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Not Fulfilled? Depressed? Maybe You Need An Alignment

eliquid

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My birthday came and went last month and I have been looking over my yearly values, mission statement, priorties, etc.

Decided to keep things as they are for this year with no change from last year.

Have a found the sweet spot? Only time will tell.

.
 
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PedroG

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I just started going through my highlights for "Awaken The Giant Within" and I'll be doing the exercises this time. I started the exercises before but never finished them, and I had a realization the other day...

Everything I've been unhappy about, especially this past year, has to do with conflicting values. Everything. It just hit me. And something needs to change.
 

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My birthday came and went last month and I have been looking over my yearly values, mission statement, priorties, etc.

Decided to keep things as they are for this year with no change from last year.

Have a found the sweet spot? Only time will tell.

.
Happy belated birthday eliquid!:party:

I found this thread very interesting.

I myself am an INTJ-A. One point of the A I do not completely fit, is that they are reluctant to change or improve themselves. And the main reason I dont fit it is because, when I started looking into myself many years ago, I used these tests not to label myself but to find out what my core points were. What are my strengths and weakness? I used these points to see if they are true, especially looking into my weaknesses. I then identified areas I wanted to change, turning weaknesses in strengths.

One of those points are that I am a loner, I rely on myself - Not socializing meant I had very few friends. At first I thought there is something wrong with me, cause no matter how much I try, I simply find it difficult to sit on chat groups etc, where I could use that time to be productive. I then realized, having a hand full of real friends are way better than being able to say: 'I have hundred's of "friends" out there.' Because to me real true connection and trust is way more important, than being a social butterfly.

I then looked at points I felt I wanted to change, and starting working on those points. Not taking into account what the world expect of me, but what I wanted and what I felt fits my standards and morals.

Now, 9 years later I am still making changes, but I have a clear vision of who I am and what I want in life. Self reflection has become part of my life, not something I have to set a reminder for.
 

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Jason, thanks for writing that years ago.
It will take a time to work out, who I am in that scheme and this time.

I did that test two times now and didnt get similar results.
First was INFP, than ENTJ.
Its very hard for me to answer some questions. As Ioften don’t know, wheather my present me and me gone me answers the same way.
I often don’t even know, wheather I know, what the answer is.

So I will make the test as often as you recommend it and I hope, not to get more than 16 different results! :)

You are young. In your age I slowly found, who I am and that I m the only one I owe accountability .

I hope your way will show me some new views.
 
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eliquid

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Jason, thanks for writing that years ago.
It will take a time to work out, who I am in that scheme and this time.

I did that test two times now and didnt get similar results.
First was INFP, than ENTJ.
Its very hard for me to answer some questions. As Ioften don’t know, wheather my present me and me gone me answers the same way.
I often don’t even know, wheather I know, what the answer is.

So I will make the test as often as you recommend it and I hope, not to get more than 16 different results! :)

You are young. In your age I slowly found, who I am and that I m the only one I owe accountability .

I hope your way will show me some new views.

Yes, just keep taking the test over and over. Think about those you don't know the answer to, to find out at some point what the answer means to you.

Take a break between tests, like 2-3 days. Just to make sure your mood or feeling or memory aren't answering for you. Over several tests, hopefully your "average" starts to show.

And it will feel like all you do is take this test, and the other tests, over and over and over again. You will get bored doing it, you will feel like it is non-sense at some point.

But it's the only way I could make sure I washed away emotion, memory, and anything else to get to my core self. Once done, I did the other tests ( strengths test, Ennagram, etc ) the same way and they verified my selections on top of each other.

That was the only way I could make sure I aligned work that fit my values. That I could make decesions that really fit me. Doing those tests over and over and each time clarifiing what those answers mean and whittling down.

We don't always know the answers to things upfront. This won't help in that regard either.

But at least I have now built a framework I can run all my questions through to narrow down what really could be the best answer for me, based on core values/mission statement/priorties.

It can not answer all questions of course, but it can "align" you to what the best answers could be based on who you really are.

.
 

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this is exactly what i needed, ironically my first post on this forum was about how I felt like I was not where I want to be in life. I recently started having these drastic thoughts of starting fresh and leaving everything behind; dropping school, quitting work, and drive to a new city that is 3,000 miles. But after reading this I plan on reflecting on who I am, what's most important to me, and what I currently want to do with myself.
 

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I know why I have 1000 ideas a day, but hardly any execution on those new ideas ( and instead why I execute on my main focus only ). Now I can rework how to overcome this.

How did you overcome this in your case?
 
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eliquid

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How did you overcome this in your case?

The ideas never stop. I feel it's part of an INTJ/INTP 5W4 whatever.

Not saying others don't have ideas or can't, just putting pressure on the number of ideas and non-stop activity of those types with their brain.

As far as execution and not having it for all of these ideas, I use to feel bad and thought I was wasting all these ideas by not executing on them.

Before I knew about the MBTI and Enneagram and other tests, I just felt like a loser with ideas and no execution.

Afterward, I learned that's what is normal for me ( the stream of non-stop ideas ) and there is no possible way I have enough time in the world to even finish them, let alone try to start all of them. But it was also afterward that I started down the road of core values, a mission statement, priorities and more.

While the ideas never stop, my core values and mission statement essentially funnel what ideas I could even consider good ones ( good as in what fits me, not good for money-making ).

So while I still might have 5 ideas a day, only maybe 2 of them are even a GOOD FIT FOR ME and match my core values, mission statement, and priorities.

Out of those 2, maybe 0 or 1 make CENTS. Generally, this will be 0.

Over a month, that might be 150 ideas where 60 could even fit me on a first pass. With the second pass of my core values and mission statement, those 60 might dwindle to 20. Out of those 20, maybe only 1 will make CENTS in the way I view CENTS.

Now I don't feel bad about the ideas I don't execute on. They just were not a fit passing through the funnel of my core values, mission statement, and priorities. The ones that do pass sit in my head and go through another pass several times until I find something that could be really workable.

By that time, I look at it as CENTS and many I give up on at that point for one reason or another.

The ones that make it past CENTS, I try to work in as goals and outsource as much work as I can on it while I still work on my main focus ( my SaaS or consulting ). This way, I don't take my eyes off my main businesses while still being able to work on new ideas.

As time has passed, I have added more filters to business ideas that are outside of CENTS or my core values. This is purely personal and something that might not even apply to you. For example, I have started requiring that workable ideas have to be entirely online or within a specific set of niches. Or that it has to be be delegatable from day 1 instead of me "doing it" and then trying to pass it on to someone else later. Or that it must have a definable exit plan from day 1 too.

