Introverted intuition (Ni)
This function normally manifests itself in early childhood. With perceiving as its dominant function, they usually rely on symbols and devices to transform and predict things and situations. INTJs have this ability to formulate what the future is like based on intuition or what they consider as signs.

Extraverted Thinking (Te)
This function is what usually takes over when a person is making decisions, which, in the case of an INTJ, it is extraverted thinking. With the use of objective facts, an INTJ makes choices. This is also the one responsible for making an INTJ seems cold and impersonal in the sense that he or she is not too much in socializing. However, this is also the function that complements the dominant function’s focus on the big picture. Here, he or she becomes a system planner and a master strategist, using systematic analysis.

Introverted Feeling (Fi)
As the tertiary function, this makes an INTJ an individual who finds it difficult to express himself or herself or rather prefer to keep things and feelings from other people. And since this is on the lower level of the hierarchy model of functions, this is also why other people find INTJs insensitive to their feelings. During this period in an INTJ’s life, this is when he or she will feel the need to change the world and desire for transformation.

Extraverted Sensing (Se)

How do you define success? Running your own business is an all-consuming task, and it’s important to maintain wellbeing by achieving a work-life balance.

This is the function that is responsible for an INTJ’s preference for material things and hunger for thrilling adventure. These include the love for lavish homes, expensive cars, and love for luxurious travels. This function also gives an INTJ a hard time choosing between love and career.

1. INTJs are analytical people who prefer to work alone than being in a team. They are at their best when they are given autonomy and freedom to be creative.

2. In relationships, they tend to have high expectations and are not ones to be infatuated right away or fall in love instantaneously. They rather observe and wait for the right people to fit their criteria, which is somehow similar to their traits.

3. They are self-confident and often disregard the opinion of others about something that they have already proven correct to themselves. For them, one does not have to prove himself or herself to others.

4. They can be perfectionists, willing to put their health online just to get things done. They are also idealists. People with INTJ personalities look at problems systematically using objective rather than subjective logic. INTJS are able to attack problems and achieve goals from different perspectives and are able to come up with different ways to handle challenges.

5. Another good trait of INTJs is sticking it out when it comes to achieving their goals in life. No matter the hardship, INTJs are not the type to give up when it comes to things they find interesting. If they want to achieve something, they are persistent and willing to overcome the challenges to reach their goals.

6. As partners, INTJs love to maintain a harmonious relationship. This is also evident in their relationships at home. However, they are not good at expressing emotions and their partners find it difficult to read their minds. They can also appear to be neglectful when it comes to simple things other people find essential in their relationships and prefer not to talk things over.

7. They are intelligent and quick to understand difficult ideas and do not take criticisms personally. Conversely, they can also be sarcastic and intolerant of other people’s weaknesses.

INTJ (Introversion, Intuition, Thinking, Judgment) is one of the 16 personality types identified using the MBTI (Myers Briggs Test Indicator), an assessment tool created by Katharine Cook Briggs and her daughter Isabel Briggs Myers. About 2% of the American population is considered to have this type of personality and just like INFJ (Introversion, Intuition, Feeling, Judgment), INTJ is one of the rarest of the 16 types. Moreover, more men are INTJs than women.

The MBTI personality types were inspired by the book Psychological Types authored by Carl Jung. It was published in 1921 and was translated into English in 1923. The two women used this book and came up with their own analysis, thus, the MBTI. With this personality assessment tool, an individual is given a multiple-choice questionnaire based on four psychological opposites wherein the result can be one of the 16 personality types, which is also identified according to its four-letter code.

I – This is short for introversion which is an indicator that a person gets energized by being alone and easily gets tired if socialization and being in the midst of people is called for.

N – This is short for iNtuition which indicates that a person sees things from a bigger picture and not in details.

T – This is short for thinking wherein a person uses objective criteria when it comes to making decisions instead of letting their emotions rule over how they act on their goals and make choices in life.

J – This is short for judgment which makes an individual quick to make decisions and plan they goals.

Through Jung’s clinical observations, he was also able to identify four cognitive or mental functions people use to make decisions, cope with life’s challenges and basically interact with others. Based on these studies, he was able to come up with the theory of 8 cognitive functions and four of which form a hierarchy. These are sensing, intuition, thinking, and feeling.

The four functions exist via a hierarchy model namely; Dominant, Auxiliary, Tertiary and Inferior. The Dominant function is said to be the most preferred by an individual and one which he or she is more comfortable with. This is usually seen in early childhood. The Auxiliary, which appears during adolescence to early 30s acts as the support and complements the dominant function. 

It also helps in the process of decision-making.

The tertiary function is not as mature as the first two but will also reach maturity as the person gets older. The fourth function, the inferior, is the least function an individual is comfortable with and is considered a weakness. Both the tertiary and inferior functions are usually not fully developed in an individual but are manifested from the age of 30 years old and beyond...

