I think that as humans, many of us are naturally drawn to positions of prominence. Many of us know someone who has literally schemed their way to the top. They have manipulated and lied in order to advance their own agenda and get ahead in life without regard for the feelings or emotions of others. They show false attention and fake their way through relationships because they have ulterior motives. They don’t allow anyone to get close but keep up a facade of being easily accessible. As I mentioned in my last post, I’ve been on this whole INFJ tip the past few days where I’ve been reading more about my personality type. One of the characteristics of this personality type is that we are naturally intuitive about the motives of others and many times find it easy to separate the real from the fake when it comes to human interactions and communication. A while ago I was presented with the opportunity for a position of prominence. It was something that was a goal of mine and had been for the past several years. However, after I quickly accepted I almost immediately had a change of heart and rejected it. I just got a gut feeling that it wasn’t “right” and that there were hidden motives on the part of the person who offered it. It wasn’t like I was being paranoid, but I had such a strong sense that I would have to pay in some way for accepting it. I strongly believe that the right thing at the wrong time is the wrong thing. While I believe in being at least cordial to everyone, I also take great pains to distance myself from people who use others to advance their own personal agenda. Those are the type of people who will turn on you as quickly as they became your “friend.” I say all that to say that it pays to recognize and identify these types of people before they suck you into their webs of deceit and manipulation.
Tag Archives: experience
INFJ
For the past 24 hours I’ve been preoccupied with learning more about my personality type (INFJ). Unfortunately, this has caused me to procrastinate on homework and reports that need to be done by Monday morning. I must admit, after reading about all the characteristics of INFJ’s I realized that I wasn’t as crazy as I originally thought (wonderful surprise). The truth is that INFJ’s make up less than two percent of the world’s population and is the rarest type in the Myers-Briggs test. This prezi presentation was so amazingly good and was a wonderful overview of the INFJ personality. As I clicked through it I could relate to every part of the presentation. Then I ran across this article that was also incredibly interesting as it summarized some of the characteristics of INFJ’s. Several things that stand out to me (and that I’ve noticed in myself) about this particular personality type is that we can’t get out of our own heads. Our brains are always going several hundred miles per hour and we are future oriented. This means that being in the present and enjoying the moment takes very deliberate effort. Also, we are perfectionists and hold ourselves to a very high standards. In addition, we trust our gut and can read people well. This characteristic is something that I realized that I use a lot more often than I originally thought because it’s more like second nature to me. The thing is that this intuition or gut feeling doesn’t always make sense. I don’t know how many times I didn’t do something because it just didn’t “feel” right. I couldn’t explain exactly why I felt that way but I just did. INFJ’s are social but still like time by themselves to recharge and they are easily annoyed by small talk, meaningless conversation and also meaningless affection (go figure). They like structure but they hate monotony and appreciate spontaneity. I guess that’s why I’m such a fan of traveling and taking a break from routine. Who would’ve guessed?
Dexter
As I’ve mentioned before in some previous posts, I don’t watch a huge amount of television. As a result, I’ve grown to have an appreciation for the commercial free atmosphere of Netflix. In addition, it’s nice to watch seasons of shows instead of waiting for a week before the next episode. One show that has really grabbed my interest is Dexter. I just finished season 4. I only watch the show in short bursts because it can be fairly intense, but I’m drawn to the complexity of Dexter’s childhood and how it has affected his behaviors as an adult. By no means do I think that the show is child friendly but it is SO intriguing from a human behavior/psychology perspective. The show is about a blood splatter analyst (Dexter) who has a secret of his own. He wrestles with being a traditional family man and keeping his big secret from others. Dexter has had a traumatic experience in his early childhood that has set him apart from other people. He had a father who taught him how to function in a way that would prevent him from spending the rest of his life in prison. The unique thing about the show is that the storyline is in first person. Dexter struggles in every episode with what he is expected to be and who he really perceives himself to be. While Dexter’s challenges with his secret are more marked than many other people, in every season he becomes more of a person. Watching Dexter navigate his personal and work relationships is a reminder to me of how often we can stereotype or assume things about others. On the surface, no one would ever guess that Dexter has this huge secret because he struggles with being genuine and honest with himself and others. As a result, Dexter has few close relationships.