Stuff like that, that is maybe outside of my core values or CENTS. You would have to create this yourself as time goes on to what fits you though.

Doing this has helped me go from 150 ideas that never get worked on per month, to maybe ( if I'm lucky ) 1 really workable idea a month that I can pass to someone else to get started for me while I still work on my main business. Many months go by I have 0, so it's not like it's a new race every month to start something new.
 
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srodrigo

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The ideas never stop. I feel it's part of an INTJ/INTP 5W4 whatever.

Not saying others don't have ideas or can't, just putting pressure on the number of ideas and non-stop activity of those types with their brain.

As far as execution and not having it for all of these ideas, I use to feel bad and thought I was wasting all these ideas by not executing on them.

Before I knew about the MBTI and Enneagram and other tests, I just felt like a loser with ideas and no execution.

Afterward, I learned that's what is normal for me ( the stream of non-stop ideas ) and there is no possible way I have enough time in the world to even finish them, let alone try to start all of them. But it was also afterward that I started down the road of core values, a mission statement, priorities and more.

While the ideas never stop, my core values and mission statement essentially funnel what ideas I could even consider good ones ( good as in what fits me, not good for money-making ).

So while I still might have 5 ideas a day, only maybe 2 of them are even a GOOD FIT FOR ME and match my core values, mission statement, and priorities.

Out of those 2, maybe 0 or 1 make CENTS. Generally, this will be 0.

Over a month, that might be 150 ideas where 60 could even fit me on a first pass. With the second pass of my core values and mission statement, those 60 might dwindle to 20. Out of those 20, maybe only 1 will make CENTS in the way I view CENTS.

Now I don't feel bad about the ideas I don't execute on. They just were not a fit passing through the funnel of my core values, mission statement, and priorities. The ones that do pass sit in my head and go through another pass several times until I find something that could be really workable.

By that time, I look at it as CENTS and many I give up on at that point for one reason or another.

The ones that make it past CENTS, I try to work in as goals and outsource as much work as I can on it while I still work on my main focus ( my SaaS or consulting ). This way, I don't take my eyes off my main businesses while still being able to work on new ideas.

As time has passed, I have added more filters to business ideas that are outside of CENTS or my core values. This is purely personal and something that might not even apply to you. For example, I have started requiring that workable ideas have to be entirely online or within a specific set of niches. Or that it has to be be delegatable from day 1 instead of me "doing it" and then trying to pass it on to someone else later. Or that it must have a definable exit plan from day 1 too.

Stuff like that, that is maybe outside of my core values or CENTS. You would have to create this yourself as time goes on to what fits you though.

Doing this has helped me go from 150 ideas that never get worked on per month, to maybe ( if I'm lucky ) 1 really workable idea a month that I can pass to someone else to get started for me while I still work on my main business. Many months go by I have 0, so it's not like it's a new race every month to start something new.
Thanks for taking the time to reply in detail, Jason. This is a piece of gold I'll keep working on until I get it right.

I'm a INFJ, close to INTJ, and 5w4 too. Having so many ideas and being pulled in so many directions that we don't get anything done is pretty bad. It needs to stop for me too. So what you found that works for you, might work for me too. I'll definitely give it a try and create my own version of the framework.

I stopped for a few minutes here:
While the ideas never stop, my core values and mission statement essentially funnel what ideas I could even consider good ones ( good as in what fits me, not good for money-making ).

I think people with our personality types prioritise fulfilment over money-making. This is tricky, and can create a big conflict when you really need the money for whatever reason. Sometimes, it's difficult to align personal values with business/work and priorities.

I'll go through the thread again for the details of your summary above. Thank you so much for your guidance, I really appreciate it.
 

eliquid

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I stopped for a few minutes here:


I think people with our personality types prioritise fulfilment over money-making. This is tricky, and can create a big conflict when you really need the money for whatever reason. Sometimes, it's difficult to align personal values with business/work and priorities.

I'll go through the thread again for the details of your summary above. Thank you so much for your guidance, I really appreciate it.

I agree.

But it's also why I pass these ideas through the CENTS stuff as well from @MJ DeMarco.

We gotta pay the bills right? It's gotta make CENTS too before I can work on it.

The reason I make it pass through my core values, mission statement, priorities, and outside filters ( must be digital, must be X or Y, etc ) is that while I I do need money to survive, I've done a ton of things for just "money".

And I've had my times where I made bundles of it. But I was always misrable too doing it. Which lead ironicly to the writing of this thread and process years ago ( reread if need be ). Making money to make money was a never ending cycle. It never was enough no matter how much I made.

So yeah, now I make it pass through my core values first, then make it pass through CENTS later ( or some other fininacial framework you may have ).

If you don't, here is what you may end up with:


Without core value fit

1. 150 ideas, 30 of which can make you money. You try to do all 30 and fail. You feel like you wasted time and were misrable. Going through all 30 took about 2 years total. What a waste of time too.

Or

2. 150 ideas, 30 of which could make you money. You try to do all 30 and only 1 makes money. You hate doing it though. So while it makes you money, you end up hating it because for some reason dropshipping and selling on Amazon just doesnt fit you entirely, but hey it pays the bills and you just do it over and over every day. Going through all 30 took about 2 years total until you hit the one that worked.. the one making you money but you hate.


With core value fit

Or

3. You have 150 ideas, you find 60 that could fit you to a T.. you dindle that down to 10 that fit you to a T on a 2nd pass. Of those 10 you find 1 that meets a financial framework like CENTS but also fits any outside filters you set up ( must be digital, must be X niche, etc ). It fails horribly and makes no money. In the end, this is kinda better than #1 above because not only did you work on ONLY 1 project instead of 30, but you also enjoyed the project too and maybe learned something and were focused. Instead of going through 2 years of trail and error with 30 projects like above, you maybe spent 3-6 months on this 1 project, but had fun doing it and learned a lot since you were engaged.

Or

4. You have 150 ideas, you find 60 that could fit you to a T.. you dindle that down to 10 that fit you to a T on a 2nd pass. Of those 10 you find 1 that meets a financial framework like CENTS but also fits any outside filters you set up ( must be digital, must be X niche, etc ). Instead of going through 2 years of trail and error with 30 projects like above, you maybe spent 3-6 months on this 1 project. You love working on it and get it to break even. You aren't losing money or making it, but because you enjoy what you do you press forward and end up making it work and making good money. You wake up every day not dreading to "dropship another widget" or "field client requests" or "build an adsense site", you wake up actually liking what you do because it fits you. That fit helped pushed you when times were bad or down because you liked doing it and it didn't feel like a boring cycle of depression.