1. Their arrogance overshadows their positive points.
Because of their strong belief in their personal opinions and abilities, they tend to be arrogant. They would not accept other people’s opinions, especially those coming from someone whom they believe to be intellectually inferior. Because they have an aversion to social conventions, their direct honesty often make them brutally insensitive, and out of tune with other people’s feelings.

2. They are judgmental and over analytical.
INTJs think highly of themselves and would often look down on others. Add to this their inability to express their feelings and emotions properly, they often end up being insensitive. Perhaps it is also their detachment to human emotion that makes them overly analytical, choosing to allow logic to rule over their feelings. In situations where logic doesn’t rule, being an INTJ can be a disadvantage.

3. They do not conform to a highly structured environment.
INTJ loathe rules and authority figures, so being given stringent policies or told what to do would be distasteful to them. They would also end up hating anyone who prefers the status quo and who would exchange self-determination for stability and safety. This can cost conflicts, but things can get even worse for INTJs because their aversion to structure applies equally to the law of the land and other social conventions.

4. They are incapable of having a good relationship.
Although they are great listeners and put in high priority commitment and relationships, their lack of emotional involvement and difficulty in expressing emotions and feeling often make them a less desirable partner. Apart from being out of tune with others’ feelings, they also have the tendency to restrict all or part of themselves. Combined with their other traits, such as being judgmental, arrogant, and non-conformity to rules, they are often labeled as clueless in romance.

Knowing their strengths also makes them incapable of pursuing someone. If they are unfortunate the first time, being turned down or something, they would sooner give up the search than try again. For some reason, however, such characteristics are what make INTJs quite attractive for other people.

 So perhaps they are being clueless is not so bad. The friends they have would also take time away from them to take a break from their seeming lack of human connection.

Although no personality type is perfect, INTJs can have more shortcomings, especially if the focus is on their strong and overpowering points. But if they can strike a balance, they might be able to forge a good relationship and still succeed in realizing their goals.

Among the many personality types, INTJs are not common. In the United States, there is only an estimated 2% who are INTJs. When broken down by gender, only about 2% are women and 3% men. But this may work to everyone’s advantage considering that INTJs are collectively called “masterminds”, and hold themselves to high standards. If there were plenty of them, the world could be a battlefield, what with one trying to outwit the other. But they’re all not bad, however.

In a nutshell, INTJs are individualistic, visionaries and skeptics. They have a strong desire to execute their ideas and reach their goals. This is because when they dedicate themselves to a task, they will work hard to accomplish what needs to be done by establishing patterns and staying organized.

1. They are strategic and quick in thoughts.
INTJs take pride in the way they think and use whatever knowledge they have for many purposes. They grab every opportunity to learn something new and use it to their advantage. They are always curious and will never back down from an intellectual challenge, which is why they can see things from different perspectives. They are also very imaginative, but they don’t use their imagination so much for artistry but in planning the next course of action to take in dealing with certain scenarios, and in setting up contingencies.

2. They are highly confident in their thoughts and capabilities.
Rationalism is a highly prized commodity for INTJs that, when they arrive at a conclusion, they will have no doubts about the veracity of their findings. No amount of handholding or politicking would change the fact that they are right. Because of this, their approach to communication is honest and direct and not held back by any perceived social role or expectation.

When it comes to what they can achieve, they also have complete faith in their abilities, which allows them to realize their goals. When they put their mind to something, they will do everything in their power to see it through.

3. They are decisive and independent.
Given their logic, self-confidence, and strategic thinking, INTJs can definitely stand on their own. They’re not afraid to say a piece of their mind. They even know when it is right to end a relationship and do just that. They’re not easily impressed by authority figures, and they are not held down by traditional social conventions. This is because they know they have a better idea and might even try to change others’ mind, in order to conform it to their own.

4. They are not threatened by conflict, criticism or confrontation.
When they know they are right, they are right no matter what other people think or say. So even if they are criticized or confronted for any reason, they will hold their ground. What is even better is that they stay calm, indifferent and detached during emotionally charged conflicts, which can raise other people’s ire.

5. They are efficient, determined and hardworking.
These characteristics make up a really amazing employee, and bosses would just love INTJs. Not only are they dedicated to their work, they are also incredibly efficient. This is especially true if the task assigned to them meet their criteria. There are instances, however, when the need to be efficient leads them to bypass seeming redundancies. This could result in risks and errors because they could skip double checking.

6. They are open-minded.
When thrust into unfamiliar territory, INTJs will use receptiveness, independence, and aversion to rules and traditions to open their mind to new ideas. Combined with rationalism and logic, they can have a liberal social sense.