Hello, I'm Joft and I am an INTP.

[joft]

I've always known, and everyone who knows me has always known that I am an unusual individual. My introversion has probably been much stronger in the past then it is now as a result of maturing, but I've always just thought myself weird. Last week I discovered the MBTI system and found out I am an INTP, and so far everything I've learned about it has helped me tremendously. Just knowing that people can understand me and that there are other people out there like me is such a relief. I've been getting some good laughs from reading INTP profiles and seeing how perfectly it describes me.

But, I would like to give a bit of my story and present my single greatest trouble right now, to which I would appreciate any input from anyone who knows somewhat about INTPs. I've always been very interested in academic persuit, it came natural to me and it was something I could do well. I excelled in grade school to the point where our local public school system was not allowing me enough accelerated learning to keep me from being very bored, so I began homeschooling after third grade. I also became particularly interested in computers around the same time, and unfortunately that detracted somewhat from my studies from then until now. Another factor that made me become more uninterested in school was that the two correspondence curricula my parents tried on me were from private Christian schools.

It got to the point where I had gone from scoring high on the PSAT at age 9 to being 18 years old and only just finishing the sophomore year of the latest curriculum. I wanted to get on with my life, and I was anxious to become more socially active; so, I abandoned persuing a diploma and just took a GED. I'm now attending a local community college. Having recently freed myself of my greatest vice, video games, I'm now facing the spectre of my prodigy-past, and I can't help but feel disappointed about where I am now. So, I'm brushing up on my English and Math and planning to take an SAT and some SAT IIs so I can try to apply to a better college. I would love to attend Yale, which I live close to; but, I won't waste time lamenting things out of my control, so whatever college I can get in to at this point is what I'll have to be content with.

My problem now is that I can't for the life of me choose a major. My indecisiveness has stressed me (and some others :whistle: ) in the past, but now I understand that it is a part of my personality. I change interests quickly. For me it's not that things get boring so much as it is something else that I haven't focused on recently seems more interesting. I've only managed to narrow this decision down to three fields: Computer science, the obvious choice for me; English and Literature, I enjoy reading, writing, and wouldn't mind teaching it in highschool or as a professor; and Psychology or Psycholinguistics, something else that fascinates me. Computer science is the obvious choice because the field has much demand, it pays well, I already know a lot about it, and I've developed my math skills more than anything else. But I would really like to work with people, I've spent a lot of my childhood alone in front of a computer and I don't like the idea of doing that for the rest of my life. I would also like to feel more like I am contributing to helping other people; hence teaching or psychology.

What I would like to know is if there are any INTPs, or people who know about INTPs, who can give me any information relevant to INTPs working in those fields; especially if you are an INTP and work in one of them. Any other information about choosing a major or a career as an INTP or anything like that would also be greatly appreciated.

I apologize for the long post. It may have been better to just introduce myself here and then post this in another place at another time, but this is something that is making me very anxious :blush:

I'm Joft, nice to meet you :cool:

[SensEye]

Hello Joft.

By coincidence I just finished watching a taped episode of NYPD Blue which had an A.A. theme so I had to laugh at your choice of phrase for your intro. Not sure if that was by intention or not.

Regarding your dilemma of a choice of major it would seem obvious to me to take the comp sci route. However, I should point out to you I am a borderline P/J so the tendency to lean towards the pragmatic may be an aspect of my personality that does not apply to you.

It is interesting to see you write you would "really like to work with people" after a lifetime of doing much the opposite. It seems counter intuitive to your personality type, and atypical for the usual INTP. Are you sure this is not a case of change for the sake of change? Would this really be something you would be comfortable with? Just food for thought.

[joft]

Well, I'm not very strongly introverted, and I have some F tendencies (the T is most definitely dominant, but the F never stops pestering me). I like being around people, I just usually let everyone else do the talking. I'm usually only provoked into talking by a desire to explain or clarify something.