In the end, having things fit my core values just gives me an overall better outcome, even if I failed.

Just make sure you pass all those ideas that fit you through a financial framework like CENTS to make sure the stuff you are working on, that passes your core values, can potentially make you revenue.
.
 
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Last edited:

srodrigo

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I agree.

But it's also why I pass these ideas through the CENTS stuff as well from @MJ DeMarco.

We gotta pay the bills right? It's gotta make CENTS too before I can work on it.

The reason I make it pass through my core values, mission statement, priorities, and outside filters ( must be digital, must be X or Y, etc ) is that while I I do need money to survive, I've done a ton of things for just "money".

And I've had my times where I made bundles of it. But I was always misrable too doing it. Which lead ironicly to the writing of this thread and process years ago ( reread if need be ). Making money to make money was a never ending cycle. It never was enough no matter how much I made.

So yeah, now I make it pass through my core values first, then make it pass through CENTS later ( or some other fininacial framework you may have ).

If you don't, here is what you may end up with:


Without core value fit

1. 150 ideas, 30 of which can make you money. You try to do all 30 and fail. You feel like you wasted time and were misrable.

Or

2. 150 ideas, 30 of which could make you money. You try to do all 30 and only 1 makes money. You hate doing it though. So while it makes you money, you end up hating it because for some reason dropshipping and selling on Amazon just doesnt fit you entirely, but hey it pays the bills and you just do it over and over every day.


With core value fit

Or

3. You have 150 ideas, you find 60 that could fit you to a T.. you dindle that down to 10 that fit you to a T on a 2nd pass. Of those 10 you find 1 that meets a financial framework like CENTS but also fits any outside filters you set up ( must be digital, must be X niche, etc ). It fails horribly and makes no money. In the end, this is kinda better than #1 above because not only did you work on ONLY 1 project instead of 30, but you also enjoyed the project too and maybe learned something and were focused.

Or

4. You have 150 ideas, you find 60 that could fit you to a T.. you dindle that down to 10 that fit you to a T on a 2nd pass. Of those 10 you find 1 that meets a financial framework like CENTS but also fits any outside filters you set up ( must be digital, must be X niche, etc ). You love working on it and get it to break even. You aren't losing money or making it, but because you enjoy what you do you press forward and end up making it work and making good money. You wake up every day not dreading to "dropship another widget" or "field client requests" or "build an adsense site", you wake up actually liking what you do because it fits you. That fit helped pushed you when times were bad or down because you liked doing it and it didn't feel like a boring cycle of depression.

In the end, having things fit my core values just gives me an overall better outcome, even if I failed.

Just make sure you pass all those ideas that fit you through a financial framework like CENTS to make sure the stuff you are working on, that passes your core values, can potentially make you revenue.
.
Thanks again. This is something most people I've seen don't really talk about. I've been at 2 and 3, and 3 was enjoyable even if it made just a few cents. I still need 2 to pay bills, but I'm aiming for 4. I need to figure out what 4 looks like first.

I think this thread really deserves GOLD.
 

Ing

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Amazing. When I allow myself to take answers, which I normaly cant allow due to my moral standarts but want in that moment, the results don’t change signif.
Maybe an E instead an I, but the main things stay.
 

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I love this whole thread! Thank, Thank you @eliquid for starting it and sharing everything, experiences and framework!

Last year I have defined my core values and mission statement ánd I completely agree it's a hard work! In order to get to the core (as close a possible) I did a lot of therapy, discovery of selt-limiting believes, family constellations, coaching, Ayahuasca and meditations in order to develop a better "observer of myself" and with each step I came closer! Unfortunatelly I got lost on the way to do more work here due to unexpected events in the last 8 months AND reading your posts just inspired me and motivated me like crazy to continue, continue, continue to get more clarity of who I really am and want to be and which career and business to pursue in the next 1, 5, 10 years!!!

I really like your link between the MBTI, Enneagram and Strengthfinder. I did all of them, but I need to to them more often now to get more statistical significance. Thank you for this advice.
And then your idea evaluation framework from above. It's GOLD! Something I was always looking for to establish for myself to evaluate my ideas.

So my values are:
  • Integrity
  • Freedom
  • Empathy
  • Creativity
  • Courage
  • Wisdom
  • Curiosity
  • Discipline
I still have to create my own definitions for the values as I borrowed the current ones from here: Alles über Werte (in German only). Especially, how I see the value freedom which leads to CHAOS in an extreme version (like it has happened in some areas of my life). Maybe it also goes into the direction of Autonomy.

My Mission Statement so far:
To bravely walk on unkown paths in my own way and to inspire and to creatively teach others to do the same.

MBTI (Based on one test only)
Year 2015: ENTJ-A (Before Self-Dev. Journey)
Year 2018: ENFP-A
August 2020: INFJ-A

The interesting part is here, that in February 2019, after I did the 10days-Vipassana Meditation retreat which I hugly recommend, I become more introverted. From 36% (2018) to 51% (2020). The test "Locus of Control" from the forum also confirmes that.

Enneagram (2019) Type 2 and have to redo the test again.

My goals is to have a business like yours which is also aligned with my values and mission statement, as I believe that's the only way to go to make me happy and motivated doing it longterm.

@eliquid
How do you set your priorities?
And is discipline for you a value or temporal priority?

Cheers and back to work (on myself)
Mateusz
 
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Last edited:

eliquid

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I love this whole thread! Thank, Thank you @eliquid for starting it and sharing everything, experiences and framework!

Last year I have defined my core values and mission statement ánd I completely agree it's a hard work! In order to get to the core (as close a possible) I did a lot of therapy, discovery of selt-limiting believes, family constellations, coaching, Ayahuasca and meditations in order to develop a better "observer of myself" and with each step I came closer! Unfortunatelly I got lost on the way to do more work here due to unexpected events in the last 8 months AND reading your posts just inspired me and motivated me like crazy to continue, continue, continue to get more clarity of who I really am and want to be and which career and business to pursue in the next 1, 5, 10 years!!!

I really like your link between the MBTI, Enneagram and Strengthfinder. I did all of them, but I need to to them more often now to get more statistical significance. Thank you for this advice.
And then your idea evaluation framework from above. It's GOLD! Something I was always looking for to establish for myself to evaluate my ideas.

