The crux of this page is about how the type model is actually too simple for many INFPs. They are far too sophisticated in terms of people to feel comfortable with a mere 16 types. Ironically, this is precisely one of the reasons that many INFPs mis-type themselves.
A friend of mine likes to invite INFPs to imagine there are 16 "flavors" of personality within the INFP pattern -- so there are INFPs who look like Guardians, some who look like Rationals, some who look like Artisans, and of course there are INFPs who gravitate toward the description of INFJs because they think it better expresses their unique flavor. (Others gravitate toward the ENFP pattern as a sub-pattern.)
This is another reason why in-person type workshops are so important, if only to connect with how "primitive" the psychological type model actually is.
What's interesting to explore is how much energy people want to sink into this model -- they want to explore why some people are mature and some are immature; why some ISTJs are easy to get along with and others so hard. They want to know why it is they hate spinach and sometimes feel blue when the sun is bright.
And this is the wrong model for that.
In fact, I don't know whether there's any "model" that captures all that stuff or not. At some point, I move into a coaching role and ask, "Why is it important to you? What are you looking for? What's the question you really want answered -- OR, what is the question you're avoiding by focusing here?"
There's a point where it stops being about the model, and it starts being about you. It's personal. It's about your values. So what meaning are you trying to make coming from the model of type? What are you asking it to tell you? (Maybe it's something you already know.)
(This is a good place for me to pitch my coaching services and guided imagery experience. Do you want to go deeper? I can go deeper. You can visit my other website if you're interested in pursuing these kinds of questions in more depth.)
More to come...
