So everybody is Myers-Briggsing these days, and I decided to try it out, too. Turns out I’m in the same category as Elon Musk and a bunch of really distasteful politicians, so thank you very much for that. But the description of me they gave me is very flattering:
“It’s lonely at the top, and being one of the rarest and most strategically capable personality types, Architects know this all too well. Architects form just two percent of the population, and women of this personality type are especially rare, forming just 0.8% of the population – it is often a challenge for them to find like-minded individuals who are able to keep up with their relentless intellectualism and chess-like maneuvering. People with the Architect personality type are imaginative yet decisive, ambitious yet private, amazingly curious, but they do not squander their energy.”
I definitely like being rare. But I’m afraid the test tells everybody they are rare. Hey, did anybody take the test and was told they are not rare? I’m just curious.
It’s a nice test, though. See this part about me:
“Architects are simultaneously the most starry-eyed idealists and the bitterest of cynics, a seemingly impossible conflict. But this is because Architect personalities tend to believe that with effort, intelligence and consideration, nothing is impossible, while at the same time they believe that people
are too lazy, short-sighted or self-serving to actually achieve those fantastic results.”
That’s totally me. And Elon Musk.
And sorry for long quotes but this one is very good:
“Architects radiate self-confidence and an aura of mystery, and their insightful observations, original ideas and formidable logic enable them to push change through with sheer willpower and force of personality. At times it will seem that Architects are bent on deconstructing and rebuilding every idea and system they come into contact with, employing a sense of perfectionism and even morality to this work. Anyone who doesn’t have the talent to keep up with Architects’ processes, or worse yet, doesn’t see the point of them, is likely to immediately and permanently lose their respect.”
I wouldn’t say I radiate the aura of mystery, although I’d surely love to. But the rest is true, and we all know it. Especially my new buddy Elon.
The test also says Elon and I are arrogant, judgmental and clueless. I don’t know about Elon but it’s definitely true about me. I perceive these adjectives as compliments, so that tells us something.
Clarissa's Blog 
I am classed as a Logician. No surprise.
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Yep, took the test, told me what a brilliant “executive” personality type I am.
According to the results, I’m comparable to outstanding Americans like James Monroe (5th U.S. President, 1817-1825, remembered for the “Monroe Doctrine” that spread the boundaries of Unites States across a gigantic continent from sea to shining sea, and brought all of South America under our benign influence), and John D. Rockefeller (richest man in the world in his lifetime, who gave generously to many charities).
The statement for my personality type was: “OK, someone needs to clean up this mess.”
I suspect that everybody who takes this test gets a favorable comparison, since it’s possible to say something positive about almost any personality type.
I took the test a second time, deliberately flunking it. The second time around, I was labeled a “mediator.” I was compared to people like singer Bjork and actors Johnny Depp and Julia Roberts — fantasy figures who play phantoms on stage and in movies.
The statement for my false personality type was: “Nobody can stop you from dreaming.” What condescending, infantile nonsense passing as a compliment!
So. everybody wins in this feel-good game, right?
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I got an Adventurer personality and then on the second attempt Virtuoso, but I don’t think either is correct.
At least, I liked the Virtuoso’s quote:
I wanted to live the life, a different life. I didn’t want to go to the same place every day and see the same people and do the same job. I wanted interesting challenges.
– Harrison Ford
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I got the INFJ-A personality type–another one proclaimed as rare. I usually test as INFJ–so that was no surprise (I’ve taken the Myers Brig a few times). This description was very nice–called me the Advocate and said I was like Martin Luther King. But, flattering as the description was, it didn’t really sound much like me. The thing that rang the most true was description of how I act in relationships.
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It’s better to be than MLK than Elon Musk. 🙂
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I’ve done the test a few time and I’m always INT- and right on the line with P and J. When I took it this time it pegged me as a Logician though if I took it again I might be an architect.
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There’s been a time when I was really into the MBT stuff, to the point of seeking out a forum for people specifically of my type (which was, and apparently still is, consistently INTP).
I have never seen a gang of more condescending, baselessly irate, in some cases downright immoral pricks before or since. But these people were also incredibly playful, eloquently critical, and incredibly into posing and solving intricate and pointless puzzles – doing all the things that make life worth living. Part of the reason why I sought this place out to begin with was in a hope to find people I can feel like I belong to. And while I definitely did find these people, I wasn’t quite ready to be as horrified by them as much as I did.
Also found out that if you make a box and label it “for people who don’t belong in a box”, they’ll happily climb in and then defend their rights to it.
Which is to say, you can get insight from this typology stuff that’s not merely fluffy feel-good stuff, but you may have to scratch deeper than the test itself.
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I got ENFP-A. But I am awfully close to ENTP. I suspect that I would get ENTP sometimes, depending on my current frame of mind.