So my values are:
  • Integrity
  • Freedom
  • Empathy
  • Creativity
  • Courage
  • Wisdom
  • Curiosity
  • Discipline
I still have to create my own definitions for the values as I borrowed the current ones from here: Alles über Werte (in German only). Especially, how I see the value freedom which leads to CHAOS in an extreme version (like it has happened in some areas of my life). Maybe it also goes into the direction of Autonomy.

My Mission Statement so far:
To bravely walk on unkown paths in my own way and to inspire and to creatively teach others to do the same.

MBTI (Based on one test only)
Year 2015: ENTJ-A (Before Self-Dev. Journey)
Year 2018: ENFP-A
August 2020: INFJ-A

The interesting part is here, that in February 2019, after I did the 10days-Vipassana Meditation retreat which I hugly recommend, I become more introverted. From 36% (2018) to 51% (2020). The test "Locus of Control" from the forum also confirmes that.

Enneagram (2019) Type 2 and have to redo the test again.

My goals is to have a business like yours which is also aligned with my values and mission statement, as I believe that's the only way to go to make me happy and motivated doing it longterm.

@eliquid
How do you set your priorities?
And is discipline for you a value or temporal priority?

Cheers and back to work (on myself)
Mateusz

For priorities,
I just simply look at, what's important to me?

Lots of things can come up, but somethings there are just no question on how important they are.

These things aren't negotiable.

That makes up my priorities.

As far as discipline, its a temporal priority for me.
 
Last edited:

eliquid

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Due to the success of another similar thread on this forum, thought I would bump as the holiday season can lead to some being depressed and also lead to some to rethink their year and goals for next year.
 

Paul David

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Due to the success of another similar thread on this forum, thought I would bump as the holiday season can lead to some being depressed and also lead to some to rethink their year and goals for next year.

Great thread.

I think it's going to be a lot worse this winter with depression. My area in the UK is about to be plunged into lockdown again for possibly 6 months. Bars, gyms, etc all closed. Can't leave the area unless it's essential and you must be back before midnight.

Supposed to be going to Greece in 2 weeks.

Thousands upon thousands of people all going to end up depressed and lost their livelihood all to protect a tiny percentage of the population dying from Covid. It's absolutely ridiculous.
 
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eliquid

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Bumping again as we get into the Holidays and I know some people can naturally get depressed.

Also a lot of people start thinking about new and different life choices this time of year as we head into 2021.

Has being shut in ( any of you that did ), during the Pandemic gave any one time to reflect and think about this?

Thanks!
 

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Due to the success of another similar thread on this forum, thought I would bump as the holiday season can lead to some being depressed and also lead to some to rethink their year and goals for next year.
Good reminder this time of year - or any. Much appreciated.
 

eliquid

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The New Year has been in full effect now for almost 2 weeks.

Have you already failed at your goals?

Still lost, wondering which direction to go?

Did you do this exercise again ( or at all )?

Bumping for the new year's crowd
 
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Just read through all of this thread, thank you. I am struggling right now just to move forward with anything, I get distracted too easily by the next shiny object and go down deep rabbit holes, overcomplicating everything. I am hoping that getting to understand my core values as well as my personality will help clear things up for me.
 

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Thanks for posting this thread and this exercise, eliquid. I've spent the past week working through this and have found the personality tests to be both assuring and concerning. Every step of the way I felt like I was thinking "yep, that's me" or "ohhh, this explains so much". The only problem is that the exercise left me less sure about next steps than before. Almost as if the path I was trying to head down is counter-productive to my personality.

After several tests on several sites, it looks like the commonalities have me as an ISTJ and/or a 6w5 (with some fairly heavy 3 tendencies). The kicker now is in finding how to incorporate that into a fastlane model. I'm going to spend another week working through this, but definitely appreciate the time and effort that went into creating this thread. Thanks.
 

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Thanks for posting this thread and this exercise, eliquid. I've spent the past week working through this and have found the personality tests to be both assuring and concerning. Every step of the way I felt like I was thinking "yep, that's me" or "ohhh, this explains so much". The only problem is that the exercise left me less sure about next steps than before. Almost as if the path I was trying to head down is counter-productive to my personality.

After several tests on several sites, it looks like the commonalities have me as an ISTJ and/or a 6w5 (with some fairly heavy 3 tendencies). The kicker now is in finding how to incorporate that into a fastlane model. I'm going to spend another week working through this, but definitely appreciate the time and effort that went into creating this thread. Thanks.

Awesome.

The main thing is finding out the real personality profile you have.

Sounds like you got that far as a ISTJ / 6w5.

If it were me, the next step would be me finding out my core values.

You can do it 2 ways..

1. Get a big list of core values, read through them, narrow down to 15 or so... and keep doing that until you get the 15 down to just 5 or so. It will take time and multiple times of narrowing down.

2. Look up on Google what values ISTJ's have. Look up on Google what values 6w5's have. You will get some websites with conflicting info, just keeping looking and reading and listing out.

Personally, I did both because that's how INTJ / INTPs role.

And I looked at things like:

1. Did what I find out about ISTJ core values match up with those of 6w5's? If not, maybe I need to keep doing the personality tests and ennagram because potentially I am missing something. These should match really closely.

2. If the info from the ISTJ/6w5 core values match up, did that match up to what I put down reading a big list values and narrowing down myself on my own? If not, maybe I need to reread the big list and ask a lot of WHY's to get to my real core values inside.

3. Do these core values I got ( either from narrowing down from a big list, or off Google searches about ISTJ's ) not fit me, give me a bad feeling, or seem iffy? If so, you got the wrong values and need to redo either the personality tests or ask a lot of WHYs from a big list of values to find that that truly fit you 110%

I'm not saying you will get 100% matches, but you shouldn't having a lot of conflictions and mis-matches.

AND I did this several times over several weeks to make sure no current emotions or outside influence tainted my tests.

Once I got the core values out of the way... it was on to building out my mission statement and priorities. My mission statement was 90% build on my core values.

When I was done with that, I had a plan into what you called " a fastlane model ", or what I wanted to do.

So I listed out ( brain dumped ) every idea or business model I could think of that interested me. I didn't say love, just those that interested me or I knew about.

Then I compared those to my mission statement ( made up of my core values, taken from my personality ) heavily.

After a lot of trying to find matches, pros and cons lists, CENTs framework, etc... I came up with what I wanted to focus on in business.

It may also help some for you to look up jobs good for an ISTJ / 6w5 too. Not saying you want a job, but follow me here....

If we take myself...