Balance
That moment when you want to write something profound and prolific and the brightness of your screen and the text box of blankness waiting to be filled just seems to mock your efforts of gathering your thoughts together in a coherent way. That’s how I feel. This past week has been particularly busy as I’ve started school again (oh joy) and started the transitional process on the career front. One thing that has grown during this school experience has been the respect that I have for people with spouses and/or families who are being persistent and completing their degree. Something that is talked about in the social services world is the importance of balance and self care. I’ve gotten the opportunity to talk and dialogue with people who have been therapists and social workers for years and in answer to the question of how they find balance and take care of themselves, they have said that they’re still figuring it out. I think that this is because there’s no one formula. I went to a training this week about working with individuals who have experienced trauma. The main thoughts behind this specific modality was that stress is stored in the body and it need to be expressed in some form in order to reduce symptoms of depression and/or anxiety. The interesting thing about it was that the presenter asserted that one of the reasons why stress is not expressed and stays in our bodies is because we decide to ignore it. We distract ourselves with food, exercise, books, activities, etc that mask our true need of confronting the traumas and experiences that are the sources of our stress. In the therapy world these things are known as coping skills. That being said, I think that a lot of people (including myself at times) have gotten use to artfully dodging their own issues and have instead channeled all that energy to another activity instead of confronting their own past hurts. It’s a hard place to be in and nobody wants to get uncomfortable even if it’s just to heal from past hurts. Uncomfortableness is hard.
Fight for You (the song)
This song has been going through my head nonstop for the past few days. I first heard it about a week ago while I was traveling and the melody is so catchy. Unlike the vast majority of the songs that I like, i can’t really say exactly why I really like this particular song. It might be the fact that it depicts a conversation that Mali is having with himself and I rarely listen to songs that involve an internal dialogue with a self-empowerment twist. Or maybe even the fact that the beat is perfect to ball up your fists and do a little boxing move of duck and cover when he gets to the “fight for you” line. It might even be that this song is PERFECT to do a slow groove version of the dance “The Wobble.” I think Mali does a pretty decent job of explaining his own song so you can watch that as well.
Ignoring the Obvious
A few weeks ago. the brake light came on in my car. It happened while I was driving but quickly turned off when I took my foot off the gas. I ignored it. As the weeks passed my brake light came on more and more often. I knew the brake wasn’t on and there wasn’t any weird noise happening so I continued to ignore it. In fact, I started to appreciate the extra light on my dashboard that came from the light being on. This continued to the point where the brake light was almost on all the time. It became almost constantly on from the time that I started the car until the time that I turned it off. Almost comforting in a way. I could have called my dad and asked about it (my usual plan of action on anything concerning my car) but I didn’t. I could have googled information about it and problem solved on my own but I didn’t do that either. Instead I just ignored it until it became comfortable. This past weekend my dad visited me in person and I finally told him about the brake light. Turns out it was a three minute solution. My car just needed more brake fluid. So now I drive around and my dashboard is strangely (or so it seems) dimmer because the bright red light isn’t on anymore. It makes me thing about all the times that we ignore things that are problems until we just become comfortable with it. People who are in abusive relationships to the point that it just becomes normal because they can’t clearly remember anything different. People who get caught up in negative cycles because they ignore red flags until the red flags are no longer important to them. Sometimes you have to learn to be uncomfortable with dysfunction because you’re so used to it that it has become normal. It’s a similar concept with people who are recovering from addictions of some sort. They have to re-learn how to live without the addictive behavior or substance because it has become such a way of life. However, the beginning step of this process is challenging the dysfunctional or “normal” reality that they have created and taking the necessary steps to create a new normal.
