Hi there. New to this forum, new to Socionics. I've lurked here a bit and will offer my guess as to my type: IEI with the ethical (Diplomat) subtype. [http://www.wikisocion.org/en/index.p...e=IEI_subtypes] In fact, however, that subtype seems to describe me better than I think the IEI portrait does.
I've taken three online Socionics self-tests and came up with three disparate results: IEI, EIE, and IEE. Of those possibilities, IEE seems the least likely to me.
My Ennegram type is 4. My classical temperament is mostly melancholic with flares of choleric. I'm sort of Venusian--I love art, beauty, and the world of intense feeling. That said, I have tried to balance that out by developing my mind.
Physical: I'm female, tall, thin but slightly athletic in an elongated way (dancer's build). Heart-shaped face, wavy hair, large eyes, straight nose, big cheekbones. My face is seen as very expressive. I am considered elegant, but probably goofy, too. I'm well-coordinated in my movements yet tend to bump into things by misjudging the environment. That problem disappears if I am in nature and focus strongly on navigating, say, rough terrain. I can sit still for long periods sometimes, but I probably still look alert and engaged. Sometimes I get restless, too, and will fidget or walk around. Depends.
I'm fairly particular about clothing and tend to be well dressed. I have no interest in the prestige factor of my clothes, shunning the flashy label, but appreciate good quality and good fit. I mix classic things with trendy ones. I might dress way up or way down. I don't like a lot of ornamentation, such as many pieces of heavy jewelry. Simplicity punctuated by one strong detail suits me best. That detail might be seen as a clue to my personality; in other words, I might wear something elegant or even slightly conservative and dressy but feel compelled to add a Rolling Stones T-shirt so that I don't look generic and to make it clear, I guess, that I don't really "believe in" the serious outfit. Make sense? Probably not, lol. My favorite footwear: boots--dramatic, powerful-looking.
Interests and occupation: I work as a book editor. I used to have an in-house publishing job that I really loved, because my role was broadly defined and involved a lot of teamwork and creativity and in-person contact with authors and other members of the trade. For several years I have freelanced owing to living in a rural location, and having my work function narrowed down and my contact with others limited has been a major downer.
In my work I'm attuned to details and manage them well, but I'm always seeking to balance them out with the big picture.
I have a background in the performing arts--music, dance, acting. I'm a trained classical pianist and used to work professionally as an accompanist, and I'm a singer/songwriter.
I love animals, art, design, literature, foreign languages, and social theory.
Personality traits: I'm very passionately emotional and swing back and forth in ways that must confuse others. Sometimes open, sometimes reserved. Sometimes sweet, sometimes bitchy. I have a quick temper, which dies away quickly, and I enjoy a certain amount of teasing and conflict. I care a lot about others in general, and can always be counted on to step in when someone is in real trouble and other people are abandoning them because it's too distasteful to deal with their situation or whatever. But in the day-to-day run of things, I doubt that most people would suspect that about me. I will do things like privately help an abused homeless woman get social services and a place to live, and in a case like that, the recipient of my help will be surprised that of all the seemingly nice people everywhere, I am the one who will come through with actual emotional and practical support.
Believe it or not, I have a lot of humor, and I poke fun at myself above all. I know I am totally ridiculous and don't mind admitting it. I like to have fun and see life as a series of small adventures.
Many of my friends are eccentrics, intellectuals, and oddballs, but never of the hippie type. Always more serious, heavy, artistic, and even mildly insane--literally so. These last types look to me for a combination of tolerance and stable support.
I love conversation and am quite happy to discuss mundane things like the weather or someone's skirt, but I generally elevate conversation. That is, I bring in various facts, historical context, theory, relevant artworks, personal anecdotes, probing questions, or whatever I can to forge connections to things I find informative or that might relate to the life of the person I'm speaking with. I like to affirm other people and make them feel good about themselves.
I usually size up other people quickly and accurately, going past their surface image and instead picking up on the hidden things about them. Vibes?
I have something bordering on intolerance for religious and spiritual systems, although with maturity I see that these things are very important and helpful for many people. That said, I absolutely despise hypocrisy of every kind, and often I find that people who adhere to some kind of system exhibit exactly that, hypocrisy. I'm an anti-sheeple. I have strong opinions and say what I think, but I usually do so diplomatically, and I am good at mediating between people in conflict. If one person is harshly judging or harming another, I can find the right words and tone to help the oppressor become more tolerant without losing face, and to help the oppressed party understand and forgive the meanie.
My own interest in spiritual things is limited to what I can actually perceive, but that tends to be a lot. I usually will not disclose this to anyone but my very closest friends, but in the interest of being accurate here, I'm a bit clairvoyant/clairaudient. I have seen ghosts, my dead relatives talk to me, and I can determine the sex of an unborn child using my hands in the air about three feet from a woman's body. I can discern edible from non-edible plants because the former have a strange glow around them, and I have explored physical locations in dreams and daydreams in advance of going to them in person, and then found that I accurately picked up on many details, such as the size and location of a specific large rock or a body of water. That sort of thing. This set of "abilities" or whatever has caused me a lot of problems, because I will "know" something but have absolutely no logical basis for it, making it difficult to convince other people in my life of something very important that will happen in the future. Even I will sometimes discount what I "know" because it has no basis in the rational. It's weird, it's embarrassing, but this stuff is a major part of my life so it seems best to mention it.
I'm very exploratory sexually and do not really like plain and basic routine sex. I particularly prefer sex that involves power exchange or breaking taboos. Yet this must occur within the context of love and respect and fun, or it's just unpleasant to me.
All in all, I'd say I'm not very stable, but I'm perceived as harmless. I believe I come off as more together than I am and that other people would be surprised to know how internally sensitive I am and that I nurture many troubles and preoccupations. I have a lot of unrealized dreams and put tremendous pressure on myself. Nothing I do ever seems satisfactory to me. I try to resolve this by making sure not to get too isolated. Feedback from friends and from groups helps me regulate myself and my self-concept.
So, I'm probably a Beta? And I find it interesting that a lot of people round here have made comments about Betas being self-aggrandizing or haughty. I think it's true I can come off that way, and I would point out that it's really just a front. I struggle mightily with self-confidence almost all the time.
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Enough for now? (Ha!)