I'm a INTP 5w4. Researching jobs, I had a ton of things that pointed to being self employed or taking jobs where I would be similar to a self employed person. Things like a lawyer, judge, financial broker/stock trader, web developer/designer, architect, etc....

Core values for those types also came to things like autonomy, entrepreneurship, stability, etc....

Everything matched for me. My core values I wrote out on my own, matched what I looked up for an INTP or 5w4. So I knew I was on track.

My mission statement, made up of my core values, ended up like this:

Solve problems with simplicity ( no choas, easy going life ), creativity, and entrepreneurship
Share my full knowledge, wisdom and insight with those that deserve it
Live a full and stable ( no choas ) life with complete and utter autonomy ( freedom, independence )


Not everything in my mission statement came from my core values. But all of my core values are in that mission statement.

So when I look at new opportunities, or business models, or what I want to do.. I compare that THING with my mission statement and ask myself, "Is this choice out of alignment with my values and mission statement?".

I also back it up to my priorities too. Does it fit in my priorities?

But you gotta tackle the personality first, which it seems like you have.

Now you gotta hack out the core values.

Once done you are on your way to finding out potentially what's going to fit you as a business model/plan.


Any questions?
 
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Awesome.

The main thing is finding out the real personality profile you have.

Sounds like you got that far as a ISTJ / 6w5.

If it were me, the next step would be me finding out my core values.

You can do it 2 ways..

1. Get a big list of core values, read through them, narrow down to 15 or so... and keep doing that until you get the 15 down to just 5 or so. It will take time and multiple times of narrowing down.

2. Look up on Google what values ISTJ's have. Look up on Google what values 6w5's have. You will get some websites with conflicting info, just keeping looking and reading and listing out.

Personally, I did both because that's how INTJ / INTPs role.

And I looked at things like:

1. Did what I find out about ISTJ core values match up with those of 6w5's? If not, maybe I need to keep doing the personality tests and ennagram because potentially I am missing something. These should match really closely.

2. If the info from the ISTJ/6w5 core values match up, did that match up to what I put down reading a big list values and narrowing down myself on my own? If not, maybe I need to reread the big list and ask a lot of WHY's to get to my real core values inside.

3. Do these core values I got ( either from narrowing down from a big list, or off Google searches about ISTJ's ) not fit me, give me a bad feeling, or seem iffy? If so, you got the wrong values and need to redo either the personality tests or ask a lot of WHYs from a big list of values to find that that truly fit you 110%

I'm not saying you will get 100% matches, but you shouldn't having a lot of conflictions and mis-matches.

AND I did this several times over several weeks to make sure no current emotions or outside influence tainted my tests.

Once I got the core values out of the way... it was on to building out my mission statement and priorities. My mission statement was 90% build on my core values.

When I was done with that, I had a plan into what you called " a fastlane model ", or what I wanted to do.

So I listed out ( brain dumped ) every idea or business model I could think of that interested me. I didn't say love, just those that interested me or I knew about.

Then I compared those to my mission statement ( made up of my core values, taken from my personality ) heavily.

After a lot of trying to find matches, pros and cons lists, CENTs framework, etc... I came up with what I wanted to focus on in business.

It may also help some for you to look up jobs good for an ISTJ / 6w5 too. Not saying you want a job, but follow me here....

If we take myself...

I'm a INTP 5w4. Researching jobs, I had a ton of things that pointed to being self employed or taking jobs where I would be similar to a self employed person. Things like a lawyer, judge, financial broker/stock trader, web developer/designer, architect, etc....

Core values for those types also came to things like autonomy, entrepreneurship, stability, etc....

Everything matched for me. My core values I wrote out on my own, matched what I looked up for an INTP or 5w4. So I knew I was on track.

My mission statement, made up of my core values, ended up like this:

Solve problems with simplicity ( no choas, easy going life ), creativity, and entrepreneurship
Share my full knowledge, wisdom and insight with those that deserve it
Live a full and stable ( no choas ) life with complete and utter autonomy ( freedom, independence )


Not everything in my mission statement came from my core values. But all of my core values are in that mission statement.

So when I look at new opportunities, or business models, or what I want to do.. I compare that THING with my mission statement and ask myself, "Is this choice out of alignment with my values and mission statement?".

I also back it up to my priorities too. Does it fit in my priorities?

But you gotta tackle the personality first, which it seems like you have.

Now you gotta hack out the core values.

Once done you are on your way to finding out potentially what's going to fit you as a business model/plan.


Any questions?
Wow, I really appreciate the feedback. This is definitely going to be my homework for the next few weeks. Thanks for taking the time to respond.

You spelled everything out clearly and I don't have any questions for now. I'll follow back up later to keep the thread alive for everyone :).
 

eliquid

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Wow, I really appreciate the feedback. This is definitely going to be my homework for the next few weeks. Thanks for taking the time to respond.

You spelled everything out clearly and I don't have any questions for now. I'll follow back up later to keep the thread alive for everyone :).
Cool,

and to add some more color...

Now that I have my mission statement ( again, made from my values plus a little extra ) I define most of what I do off it.

Solve problems with simplicity ( no choas, easy going life ), creativity, and entrepreneurship
Share my full knowledge, wisdom and insight with those that deserve it
Live a full and stable ( no choas ) life with complete and utter autonomy ( freedom, independence )


So when I have a decision I need to make and I am stuck on what to do, I use my mission statement for it.

Lets say I have 2 new opportunities..

1. Start a new Adsense site with 5 partners

2. Build a SaaS by myself in a vertical I know nothing about

Comparing both to my mission statement, this is what I would do:

1. An Adsense site is simple and entrepreneurial, but it's not creative really and I wont have autonomy with my partners more than likely. Eh, this isn't a great fit

2. A SaaS could be simple ( I've built a lot ) and it can allow me to be creative and entrepreneurial. I can also have autonomy. If I add in X Y or Z, It will allow me to help and share wisdom with my clients. This would be the better fit.

You can fit this to other areas in your life too.

It depends on how far you take your core values, and the way you understand your core values.

For example, I used mine recently to sway myself away from buying a new home with a Mortgage.

Why?

I don't think that really leads me to stability or autonomy.

Moving to a new place where I know 0 people and know 0 about the area doesn't seem stable TO ME. Plus all the stuff that goes into moving and how to deal with family, etc.

It also doesn't seem autonomous to me. Noticed I said buy a new home with a Mortgage. To me a mortgage means I have to generate X income to meet that Mortgage. I'm pretty solid in my finances and my ability to make a high income, but do I really want to be tied down to a Mortgage and the feeling of 25 years making a payment to someone else and keeping things up to do that? That's MY VIEW.

