What Is An INTJ? (A 5 point Guide)

The article will explain what an INTJ is and what system of personality it falls into. Furthermore, the article will introduce this term and highlight any characteristics it has.

What Is An INTJ?

An INTJ is a personality type that belongs to the Myer Briggs Type Indicator or the MBTI inventory of personalities. The INTJ is also known as the ‘Architect’ and this personality has a unique set of traits that differentiates it from other personalities in the MBTI.

This article will first introduce what the INTJ personality is and look at the MBTI system of personality as well. The article will then highlight and describe the traits of the INTJ personality type.

INTJs – The Dominant Functions

INTJs are made up of four functions namely introversion, intuition, thinking and judging. We will discuss each of these one by one to develop a deeper understanding of this personality type.

Introverts can be defined as ‘measured’ people. They think very carefully before they speak and when they speak it is limited. They are better able to process information by thinking over it in their head instead of participating in a brainstorming session. Also, their behaviours reflect their inner world; when they think they automatically become quiet, more focused and reflective while doing so hence their thinking and behaviour is in sync. Hence, don’t get overwhelmed when they don’t reply as fast as you want them to or go quiet. They just need time to think over what you said or what it is they want!

People who are intuitive are known for making many discoveries in world history and this does not happen by just ordinary thinking; they must go beyond the scope they are given! They give value to their vision, dreams and even imagination and combine that with what they already have in their hands.

When it comes to intuitive people, they are indeed gems; they have dreams and visions they want to achieve and they will not let anything stop them 

INTJs give weightage to their thoughts and what seems structured or logical rather than the emotions they feel for others. Sometimes this can be detrimental and they find difficulty in understanding the emotional complaints or requests their loved ones have. People with this personality type focus on values like truth and justice and prefer to see the logic or aim of things. They can be described as task oriented rather than people oriented.

People who have the judging function are very particular about having schedules; they want to know what needs to be done when and prefer not to have too many surprises in their routines because it affects their work and tasks they need to get done. They will appreciate a person who has much of the things organized and already done.

 What is the Myer Briggs Type Indicator?

Are you familiar with an INTJ or an ETSP? Do you have any idea what they mean or who they could possibly describe? These are not some secret codes but terms that are used to describe the personality types of people who have taken the Myer Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

The Myer Briggs Type Indicator is a self-report questionnaire based on Carl Jung’s theory that individuals experience the world using four psychological functions namely sensation, intuition, feeling and thinking with either one of these being the dominant factor. The personality test determines which of these functions best describes a person hence detailing their personality, strengths and attitudes; it assigns one of the 16 personality types (just like INTJ or ETSP) to the individual taking the test.

According to the Myer Briggs Company, more than 1 million people take the MBTI online every year and an estimated 80% of fortune 500 companies use it in their human resource practices. Not to mention that the test is so popular that it is actively used on dating sites, university campuses and numerous websites where people are just trying to make sense of who they are. 

INTJ Traits

In this section we will take a look at the traits most INTJ personalities possess!

Intuitive

Yes, this personality does have an intuitive element to its existence.

They prefer to take into consideration their gut feeling or sixth sense when making a decision. They do not wholly want to rely on facts and numbers only! They do understand the importance of understanding things logically and looking at hard core evidence however, at the same time they place great importance on how they feel about things, people or decisions they need to make.

Hence, whenever faced with a difficult situation or this personality type feels confused or uncertain, they will tend to focus on how they feel – apart from looking at the solid evidence in front of them – and take the right action that would make them feel at peace in their heart and mind.

Like Logic

Even if the INTJ personality likes to depend on their gut feeling, this does not mean they do not appreciate logic or use it. The influence of the INTJ personality type is indeed strong and incorporates the habit and of course desire to logically work out tough situations, make important decisions, understand others and certain concepts and of course work things out with others.

Hence, this personality type will not be so convinced by what you say unless you actually put forth a good case!

Scientific

The INTJ personality type is a big fan of the scientific method and will often base their work on this methodology. They will position their stance only on things that they can logically and empirically support or prove. Just because something makes sense is not enough to consider it valid.

Hence, these scientists like to test what they believe in and make sure the results they get are reliable and valid and not just one time things!

Aggressive – Sometimes

No matter how calm or patient someone is, they can have a breaking point and the INTJ definitely has one! They can lose their temper and get mad even at the people they are closest to. This could either be because of the issues they are facing together or because the personality type under discussion is hurt because of them or has been putting up with their unacceptable behaviour for too long.

If you’re facing this, it may be a good idea to seek the help of a therapist or other mental health professional. You can find a therapist at BetterHelp who can help you learn how to cope and address it.

Hence, if you see someone who is usually quiet finally blow up and let out all their anger, be aware that this may be an INTJ personality type who has been penting up all that anger and frustration inside of them.

Introverted

They have stronger mental processes and like to take time off so they can think on things that are on their mind in a peaceful and quiet manner.

Just like the typical introvert, they will feel happy and fresh after spending time alone and will be able to perform better on their tasks or towards their goals.

Furthermore, introverts are great at coming up with creative and innovative ideas that can be used to solve complex or difficult problems. Thus, the INTP personality is indeed someone who is a problem solver.

Hard Working

The INTJ personality type is a hard worker. They have strong mental processes that allow them to process difficult things and work towards a bigger goal that others may be too afraid to take on because either they are unable to put in the time or effort or they do not have the skills to achieve it. This personality type will give it their all to achieve what it is they desire and they will forgo short term temporary desires to fulfill their inner and long term focused ones.

These personalities do not shy away from big challenges and will adapt greatly to attain a goal even if it means changing how they do things in a huge way – all that matters is meeting their goals and proving that they can do what it takes to win.

Hence, if any type of task comes up that requires a great amount of hard work and commitment, this personality type won’t back off and will put their head in the game and figure out how to do things!

Conclusion

This article explained what the term INTJ means and what personality system it belongs to. Also, the article went on to introduce this personality type to the audience and also highlight and describe its traits in detail.

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