There are so many quick
personality quizzes out there on the internet and I love taking them since I
have already taken the official Myers-Briggs several times. The good news is
they pretty much always give me the same result every single time.
INFP
You are an idealist. You are loyal to your values and the people who
are important to you. You hope you can live in a world which could exactly
match your own value. You are very curious about the world. You can always find
more possibilities and drive yourself and other people to make these ideas come
true. You try to understand other people and help them to maximize their
potential. When there is nothing threatening your own value, you are quite
flexible and good at accepting other people.
This is probably one of the more
accurate assessments of me … I do wish I could live in a world that matched my
own values. I do try to understand people and in most cases it comes fairly
easily for me. I am steadfast in my convictions, beliefs and values and as long
as those aren’t threatened then I have no problem spending time with someone
who is the opposite of me. However, if it appears that I am going to be spending my
time defending my decisions and beliefs then no … I will leave. I will shut
down and that’s the end of it. I do not do confrontation when it comes to me …
if you come after a family member or a close friend of mine then it’s on but if
it requires defending myself … well I will just bow out and go home.
At my core I am an introvert. For
those of you who really know me then you aren’t surprised by this. So what does
this mean? The most basic definition is that I get my “energy” from time spent
alone. Those who get their “energy” from time spent with other people are
extroverts. My “energy” is drained
from spending time with other people. Sounds awful, I know, but it’s true. I
have read various "5 to 14 to 20 things an introvert wishes you knew about them" and some applied to me while others did not. After reading them all, the
conclusion I came to is to each their own, but in case you were wondering here
are the specific things that apply to me.
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| YEC - Nashville |
1. I do not like being the center of attention … except on my birthday
but don’t make me open presents while everyone watches me. That’s just
weird. I’m used to sharing my birthday with my brother … his birthday is 11
days after mine and growing up we would have one family party with our cousins
and grandparents. So we both opened our presents up at the same time. At
Christmas in my family, everyone is opening up gifts all at once and yelling out their thanks to
the specific giver … it’s a glorious chaos without any specific attention on
any one person, especially me. Now, if you know me at all then you are probably
thinking these pictures totally contradict this statement …
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| LCT - Thompson Boling Arena |
But honestly, when I get up to share
a song my focus is on blessing the Lord and ministering to those before me. In my heart and mind the
focus isn’t on me. When it becomes about me then I will no longer sing because
it’s not my voice to begin with. It’s the Lord’s and when I steal
the spotlight then I just need to sit down and shut up.
2. I have to talk myself into going to parties … even to my best friend’s
house when it’s just her extended family that I love. She has learned to
tell me who all is going to be there so I can mentally prepare beforehand. I
may come in super chatty or it may take me a while to get going but inevitably
I will get quiet for a while in the middle of the evening and hang out in a
separate room. I will arrive late to the party and more than likely leave
early. If there are too many conversations going on at once around me I can’t
focus. I will leave the room or go
outside for a few minutes to gather my thoughts and catch my breath.
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| Circa 2010 |
3. I will keep to the outer edge of the room or the kitchen. A few years ago, I started bringing an apron
and something that I would need to fix/bake while I was at the party so it required
me to spend the majority of the time in the kitchen. It was a perfect excuse
and kept me out of the excitement in the living room. People who wanted to talk
to me would come and find me in there, a meaningful conversation would ensue
and I was spared the small talk. Perfection.
4. I do need time with other people but I will need at least twice that
amount of time to recover. I have spent the last month in a basic bubble to
avoid getting sick. Only going to work and school during the week and running a
few errands on the weekend. I went to a football game on Friday night. Finally,
broke free of my bubble! I caught up with my precious friends/family at the game and spent time talking to a great, out of town, friend on the phone while driving home to close what had been an emotionally exhausting day. I slept 15 hours on Saturday. I
woke up several times and thought I should get up but would fall right back to
sleep before I could move. Then on Sunday, I fulfilled a prior commitment I made to a local church and sang in spite of the fact that my throat hates me.
It was a sweet service full of reminders that the Lord is involved in the details of our lives but I came home a slept 3 hours. I was wiped out. There has been many times where I have been
so spent after singing that I will be so weak I will be unsteady on my feet and
sleep most of the afternoon.
5. I value meaningful conversations most of all. I will
avoid the line at a church potluck or a wedding till everyone has gone through
just so I don’t have to deal with small talk. It’s awful. Hahaha. But now that
I know why it makes things so much easier for me ...
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| Found this delightful tree while driving through Walland, TN a few years ago! |
In case you are wondering … how
does this balance out when it comes to being with friends and family or a
future mate? Well here’s what a perfect day to me would like … sleeping in,
followed by quality time sitting on the couch with a cup of coffee while having
our quiet time. Then grabbing breakfast somewhere and taking a long drive in
the mountains or going somewhere we’ve never been before. No set time frame.
Just time to talk, time to listen and time to rest. Thankfully, I have had the privilege
of experience variations of that perfect day over the years and they are most
treasured memories.
So … are there any other
introverts out there? What’s your biggest thing?
I love you all!
Blessings …
- Melody Faith
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