And in the end, whats important about my values and beliefs is what is at this core. It's how I see it and want to live.

So maybe I don't buy a new home with a Mortgage, but maybe I buy a older home outright with cash.

That's how my core values and mission statement shape my choices, which can be personal or business.

Hope that can clear some things up.

When you get to this stage, you can start adding in other frameworks like CENTS on top of it.

In that example, maybe the SaaS choice I picked above wouldn't make CENTS ( as a framework ) though but it did pass my core values framework.

When you start layering in more, you help guide yourself to better choices.

.
 

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Bumping since we are more than halfway through the year.

Someone out there needs this thread.

Maybe we can even get it marked as "Gold" status?
 
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Hey, eliquid, some really deep and useful stuff you got here - thanks.

You've given your example of how you're using it - but to me it still seems unclear.


Like, I'm an ISTP-A with type 9-6 from Enneagram.

And it doesn't give me much except that I'm a software engineer and I fit into that career.

How do you draw strengths and actionable items from your personality type? Cause generally speaking, I'm a lazy person, I just like to tweak and play with my software screwdrivers once in a while so nothing is really happening for me.

And, as for all engineers here, building something was never a problem - instead, gauging demand was :)


I also took the bigger Strengths finder CliftonStrengths 34 test and tbh, that one left me completely confused.
It said that I'm a Maximizer, Adaptable and Activator - so essentially, I kinda can inspire and complement good actions from others and maybe make them do stuff.
But execution strategies are just missing - like, I'm not really a "doer something".
I guess that leaves me in a space where I should manage someone and explain how something is done but never do it myself.

Which all sounds sketchy in terms of our social club :)


And to summarize, how do you draw your values out of this mess? I guess I like to play with my tools of the trade/toys and often switch activities... so my value would be this constant sense of having fun? I don't see how that's going to help me focus and achieve something... :-(
 

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Hey, eliquid, some really deep and useful stuff you got here - thanks.

You've given your example of how you're using it - but to me it still seems unclear.


Like, I'm an ISTP-A with type 9-6 from Enneagram.

And it doesn't give me much except that I'm a software engineer and I fit into that career.

How do you draw strengths and actionable items from your personality type? Cause generally speaking, I'm a lazy person, I just like to tweak and play with my software screwdrivers once in a while so nothing is really happening for me.

And, as for all engineers here, building something was never a problem - instead, gauging demand was :)


I also took the bigger Strengths finder CliftonStrengths 34 test and tbh, that one left me completely confused.
It said that I'm a Maximizer, Adaptable and Activator - so essentially, I kinda can inspire and complement good actions from others and maybe make them do stuff.
But execution strategies are just missing - like, I'm not really a "doer something".
I guess that leaves me in a space where I should manage someone and explain how something is done but never do it myself.

Which all sounds sketchy in terms of our social club :)


And to summarize, how do you draw your values out of this mess? I guess I like to play with my tools of the trade/toys and often switch activities... so my value would be this constant sense of having fun? I don't see how that's going to help me focus and achieve something... :-(

I would question how you ended up knowing you were ISTP-A and 9w6.

Not because I don't believe you, but I know this process can be grueling to get right.

1. How many times did you take the MBTI? How many times did you take the Enneagram? If it was less than 10 times I would question the validity. If you want to know why, the answer is in this thread.

2. How far spaced out was each try at each test? If less than a month each I would question the validity.

Once we are past this section, here is how I would tackle/question the rest.

1. Did you do any research to compare your MBTI and your Enneagram test results? For example, I did a ton of research to see if my Enneagram matched my MBTI with questions similar to "what enneagrem is similar to INTJ", etc. I spent some considerable time on this. Mine matched up pretty good.

2. I read every MBTI and every enneagram to see if any outside of my results sounded more like me than my test result said. This is how I ended up thinking I could in fact be more INTP than INTJ. Some of my MBTI results came back INTP prior.

3. Once confident that I really did have the right matches, I did other tests partly out of fun like the Clifton and others. To dig in a bit more, but not really my guiding light. Sort of supplementary.

4. I then researched what jobs/careers would match my MBTI and Enneagram. I spent some time on this, not just 1-2 searches online.

5. I paired up those jobs careers to the Clifton results and other tests outside of MBTI and Enneagram. Did they match up too? Mine did and then I could start to understand the strengths a bit better from the Clifton angle.

6. I did a lot more research into relationships of my MBTI and Enneagram. As in, how I connect with others and feelings and all that stuff.

7. Once I got into the above, the strengths from the Clifton and other tests that I did for fun became more clear. I could see why my Clifton strengths were the way they were and what they actually meant. I had context behind the analysis and words.

At this point, we dive into other areas....

1. For values, this is a big task too. I started out thinking what I thought values where and what I thought were mine. I wrote them all out on paper. I had a bunch, but many seemed like the same thing. Unhappy, I wanted to get to like 5 or 10 instead of the huge list I had. That's when I went researching what each of these values/words meant to other people so I could consolidate if possible and exclude some I got wrong.

2. I then broke out list of values other people wrote down. Not their values, but what was actually a value versus what was an idea or concept. A list of common values you could say. I link to these in the thread, so I went through several lists of these comparing to mine to see if "missed any" maybe I didn't think about. I did this exercise several times over the same lists until I felt comfortable.

3. I spent months refining m values. The first week or 2 I got my list down to a small list. Consolidation, gut checks, and more got it down to about 20 or 15. I then got it down to 12 and 10, then 7, etc. I finally got it down to 5 but it took weeks of thinking about it off and on with days or weeks apart of not thinking about it. I asked a lot of "whys" on each value to really narrow down.

It's amazing what your brain can do if you detach from a problem for some time. That is why I suggest doing the MBTI and Enneagram and even this values list over time.

Every year, I go over my values, generally on my birthday and refine.

I then did some research on values and my MBTI and Enneagram. Would the type of person an INTJ 5w4 be really latch on to the values I had? What are common values for an INTJ and 5w4? etc. I wanted to see if my values typically aligned up to my MBTI and Enneagram.

Everyone is a unique person. Not everything will match 100% to your research. But are you 80-90% there? Are things closely matching up? That is what I was after.

Once I felt good about my values, I thought about my priorities. What is important to my life? This is where research and comparing stops. What is important to you will be unique to you.

