In our society, 1-3% of the population have INF personality traits. There are two types of INFS, the INFJ and INFP. These are two of the 16-personality types described in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) tool. The MBTI is a 100-question instrument used to identify personality types.
Each personality type has four letters. For example, the I, in INF, stands for Introverted traits and indicates the individual is probably private, shy, and a deep thinker.
The N stands for iNtuition, instincts or a hunch an INF may feel about something or someone.
The F stands for feeling which translates into their preferred method of decision making.
The J and P are the final letters of these personality types and indicate whether the INF has more structured (J) or a more flexible (P) traits.
The following are some of the reasons why INFs are so rare.
Is an Extrovert or an Introvert the best leader? The current trend in the literature promotes Introverts as the best. Surprised?
These warm shy individuals are dubbed as being socially inept because they are quiet and rarely initiate conversation in social situations. That is not true.
If you want to talk to an introvert, talk about something substantial. They are not particularly interested or good at small talk. The loud more boisterous extroverts tend to outshine INFs not only in social situations but in the workplace as well. They tend to be automatically overlooked as potential leaders and this is unfortunate for both the workplace and co-workers.
INFs are deep abstract thinkers who weigh the pros and cons on both sides of a challenging situation. INFs make great leaders as their style is based on what is best for everyone concerned. This is a rare quality indeed.
INFs base decisions on feelings of what is best for humanity rather than logic. Needless to say, this approach is rare in our current world.
Decisions are still – for the most part – made by traditional-type personalities who value concrete specific facts. Unlike INFs who use their feeling (F) traits to explore options and make tentative decisions, the more traditional decision making approach is used to gather facts, follow previous precedents and incorporate the unwritten rules.
In a 2010 study conducted by Murie on the personality traits of INFs, findings supported the decision making process of INFs and described it as, “to understand others, value relationships and harmony, and assess a situation by its impact on people”.
The INF’s personality traits geared toward the greater good include reciprocal respect among co-workers and a more creative ‘what if’ work environment. This type of atmosphere is conducive to co-workers sharing ideas that can “lead to increased social and global coherence related to the shared intuitiveness of the group” (Murie, J. 2010).
The art of influencing others to contribute their personal ideas and thought in the workplace environment is another rare gift of the INFs.
INFs do not crave wealth, also a rare trait in today’s world. Today’s society focuses on money.
We are bombarded with money noise. How to make more money, how to save and how to invest money, how to stretch your budget and how to save for retirement is all you hear.
INFs hear these messages as well but they are not interested in money for themselves. INFs view making money in the context of helping others. This is what INFs do.
INFs with unlimited funds make large donations of cash and time to their causes because it is part of their value system, not just a tax deduction. INFs with moderate incomes make donations of cash and time in accordance to what they can spare.
INFs with little money donate to causes with their time. The majority of people equate success with their earnings. INFs equate success with how much they help others. Sad but true, this is also why there are so few INFs.
INFs believe everyone is equal and do not believe in societal hierarchies. No person is better than any other person.
When working for their causes, they believe each person’s contribution is equally valued. A leader’s participation is no more important than that of a front line worker.
INFs are humble and feel just as comfortable doing work either at the top or the bottom. They do not look for praise, acknowledgement or any other type of accolade. Again, a rare quality!
INFs feel so strongly about their causes that they often choose to help others ahead of themselves and sometimes their families placing personal relationships at risk.
Their dedication to their causes takes a huge amount of energy. INFs often become physically and emotionally depleted.
Another risky behavior of INFs is seeing a need, such as an epidemic, and jumping right in to help without regard for their own health.
While INFs’ emotions are their weakness, their convictions are their strength. INFs will not compromise their values under any circumstances. Although an INFs’ feelings are hurt easily, their dedication to their cause prevents others from discouraging, manipulating or breaking their spirit.