I Blame You (the song)
I don’t know why, but this song reminds me of the winter feeling. I don’t know why but I just has an “it’s cold outside and I’m sitting by the fireplace sipping hot cocoa” feel. Let me start off by saying that Ledisi is one of the most versatile and talented female artists that I’ve ever heard. Her range is amazing and her runs are very crisp. I had the opportunity to hear her live when she came and sang at my church and subsequently released this single not that much later. There are few artists I’ve heard who sound better live than their recordings and she is without a doubt one of them. This song is a happy “I’m in love” sorta song with Ledisi singing about how her perspective has changed once she has met this special person. She feels like a different person and it’s something that other people notice as well. When I first heard this song I listened to it at least five times in a row because it was just so well written. The melody is clear and catchy and the lyrics fit perfectly with the whole concept of the song. Ledisi is another one of the artists I consider to be melodically articulate because she has such great control in her voice but there’s also emotion and soul behind it that comes through when she sings.
Husbands and Fathers
This is an article I came across recently that was fairly thought provoking to me. As a therapist, I’ve learned how to roll with the choices people make even if I may not personally choose to make those exact choices myself. No judgement. However, one thing I have not personally grown mature enough to understand (and maybe I’ll never be) the decisions that some people make when choosing the person they make a baby with and not make a judgment on their mental capacity. That being said, working at a job where I interact with children who have been abused has convinced me without a doubt that there are some people who should never ever ever be parents. I am of the opinion that some men make great fathers and other men make great husbands and that sometimes these two things do not go together. Don’t get me wrong, I think that there are some characteristics that both fathers and husbands should have that overlap with each other. But I think that the roles of a husband and that of an engaged, aware, and mature parent are different. The article is a little on the humorous side but it does make you think about the difference between a spouse and a parent. While selfishness in a marriage can cause problems, a selfish parent can negatively impact the life of the next generation. Communication between adults is different than communication with children. It’s not healthy to be enmeshed with a child in the same manner you are with a spouse. Totally different ballgame. Raising a child successfully without messing them up for life requires a different set of skills than having a relationship with another mature adult. It’s nice to have a great husband and it’s wonderful if a man is a good father, but it’s even better when a guy can be both at the same time.
Thank you
One thing that was drilled into my head from childhood was the importance of saying thank you. It’s a habit that has followed me through adulthood. A thank you is an acknowledgment of something or someone that made an effort in some way to positively impact you. Recently, I rented a 2014 Toyota Camry and really enjoyed it. I drove the car over 1000 miles in a period of four days and it was one of the best driving experiences I’ve had in my life. It was very apparent that the car was designed with a driver in mind and all the amenities and bells and whistles were easily accessible while driving. The sound system was excellent and the car practically drove itself–giving me the opportunity to contemplate my life in great detail. Needless to say, it was a great experience and I took the time to write a handwritten note (the best kind) to Toyota corporation thanking them for the work that they did in making the Camry a great car. I sent this letter to their headquarters in Japan. Lo and behold, a few weeks later I received a personal letter from one of the Toyota vice-presidents thanking me for my letter and saying that it was being circulated through the Toyota divisions for the employees to read. I’m always amazed at how rare it is to receive a handwritten thank you note for ANYTHING these days. As digitized as we make our lives, there’s nothing like knowing that someone appreciated what you did for them and took the time to write you personally and express their gratitude. Any and every act of kindness toward you should be responded to with a “thank you.” It’s basic good manners and common sense. And that doesn’t go out of style. Ever.
Regrouping
We’ve all heard the cliche sayings and adages about the the consequences of quitting. It’s pounded into our heads that giving up should never be an option. We advise people fighting life threatening illnesses to fight and seek aggressive treatment. We soothe ourselves with the thought that not giving up has rewards in and of itself. But at what point in the game does giving up become a question of survival? When do we have to just call it and tap out? At what point is fighting futile and pointless? I think that there are times in our lives when we have to recognize that going any further in our fight is a undeniable sign of insanity. That doesn’t mean that the fight is not important but it does mean that there are more important things–like regrouping and doing something else.
Alisha's Angle 