I identified building my wealth, my family, and my health as priorities at one point. Depending on where I am every year, I might swap something out. That doesn't mean it's not important anymore, but something else might be more important at that moment in time. For example, family might drop off because my kids are at the age they are moving out and no longer with me daily. They are still MEGA important, but they are less reliant on me and I have taught them everything I could to prep them for life. Maybe I replace family with charity this year. I want to focus on 3 priorities so I can focus my journey this year.

Once I worked out the values and priorities, I start on my mission statement.

My mission statement is basically 3 sentences that contain my values and priorities. If I have 5 values ( words ) and 3 priorities ( words ), I basically create 3 sentences out of those.

Now everything I do the rest of the year ( choices ) is measured up to that mission statement to see if I am in alignment.

Then on my birthday, I reflect back on the last 12 months and refine the next 12 months forward.

When I say this takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time and work/thinking to make sure you got it right. I don't want to be focusing myself in the wrong direction and wrong choices. It takes a lot to know where you ( the real you ) wants to go.

Questions?
 
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I would question how you ended up knowing you were ISTP-A and 9w6.

Not because I don't believe you, but I know this process can be grueling to get right.

1. How many times did you take the MBTI? How many times did you take the Enneagram? If it was less than 10 times I would question the validity. If you want to know why, the answer is in this thread.

2. How far spaced out was each try at each test? If less than a month each I would question the validity.

Once we are past this section, here is how I would tackle/question the rest.

1. Did you do any research to compare your MBTI and your Enneagram test results? For example, I did a ton of research to see if my Enneagram matched my MBTI with questions similar to "what enneagrem is similar to INTJ", etc. I spend some considerable time on this. Mine matched up pretty good.

2. I read every MBTI and every enneagram to see if any outside of my results sounded more like me than my test result said.

3. Once confident that I really did have the right matches, I did other test partly out of fun like the Clifton and others. To dig in a bit more, but not really my guiding light.

4. I then researched what jobs/careers would match my MBTI and Enneagram. I spend some time on this, not just 1-2 searches online.

5. I paired up those jobs careers to the Clifton results and other tests outside of MBTI and Enneagram. Did they match up too? Mine did and then I could start to understand the strengths a bit better from the Clifton angle.

6. I did a lot more research into relationships of my MBTI and Enneagram. As in, how I connect with others and feelings and all that stuff.

7. Once I got into the above, the strengths from the Clifton and other tests that I did for fun became more clear. I could see why my Clifton strengths were the way they were and what they actually meant. I had context behind the analysis and words.

At this point, we dive into other areas....

1. For values, this is a big task too. I started out thinking what I thought values where and what I thought were mine. I wrote them all out on paper. I had a bunch, but many seemed like the same thing. Unhappy, I wanted to get to like 5 or 10 instead of the huge list I had. That's when I went researching what each of these values/words meant to other people so I could consolidate if possible and exclude some I got wrong.

2. I then broke out list of values other people wrote down. Not their values, but what was actually a value versus what was an idea or concept. A list of common values you could say. I link to these in the thread, so I went through several lists of these comparing to mine to see if "missed any" maybe I didn't think about.

3. I spent months refining them. The first week or 2 I got my list down to a small list. Consolidation, gut checks, and more got it down to about 20 or 15. I then got it down to 12 and 10, then 7, etc. I finally got it down to 5 but it took weeks of thinking about it off and on with days or weeks apart of not thinking about it. I asked a lot of "whys" on each value to really narrow down.

It's amazing what your brain can do if you detach from a problem for some time. That is why I suggest doing the MBTI and Enneagram and even this values list over time.

Every year, I go over my values, generally on my birthday and refine.

I then did some research on values and my MBTI and Enneagram. Would the type of person an INTJ 5w4 be really latch on to the values I had? What are common values for an INTJ and 5w4? etc. I wanted to see if my values typically aligned up to my MBTI and Enneagram.

Everyone is a unique person. Nothing everything will match 100% to your research. But are you 80-90% there? Are things closely matching up? That is what I was after.

Once I felt good about my values, I thought about my priorities. What is important to my life? This is where research and comparing stops. What is important to you will be unique to you.

I identified building my wealth, my family, and my health as priorities at one point. Depending on where I am every year, I might swap something out. That doesn't mean it's not important anymore, but something else might be more important at that moment in time. For example, family might drop off because my kids are at the age they are moving out and no longer with me daily. They are still MEGA important, but they are less reliant on me and I have taught them everything I could to prep them for life. Maybe I replace family with charity this year. I want to focus on 3 priorities so I can focus my journey this year.

Once I worked out the values and priorities, I start on my mission statement.

My mission statement is basically 3 sentences that contain my values and priorities. If I have 5 values ( words ) and 3 priorities ( words ), I basically create 3 sentences out of those.

Now everything I do the rest of the year ( choices ) is measured up to that mission statement to see if I am in alignment.

Then on my birthday, I reflect back on the last 12 months and refine the next 12 months forward.

When I say this takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time and work/thinking to make sure you got it right. I don't want to be focusing myself in the wrong direction and wrong choices. It takes a lot to know where you ( the real you ) wants to go.

Questions?

Ok, so I took MBTI more than 20 times spaced out over several years.
And I gradually noticed myself moving from ENTP-A to ISTP-A over the years.
In the last few months ISTP-A is a pretty stable result for me.

What confuses me a lot is that my scale is like 51-49% mostly. Would you say it's a problem?
Like having 51% E/49% I isn't really a clear extravert.
Only thing that I got clear is T - that one is like 80% or more. All the others have been around 50% for me.

In terms of Enneagram - I also have took it at least 10 times spaced out over a year.
And usually my highest score is a tie between 9 and 6.
And second highest has another 2 or 3 categories.
Something like this - although they move around, not stable enough:

Type 9, The Peacemaker 20
Type 6, The Loyalist 19
Type 3, The Achiever 18
Type 7, The Enthusiast 18
Type 5, The Investigator 17
Type 4, The Individualist 16
Type 1, The Reformer 15

So i think I will do more retries over time - too many values clustered together, that can't be right.

On the other hand, I do not really possess the ability to empathyze, rather, I'm pretty manipulative and cold-blooded, relying on my intellectual powers to get things done and sometimes act like a chameleon, saying whatever is expected to be said. So that clouds my judgement a bit.

But it is really hard for me to do gut checks - I seem not to be able to do it. Like, the test says that I'm this - ok, it could be probably true.

Overall, I seem to value money above else and not to have any other obvious value. Maybe, comfort, having to work less, just sit in an armchair and enjoy the sunset - that type of thing :)

Retrospection seems to work for me better than introspection. Like I used to work that research job where I was constantly procrastinating and doing anything else other than the actual job - it probably means that I didn't like the actual job, for example. But I can't tell for sure...
 