My nagging F keeps telling me that working with numbers and machines is too impersonal and cold for me to live my life that way. And I know I wouldn't have the initiative to attend most any type of social event, so something that requires daily interaction would seem more healthy to me. English professor seems really interesting, except I would probably have to change my syllabus pretty often to avoid boredom, heh

[Chicken]

Welcome dude

[jetboots]

Welcome! go with your present "N" intuition. simple, general, but true (well I think so anyway.) It's what I rely on to make decisions, otherwise my Thinking T takes too long, and usually never finishes. Perceptive "P" doesn't help either cause it just senses all the possibilities to begin with, and the "I", well that just keeps the lively "T" thinking more walled in and promotes thoughts bouncing around in your head even more.

[Birdsnest]

Welcome!

You can either study something you love, and hope you get a job, or you can use a combination of strategies, and learn a skill that is actually hiring in your area, so it depends on what you are willing to do to make a living mostly.

Even if you are indecisive, just learn something that will "support" you and you can always have that to make your way whether or not you love it.

If you want to actually visit the people who have jobs in areas you are interested in, and interview them, here are three questions to ask. What is the best thing about the job you are doing? What is the worst thing about the job you are doing? How did they get their job, ie, who hired them? Those questions will help you decide if you want to do the same.

Now, here is my advice: If you can, work for the government, it pays ok, and you get a decent retirement built up when you opt for that over the years. Forestry? Geological Survey? Accounting? Computers? Navy? Many options, lots of security. Sometimes you have to apply 8 times to the same place before they look at your resume, but don't give up. http://www.usajobs.gov/
(http://www.opm.gov%20http://www.usajobs.gov/)
Hint: Look at the KSA's (knowledge, skills, achievements or aptitudes) on the job description. List how your ksas match with the job descriptions KSA's.

Another thing you might try is go to the Department of Labor and ask what jobs are expected to have job growth (what areas will be most needed) in the next 5-10 years. That way you can train in something that is actually needed in the near future and you won't be one of millions getting a degree where there is no job growth and nobody is hiring. You can also go to the career area of the college and look up typical incomes of different jobs. For instance, the financial side of programming pays more than other areas, but you want to also check your paper to see what is being hired most, and train in that area.

[Biff_Loman]

My nagging F keeps telling me that working with numbers and machines is too impersonal and cold for me to live my life that way.

I have never regretted any job in which I work with machines rather than people.

Mind you, I'm only 24 and I haven't had a real career yet, but still. . . I have a history degree, then went to teacher's college. After getting my education degree (a one year program but I still get a "bachelor's"), I was through with people.

[glassmoon]

hello Joft
here's a list of famous INTp's:


Famous INTPs:
Albert Einstein, physicist
Isaac Asimov, author
Douglas Hofstadter, author
Robert Anson Heinlein, author
Friedrich Nietzche, philosopher
(http://www.typetango.com/intp-personality.php)


Famous INTPs:
Socrates
Rene Descartes
Blaise Pascal
Sir Isaac Newton
U.S. Presidents:
James Madison
John Quincy Adams
John Tyler
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Gerald Ford

William Harvey (pioneer in human physiology)
C. G. Jung, (Freudian defector, author of Psychological Types, etc.)
William James
Albert Einstein
Tom Foley (Speaker of the House--U.S. House of Representatives)
Henri Mancini
Bob Newhart
Jeff Bingaman, U.S. Senator (D.--NM)
Rick Moranis (Honey, I Shrunk The Kids)
Midori Ito (ice skater, Olympic silver medalist)
Tiger Woods(http://www.typelogic.com/intp.html)

I didn't know INTp's can be authors. Anyway from what I'v seen, brainy people can excell at many different areas...

[Miss Anthropic]

