common stereotypes about Si (introverted sensing)

[marooned]

hello, since a lot of people on the forum see me as SEI i feel qualified to make this post in some ways. the following are things about Si that are not really true of me and that i think probably miss the mark about what Si is.

- Si is not matching your clothes... one can develop a personalized aesthetic sense of course, and there is some loose connection to Si in this, but it's often far too loose and far too indirect to be important. for instance my ESE mom notices the intensity of colors and how they look next to each other to the extent that she will comment on it a lot... her aesthetic sense i think is very much about her Si... but i personally just find this kind of thing somewhat torturous. i have an aesthetic sense but it isn't something i can even reduce to pinning down what it is, and it tends to be more based on what something means to me personally. my clothing styles (to the extent they can, as i am usually short of money to buy clothing and it's not been a priority for a long time) tend to reflect an ideal of my self-image in ways that are difficult to explain and that change as my self-image changes. i don't feel this is all that unique, but humanly common. there are some people who care a great deal about color-matching and fabric quality and all sorts of details like that but most of that stuff is not something i devote much notice to naturally (unless i actually *want* to torture myself). it's not important in the grand scheme of the universe (it is not meaningful to me personally). if i was ever professionally in a setting where what i wear greatly matters i would probably seek outside advice just like anyone else (especially wanting it reduced to clear standards or rules if others are going to have some issue with my clothing) because i am not able to really look at appearance well from the outside. i can't put myself together externally in my mind - how i look on the outside is confusing, as is how others look. i also find that most people seem to care way more about aesthetics in general than i do day-to-day (and most of these people are rational types). also, i find expecting any IP type to be some expert at this is silly... Se is an unconscious IE for all IPs. (eta: expertise in aesthetics is something one would need to develop and work on and it would probably always be personal/unique in that case.)

- Si is not about internal bodily sensations. my theory is that actually sensation of this sort doesn't differ that much between types. what does differ is the way in which that awareness is overridden by other mental processes. Si types, however, can also have it overridden by their other mental processes. it depends on the individual to a great extent. using the question of if one for instance puts off addressing physical needs to the point that these needs scream to the extent you can no longer not notice them, is a bad question for N vs. S. it will probably mislead a lot of sensors to thinking they are intuitive. very few people are "physical" enough to address their every momentary physical need as it arises, to maintain such constant awareness of these needs, etc. eta: i'd also add that a lot of the people who are physical in this way have probably actually worked on developing that presence of mind further as a deliberate effort over many years. ime, i've noticed a lot of XSEs can fit the bill, but you will also notice they are actively working on it too... which is to say, i'm noticing the ones who find this highly important the most.


mainly i think these two things are red herrings in socionics. i realize saying what Si isn't doesn't help one discover what it *is* exactly, but i haven't quite figured out what it is yet.