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Ok, so I took MBTI more than 20 times spaced out over several years.
And I gradually noticed myself moving from ENTP-A to ISTP-A over the years.
In the last few months ISTP-A is a pretty stable result for me.

What confuses me a lot is that my scale is like 51-49% mostly. Would you say it's a problem?
Like having 51% E/49% I isn't really a clear extravert.
Only thing that I got clear is T - that one is like 80% or more. All the others have been around 50% for me.

In terms of Enneagram - I also have took it at least 10 times spaced out over a year.
And usually my highest score is a tie between 9 and 6.
And second highest has another 2 or 3 categories.
Something like this - although they move around, not stable enough:

Type 9, The Peacemaker 20
Type 6, The Loyalist 19
Type 3, The Achiever 18
Type 7, The Enthusiast 18
Type 5, The Investigator 17
Type 4, The Individualist 16
Type 1, The Reformer 15

So i think I will do more retries over time - too many values clustered together, that can't be right.

On the other hand, I do not really possess the ability to empathyze, rather, I'm pretty manipulative and cold-blooded, relying on my intellectual powers to get things done and sometimes act like a chameleon, saying whatever is expected to be said. So that clouds my judgement a bit.

But it is really hard for me to do gut checks - I seem not to be able to do it. Like, the test says that I'm this - ok, it could be probably true.

Overall, I seem to value money above else and not to have any other obvious value. Maybe, comfort, having to work less, just sit in an armchair and enjoy the sunset - that type of thing :)

Retrospection seems to work for me better than introspection. Like I used to work that research job where I was constantly procrastinating and doing anything else other than the actual job - it probably means that I didn't like the actual job, for example. But I can't tell for sure...

I have a similar experience.

I have bounced around from INTJ and INTP on MBTI. For a long time I settled on INTJ as my Type.

More recently though, I am showing INTP.

The thing is, this isn't an exact science. Many things like mood and experience can sway you. Im fine with being "in the middle" at the moment. The MBTI doesn't really define me or make my choices for me, it just HELPED me narrow down and find the right values/career, etc. Key word HELPED.

Why?

Well in my case it was a bit more clear cut and white/black. INTJ and INTP are pretty damn similar when you look at career choices, relationships, values, etc. So it might have been easier for me to accept both and being somewhat unclear.

On Enneagram, I can see myself as 5w4 and 5w6. But they are so similar that the differences don't matter much. Again, maybe I got lucky.

What I would do is look at your results and ask yourself, which ones are the same on both ENTP-A to ISTP-A? Which careers and which relationship advice are same? Where do things stay closely the same?

And I would start there.

Remember, this isn't defining you yet. It's just a base.

What really defines you ends up being the values, priorities and mission statement.

It's just that I personally needed validation. I wanted to know the data. I had to ensure I left no stone uncovered.

So when I did my values I went over lists of values, my values, values a INTJ would have, etc. I listed out what a value meant to me and then went and found out what it meant to others.

The values are the secret. Knowing everything I could about INTJ and 5w4 just ensured and helped me when I needed it in narrowing down the values list.

Priorities came next. This should be pretty easy but can be hard for some people to come up with.

I am no MBTI or Enneagram guru. I couldn't tell you anything about an ENTP or ISTP.

Mostly because, I did this exercise to learn about me and only me.

But let me share with you my mission statement:

Solve problems with simplicity ( no choas, easy going life ), creativity, and entrepreneurship
Share my full knowledge, wisdom and insight with those that deserve it
Live a full and stable ( no choas ) life with complete and utter autonomy ( freedom, independence )


If you know anything about INTJ/INTP or 5w4/5w6, you can see bits and pieces of those personalities in my mission statement, because my values reflect my personal experience and MBTI/Enneagram.

1. Solve problems - INTJ/INTP - but I didn't pick this because I was an INTJ, I just love to solve problems ( bring value ). It just so happens to lends itself to INTJ too.

2.
Share my full knowledge - INTJ/INTP - I love to talk and share and delight with what I know ( part of solving problems and bringing value )

3. creativity and entrepreneurship - part of the 5w4 and INTJ - I get bored easily and Im independent. I have to stay creative to be entertained.

4. Those that deserve it - this is a reference to my family. My family is more important than anyone outside of it. They should know everything I share before others.

5. Autonomy - references my 5w and INTJ/P

6. Simplicity/Stable - I don't remember if I actually got this from INTJ/5w4 but this is more about my life experience. I'm tired of finding complex ways to do stuff. It's actually more creative to find the "simple" in things and do it. Less is more. Also simple tends to be more stable.

7. "Solve problems with simplicity ( no choas, easy going life ), creativity, and entrepreneurship" - This is part of my priorities when it comes to "My Wealth".

8. "Share my full knowledge, wisdom and insight with those that deserve it" - This is part of my priorities when it comes to "My Family". But it does lend itself to "My Wealth" too some.

9. "Live a full and stable ( no choas ) life with complete and utter autonomy ( freedom, independence )" - This is part of my priorities when it comes to "My Health" ( mentally ), but lends itself to "My Family" and "My Wealth" too some.


The real thing you are looking for is your values.

I just happen to use my MBTI and Enneagram and Clifton, etc - to shape my values and get them right for me.

However, you could possibly find your values without them. I tend to feel this would be very difficult without the data ( the INTJ in me ), but it could be done.

Focus on the values, it's what's gonna shape things for you in the long run.
 

eliquid

( Jason Brown )
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I think the main thing about this whole thread.. the whole exercise and time involved is that it allowed me to think about me.

My experiences in life - WTF moments, good things and bad things, what I love and what I hate, what things meant to me, my view on the world, etc.

I had to really sit my a$$ down and evaluate things. My life.

Where have I been. Where do I want to go. How have things gone up to now and why do I think it happened that way.

How many of us really sit down over time and comprehend that?

I feel most people are just going around like robots from one task to the next until its time to eat/shit/go to bed, so Im sure most people never have time to think about this stuff.

I think that's where the real value lies.

I just mapped out a more "logical" way of how I came about things, how I connected the dots, than probably most people who might find a weekend to themselves and just say these things to themselves before heading to work on Monday and forgetting about it again.

Or how some people might have told themselves on a whim they want to be a business owner and never gave it much thought past that and are not sure why they are doing what they are doing, even though they think they know what they want when they never really put the time into it or the real why behind it.

Hope that helps.
 

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