#cognative functions

Links to pages about Cognitive Functions and how they relate to your Myers-Briggs type : 

http://thoughtcatalog.com/heidi-priebe/2015/06/if-youre-confused-about-your-myers-briggs-personality-type-read-this-an-intro-to-cognitive-functions/

http://typelogic.com/fa.html

http://funkymbtifiction.tumblr.com/cognitivefunctions

Fe: 'Rude.'

Fi: 'Inconsistent.'

Te: 'Illogical.'

Ti: 'That doesn't make sense.'

Se: 'GET UP AND COME ON. LET'S HAVE SOME FUN!'

Si: 'Sit still for a bit, it's good for you."

Ne: 'How can you think about one idea for so long? It's incredible.'

All of us INTJs have it. We're born with it.

Here it's defined as the "structuring [of] one's interactions with the external world in a systematic fashion, based on logical and impersonal hierarchies and categories."

Logical and impersonal. Towards incoming information, anyway. Let me describe to you my interaction with the Extroverted Thinking function throughout my life.

When I was in first grade we had a student counselor come to our class and give us a speech about anti-bullying or something, and in my head I was making all kinds of sarcastic remarks and thinking things like "that's not how people actually are" or "that's not how it works in the real world." I noticed that the things I were thinking were kind of mean and cynical (though I don't think I knew the word cynical at the time) and I thought, am I a mean person? Am I heartless? The things he is saying are good things, but I always have to have a snarky reply in my head. Why am I like this?

I observed this tendency in myself for a long time. In my head I would tear apart people's arguments with cold logic and sarcasm, even if I thought they were arguing for a good cause.

Now that I understand Myers-Briggs I think I understand why. INTJs can't stand inadequacy or incompetency. The ability to sniff that out has to do with our Te function, our extraverted thinking. When we take in new information we feel it out for flaws, and if we find any, we throw it out as useless information. Our intense scrutiny of incoming information is also driven by our need to protect our "sacred inner world," as it's called. We "system build" our whole lives through, piecing external information into an internal construct, from whence our unique insights are derived. Thus we have to be very picky about what information is allowed in.

For so many years I thought I must just be an unfeeling, heartless creature who wasn't affected by emotional appeals they way a person is supposed to be. Now I realize that this is what I'm supposed be, how I'm programed to be, and it's not heartless or cruel, it's "logical and impersonal." That said, having the Te function is not a license to be an ass to other people. Now that I know why I am the way I am, I have no excuse for causing offense to others with cynicism or sarcasm. Yes, they come with the package. But, they are for my use, not for berating others. And now that you all have read this, you no longer have an excuse either. Be aware of your Te and allow it to work for you, without hurting other people. 

We are all born unaware (unconscious), and life is a process of becoming aware (conscious). The goal of type development is to move our awareness of our functions from the unconscious to the conscious. Once we recognize each function, we can develop the skills related to the function, learn to trust it, and ultimately become comfortable with it.

Any aspect of a function that is not available to the conscious part of our psyche still works for us, but it works unconsciously. Unconscious aspects of functions influence how we think, act, process information, make decisions, and experience emotions. It is just that the conscious part of our psyche isn’t aware of this, and we may not understand why we are experiencing what we are experiencing. It often feels as though we are “out of control,” and from a conscious viewpoint, we are.

Sensors more instinctively notice the facts, details,

and realities of the world around them in the here and the now. Consider the following list of personality traits NATURALLY associated with sensing:

perceiving with the five senses

clear straightforward speech pattern

attends to practical and factual details

focused on actual experiences

very in touch with physical realities

more literal using facts and real examples

present oriented in the moment folk

sensible down to earth

see little things in everyday life

attend to step-by-step experience

the eyes will tell the mind what is going on

Consider the following list of personality traits NATURALLY associated with intuition:

perceive with memory and associations

complex conceptual speech pattern using lots of compound sentences

more figurative using analogies/metaphors

focused on the possibilities

more in their heads

see patterns and meanings

repeat themselves recap and rephrase

project possibilities for the future

bored easily after learning skills

read between the lines

looking for the big picture

get hunches out of nowhere

finish other peoples thoughts (interrupt)

Blogger's Note: Though this article is not specifically directed towards INTJs, it is relevant to us as T-thinkers relating to F-feelers in our lives.

A person with a Thinking preference will take an objective and information driven approach by focusing on: What the conflict is about – the facts Opinions and principles Analyzing and tolerating differences Succinct delivery when addressing conflict – concern for persuasive data Maintaining a firm position in attempting to resolve the conflict

A Feeling oriented person will take a different perspective and focus on: Who is involved – the people Needs and values Accepting and appreciating differences Tactful delivery when addressing conflict – concern about the impact on others Ensuring that there is give and take in resolving the conflict