Introverted Intuition (Ni)

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COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS SERIES: Introverted Intuition (Ni)

Introverted Intuition is what pretty much gave rise to the entire study of personality theory, and still plays a large role in developing it. This is also because the personality types that use this mental process as their driver function are usually the ones who take the most interest in understanding the human psyche in this way.

It is quite well known that renowned Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung; the man who first created this theory used Introverted Intuition as his dominant cognitive function. He was very interested in studying mythological archetypes in order to make sense of what it is that makes us individuals.

Introverted intuition is a perceiving function, which means it is a mental process used to gather and learn new information. It is a dominant function for the INFJ and INTJ personality types, and an auxiliary or second function for the ENFJ and ENTJ types. Unfortunately, this cognitive function is still quite poorly understood.

This may be due to its inherent complexity and rarity, as well as due to how abstract and subjective this mental process is. In the blog post below, I do my best to explore how these mysterious rare personality types who use Ni in the top position of their cognitive function stack might experience reality. If you are an Introverted Intuition user - feel free to comment and let me know whether this is true for you.

Introverted intuition likes to focus inward on one's own subjective world of mental interpretations and patterns that they observe within their own psyche. which often appear to them in the form of symbols which some believe to be what makes up the collective unconscious. 

The personality types who use this function always seek the deeper meaning behind everything. They gather intuitive information in the form of images and impressions that come to them in the form of "aha" moments which occur at very random times - such as when they're in the shower or exercising. 

Ni user's love to explore abstract concepts and theories that relate to the future. Therefore they enjoy having long philosophical discussions just for the fun of it. As they explore various rather strange theories, they are then easily able to grasp very complex ideas quickly. However they often struggle to explain them to others since they seem to just "know" things and their predictions are almost always right.

Introverted intuition focuses on future possibilities and is very good at understanding what the implications are of any given action. The types who use Ni tend to think and speak in metaphors which they gain as images and symbols in their minds. This is probably why they are often viewed as having psychic abilities by those who do not understand this function. 

Despite the magical quality of introverted Intuition though, there is a logical way of describing how this mental process works. Introverted intuition exist on an axis - types who have it as their primary or dominant function naturally also have extroverted sensing as their fourth and Inferior function. 

Therefore they absorb a lot of sensory data in real-time from the outside world, which they then process subconsciously and use to form patterns in order to make sense of it all. Introverted intuition users love to look at the big picture when solving problems and do not like getting caught up in minor details. 

They instead prefer to simulate likely future possibilities, which grants them the amazing ability of foresight and wisdom. Ni user's naturally perceive patterns in their lives and in the lives of those they care about and are therefore very insightful when it comes to human motivations and future outcomes. 

Also, this mental process is often nicknamed perspectives, because it is able to take on multiple perspectives of different people and events that might seem paradoxical or contradictory in nature. 

Introverted intuition is able to synthesize patterns and reconcile opposing dichotomies into holistic and universal systems that gives us an understanding of the core elements of reality. 

Personality types with introverted intuition can at first glance seem as if they have their heads in the clouds. They might find it hard to stay present in the moment and daydream a lot. This is because they prefer to look into the future to try to predict how things might pan out. They do this by focusing more on the unseen trends that they get impressions and epiphanies about. 

Because NI is an introverted function, those who use it are usually very inwardly focused, which can make them very focused and determined to achieve their goals. These types tends to be private and introspective, since they can rarely find anyone to share their ideas with, that would believe or understand them. 

This is unfortunately due to the fact that they themselves are unable to explain exactly how they know something. Often very obscure ideas seem to just pop into their heads seemingly out of nowhere.  

The cool thing though, is that they are able to work out very complex systems of predicting future events in a highly accurate fashion. This is why their strength lies in being able to come up with transcendent solutions to universal problems.

Don't know your personality type yet? Visit https://personalitycoach.co.za/ and click Discover My Type to take a quick and free online test. You may also book a typing session in order to accurately determine your personality type. Book customized coaching sessions where we use Jungian analytical psychology to create a customized road-map for your personal development.Introverted Intuition is what pretty much gave rise to the entire study of personality theory, and still plays a large role in developing it. This is apparently because Carl Jung himself used it as his dominant function, which explains why he began studying the various archetypes in order to make sense of it.