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I get ENFP-A, also ENFJ, ENTP and ENTJ, depending on frame of mind. Only the E and the N are consistent and only the N is really pronounced.
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You don’t really write on popular subjects so it’s not surprising your regular commenters don’t run to the most common Myers-Briggs types.
I’m INTP-T. I’ve never gotten anything other than INTP, although I’ve been on the bubble between thinking and feeling. These tests are very popular with guidance counselors and in corporate settings.
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I would be very glad if people said what the popular subjects currently were, and I could try to write about them. Just for fun.
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popular subjects now
-I’m such a victim
-Trump makes me feel bad
-Black Panther is AWESOME!!!!!!
-Trump is mean and a big poopy head!
-Woe is me!
why you’re not writing about them?
(see list above)
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No.*
Stuff like:
–Bible journaling [There’s a whole section at Michael’s]
— Turning your Facebook into adult Tumblr with pictures of motivational sayings, weight loss, slogans, what used to be email forwards
–Pictures of your kids
–Lists/lots of lists [really quite fungible from anything from best toys to best guns]
–Donate to my cause!
–Pictures of your amazing food that you just ate/got at a restaurant/made (slow cooker recipes)
–Quizzes
–Your Netflix queue
— blog about your clothes (if you have a sense of style and you’re plus size, petite, big and tall, etc those are popular)
–popular culture fandoms
–How ’bout that home team?
*I don’t get out much so maybe survey more people about popular topics?
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–Weight loss blogs (before after during, food, processes)
–How I saved lots of money with one simple trick
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Fuck, I don’t even understand half of these items. 🙂 I’m hopeless.
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Which ones puzzle you?
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#1 and 2, Netflix queue, poular culture fandoms. It’s all a foreign language.
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“Stuff like:”
Call me Ole Yeller, drag me behind the barn and shoot me….
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Maybe you should start a thread and ask. Off the top of my head as far as “trending” topics goes, I’d say maybe something regarding the Me Too/sexual harassment scandals? You’ve discussed it in passing but not much in depth. Similarly but more related to academia, maybe something about the Can Lit scandals? But those topics already reached “peak blog” so maybe they are already dead…..
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If I say what I think about #MeToo, I’m afraid that will end my career. 🙂
I have a lot to say about Can Lit scandals, but it’s all filled with extreme swearing. The whole scandal is completely ridiculous and just crazy stupid.
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All those popular subjects sound completely boring, no matter how talented somebody writing about them is.
I miss your posts about nation state and about your other research (female coming-of-age literature). Are you working on something you can share? What about your take on current events in USA, Russia, Ukraine, Middle East, EU, etc. ?
Have no idea what Can Lit scandals are, but would be interested to hear your opinion (in a protected post) about #MeToo which reached even Israel.
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Another kind of posts I loved were your book reviews of critics like Bauman, Zizek and others.
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This request has just been granted. 🙂
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I would love to read your thoughts about the Can Lit thing (actually about Me Too for that matter). Maybe password protect the posts?
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MEDIATOR (INFP-T) “No one can stop you from dreaming!”
I’m a goddamn hippie! But hey, I’m with Shakespeare, so I can’t complain too much.
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Mediator for me (INFP) although I’ve taken the tests before and I tend to flip between INFP and INTP. It’s not incorrect about my tendency towards hermitude. And some of the listed weaknesses are problems I have noticed in myself and have spent time and energy correcting (tendency towards taking criticism personally)
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#1 and 2, Netflix queue, poular culture fandoms. It’s all a foreign language.
1) Bible journaling apparently is illustrating and indexing and annotating a Bible with pithy Bible verses, art supplies, stamps, calligraphy pens , washi tape, office supplies like paper flags, etc. Just look on Pinterest and YouTube.
2)If someone “shares” posts from a lot of public Facebook pages on their personal Facebook page, it’s basically the same as Tumblr. (On Tumblr, people reblog “posts which are just like illustrations with words on them”.)
3)Your Netflix queue is whatever you intend to watch on Netflix. Don’t you “save” series and movies so you can find them more quickly when you sign in? People love saying “I want to see this” or “this is how I feel about [Netflix series].” This can generate a whole bunch of posts where you review what you’ve seen. Right now, my father is working his way through the entire run of The Office.
4)With very popular book series, movies, television shows, etc people often devote a lot of energy to making fan art, writing fan fiction or getting into the sociopolitical implications of plot points in those popular works. For example, there’s whole slew of blog posts about Fifty Shades of Grey, Black Panther, different manga series, The Hunger Games , Harry Potter, Star Trek…you get the idea.
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You know the Meyers-Briggs test isn’t science, right? There’s a lot written on this. I’d look at horoscopes before it to tell things about people.
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Of course, this is just for entertainment purposes. For real insights into myself, I speak to my analyst.
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