained from study in 3 countries, I've gone from hospitality to photography to promotions to market research and now massage therapy... all somewhat brief and coinciding with travels and circumstance and plain ole luck-of-the-draw.
So basically I've had some opportunity to discover what works well with my vibe. And what I've come to accept is that no one particular "job" is my salvation. I think "career" is just another lens to see ourselves through, and being the diverse, interested, multifaceted creatures that we are, we essentially crave this exploration as part of our fulfillment. "Career" is optimally an extension of one's natural gifts, abilities, and interests.
I'd like to share an amazing book I picked up last year that seems to me the most progressive and yet is such "a practical guide to creative career design". At about 600 pages, this book is "the most innovative, unconventional, and profoundly practical career guide you'll ever read". At least that I've (mostly) read.
Zen and the Art of Making a Living
by Laurence G. Boldt
Basically what I like is that it deconstructs "life work" in a very multidimensional way so as to imagine a career more holistically, and not just as a revenue tap (AKA paycheck). It encourages and inspires a vision of fulfilling, personally meaningful work. Which means acknowledging that we deserve to wake up to doing something that fuels us plentifully on many levels, while at the same time representing a sincere contribution of service. All in all, a great bit of help to rearrange your brain if feeling stuck.
Good luck
December 30th, 2008 at 03:56 pm 1230652565
Newly discovered INFPer here.
Thanks for everyones comments. I can completely relate to everything that has been posted. Its such a relief to find out that im a INFPer and that theres others like me. I am currently working in high pressured office job, that is well paid, has great benefits and prospects but is ultimately very unsatisfying. I am actually amazed i have lasted two years in it!
I initially started purely for financial reasons, as I finished my degree in art & design and had my student loan to payoff and a new mortgage. Even though I know that I wont be doing this for the rest of my life, i feel lost and as if my life is not aligned and being fulfilled.
My distain for the corporate world grows everyday and I cant stand how are company exerts maximum amount of profit from our hard work while treating us like robots. I would say that 95% of people in my office are overworked which leads to unnecessary stress and anxiety. As an INFPer, my environment and the people around is very important. Everyday I witness office politics, people trying to outdo the next, people forming alliances to screw over others in order to get a promotion. To me this greed and behaviour represents the worst aspects of human characteristics and the potential we have. This is also from some of the people that I actually like, which disappoints me even further. I try and view the bigger picture and avoid conflicts and battles of the egos but it just seems impossible.
I think its now only at matter of time how long I can mentally sustain this type of environment. No about of money is really worth this emotional anguish. I guess im not cut out for the rat race after all. After looking at careers options for INFPers on the web, I quite like the idea of teaching primary school children or some type of counselling work. I guess life is a journey, maybe we are not where we want to be right now but different paths leads us to new realizations. A good book on this is Paulo Coelho's- The Alchemist. Goodluck with following your dreams!
December 30th, 2008 at 06:37 pm 1230662261
M, thanks for that insight into careers. I didn't get that before. I now realize (sort of) that I need to do something creative (not necessarily in the creative fields!. It's not what I create that I value, it's the how and why I create something. Also, my work environment is extremely important too. I can repeat Mike's sentiment on that. But even if I find that perfect work environment and have a creative output, will I find that fulfilment? I wonder ... then there is a search for the romantic partner too. I don't think it's just an INFP thing to be dissatisfied with life.
Val, I know what you mean about taking pictures of models. I've thought about photography as a career choice myself, but after a lot of thought have decided to take photographs for my own pleasure. I've been asked to take pictures for musicians etc but that sort of photography just didn't make me happy. I don't think I'm prepared to work in the photography field to get to where I want to be and I actually feel okay about that.
Anyway, life gets better the older I get, so I must be doing something right!
December 31st, 2008 at 09:29 pm 1230758997
Val - I can completely relate to how you feel about the creative fields. It is supposed to suit our types very well, but for me after 3 years I have no desire to do anything art/design related. I prefer it best when I appreciate art in my leisure time as a Hobby, and not commercially. Like you I saw how shallow it can all feel, I'm not sure why I didn't find it fulfilling?
Apparently INFPs have a tendency to be attracted to sad things, what do you think? I definitely THINK too much, probably too cautious. At least this past couple of years I've been more proactive in trying to DO more and give it a shot rather then wonder forever
Hi M - I am also thinking of trying some of the things you've done especially Massage Therapy - health/beauty/leisure industry. I have an appointment with a Recruiter who might be able to find me work in a health club, I love this kind of environment. I also need to be good at selling spa products and I never thought I would do sales, but I will soon find out if I am any good at it, LOL!!
Mike - Sorry to hear you're not enjoying the corporate world. I hated all that bullshit so much, it wore me out, I am obviously not built for that - I care too much! I also got quite ill in those environments, now I am trying to avoid them. You're right though an office job usually pays well. But now I can't imagine wasting away in a 9-5 for the next 5 let alone 10 years. I am making it my resolution to change.
UKGirl - I agree with you ! I think it's not necessary that you have to work in a creative field to be happy, but I think some degree of flexibility in your role is important. I really hated regimented management, lol.
Glad things are getting better for you too, I think career is largely trial and error. I hope I find a more comfy path soon! Good luck ! x
December 31st, 2008 at 10:59 pm 1230764371
For those of you keeping up, I just quit my job and am trying to make a move. Finding a new job has been hard thus far though. I think it is part of the INFP's impulsive nature - it seems impulsive but i've thought about it for a long while.
I am curious as to what all of us INFP's are going to do in the new year. Safe journey to all! Happy New Year.
January 2nd, 2009 at 12:43 am 1230857004
Update on my "career"...I am still working with photography in various capacities, but with the economy downturn, my boyfriend and I don't have the business to support ourselves. So, reluctantly and with heavy heart, I am back searching for a job. Just a job, not a career.
I'm trying to get a job with a university so that I can earn a master's without footing the bill for it. I find myself drawn time and time again to teaching/training/developing people, so I think a master's in education could help open doors in that arena and allow me to follow my passion of making a difference with others. We'll see...
On the subject of doing a "creative" job...I those of us who have worked in those fields are discovering that the term "creative" is somewhat of a misnomer for those kinds of jobs. That's because once it's for money, it's not truly our self expression and we aren't really "creating". It's using our creativity to bring to life ANOTHER's vision, so it's not our creation at all. We simply become a tool for making money, both for ourselves and our clients. It sucks out the meaning and expression entirely. That's what DOESN'T work for us.
I think the only types of creative jobs that would work for us is if we were so hot and in demand that we were hired for our vision and ideas, not just our ability to bring someone else's idea to life. But to get there usually requires a lot of time spent making "corporate art", because the reality is that we have bills to pay.
I agree with you (Cheryl and UKGirl) that my preference is to use my creativity to make art that is just for me and loved ones. It is simply to express myself and share of myself, not to make a living. I prefer to keep my art truly "creative".
So...I'm back to the quandary of how to earn money to support my wide and various interests without losing my temper or mind! I think I'm onto something with education. I know that no matter what vocation I choose that I'll have to surrender some self expression due to the money making machine, but at least with education, I'll know that I'm contributing directly to another human being's development. I'll keep you guys posted ;-).
Create an amazing year for yourselves and try not to take yourselves or life too seriously!