Welcome Joft! I am one of the few OLD people on this website, I am in the minority I believe. I too recently took the MBTI and discovered that there are other similar-thinking--other thinking minds out there. I lived an additional 20 some years of just thinking I was weird! I guess I'm still weird, but not alone. Anyway, my point is about school and careers. I got my degree in exercise science a gazillion years ago because it was fun and interesting, of course that was after switching majors a couple times already. I always wanted to to do chemistry, but didn't deal well with the math because it didn't come as easy as everything else, so I let that go. I have worked in so many different jobs its insane...Retail, food service, exercise physiology, fitness center (management), teaching, pottery production, dental lab, casino cashier, bank teller, entomology lab research assistant and reader-rater for the Psychological Corporation (it is a subsidiary of Harcourt, Brace and Javanovich the publishing company--I scored those writing tests they give students to assess their abilities as well as the school's curriculum). That was my favorite. Lots of variety in lots of years. Good. Never establishing a career. Bad. So I find myself at 40 searching for a career. Long story short I am back in school trying to decide if I want a graduate degree, or a post bacc in something scientific. Finally knocked out the math but am realizing at this point it will take less time and $ to get the grad degree. Bottom line for you: Get your degree in something very job specific (engineering or something in the medical field for example) or have the skills to make decent money, sounds like computers may fit the bill there. That would be your fallback. Then, choose what you WANT to do. If you have a good lucrative fallback then you can afford to dabble in school--the English or Psychology degree. I don't understand how people can pick one job and stick with it their entire working lives. I used to feel guilty about getting bored with jobs and leaping into something different. The MBTI helped me realize that is part of my personality and I have decided its only a flaw if I choose to look at it that way. Most of my friends marvel at diverse work experience I have...except they all have more money than I do :( Oh well, my adapation is to abandon the desire for material possessions ;)

[Shai Gar]

I've always known, and everyone who knows me has always known that I am an unusual individual. My introversion has probably been much stronger in the past then it is now as a result of maturing, but I've always just thought myself weird. Last week I discovered the MBTI system and found out I am an INTP, and so far everything I've learned about it has helped me tremendously. Just knowing that people can understand me and that there are other people out there like me is such a relief. I've been getting some good laughs from reading INTP profiles and seeing how perfectly it describes me.

But, I would like to give a bit of my story and present my single greatest trouble right now, to which I would appreciate any input from anyone who knows somewhat about INTPs. I've always been very interested in academic persuit, it came natural to me and it was something I could do well. I excelled in grade school to the point where our local public school system was not allowing me enough accelerated learning to keep me from being very bored, so I began homeschooling after third grade. I also became particularly interested in computers around the same time, and unfortunately that detracted somewhat from my studies from then until now. Another factor that made me become more uninterested in school was that the two correspondence curricula my parents tried on me were from private Christian schools.

It got to the point where I had gone from scoring high on the PSAT at age 9 to being 18 years old and only just finishing the sophomore year of the latest curriculum. I wanted to get on with my life, and I was anxious to become more socially active; so, I abandoned persuing a diploma and just took a GED. I'm now attending a local community college. Having recently freed myself of my greatest vice, video games, I'm now facing the spectre of my prodigy-past, and I can't help but feel disappointed about where I am now. So, I'm brushing up on my English and Math and planning to take an SAT and some SAT IIs so I can try to apply to a better college. I would love to attend Yale, which I live close to; but, I won't waste time lamenting things out of my control, so whatever college I can get in to at this point is what I'll have to be content with.

My problem now is that I can't for the life of me choose a major. My indecisiveness has stressed me (and some others :whistle: ) in the past, but now I understand that it is a part of my personality. I change interests quickly. For me it's not that things get boring so much as it is something else that I haven't focused on recently seems more interesting. I've only managed to narrow this decision down to three fields: Computer science, the obvious choice for me; English and Literature, I enjoy reading, writing, and wouldn't mind teaching it in highschool or as a professor; and Psychology or Psycholinguistics, something else that fascinates me. Computer science is the obvious choice because the field has much demand, it pays well, I already know a lot about it, and I've developed my math skills more than anything else. But I would really like to work with people, I've spent a lot of my childhood alone in front of a computer and I don't like the idea of doing that for the rest of my life. I would also like to feel more like I am contributing to helping other people; hence teaching or psychology.

What I would like to know is if there are any INTPs, or people who know about INTPs, who can give me any information relevant to INTPs working in those fields; especially if you are an INTP and work in one of them. Any other information about choosing a major or a career as an INTP or anything like that would also be greatly appreciated.

I apologize for the long post. It may have been better to just introduce myself here and then post this in another place at another time, but this is something that is making me very anxious :blush:

I'm Joft, nice to meet you :cool:
i like you