The Real MBTI Guide

Cognitive Functions

*Please note that just because a function is inferior, doesn't mean you do not use it.

Now, for descriptions of each of the functions.

JUDGING FUNCTIONS

Introverted feeling
(Fi)

- Values
- Their own feelings
- What things mean to them
- Authenticity
- Staying true to themselves

Fi is very focused on their own feelings. People with dominant Fi may be seen as really selfish or overly sentimental to some, but that's just because they are focused on their own feelings, which is not necessarily a bad thing. They may be labelled as hopeless romantics by some. But do not worry, it's a great thing to be in tune with your own feelings and people who have dominant or auxiliary Fi value authenticity and staying true to thenselves. But when they do get too intensely focused on their own emotions and nothing else, things can get haywire. We must learn to use our functions in a healthy way.

Extroverted feeling
(Fe)

- Group harmony
- Feelings of their peers
- Connection and relationships
- A good understanding of ethics

Fe individuals are very focused on group harmony. They want to make sure that everybody is feeling good. They can be very focused on how everyone around them feels. When people with dominant Fe are making a decision, it will likely be focused on what everyone around them will feel about that decision. People who have good Fe are concerned with connecting with people. Because of all these traits, they may be considered to be very charismatic individuals. They can be very good at knowing what the group is feeling and thinking without the people having to day anything. People with dominant Fe will also understand ethics really well. They also enjoy helping people and find it very natural.

Introverted thinking
(Ti)

- Logic
- What is true
- Analytical
- Knowledge
- Understanding

This function is very concerned with logic. People with dominant Ti are fascinated with how things work and often go by the following motto: "Knowledge for knowledge sake". This is true to many dominant Ti individuals, and also can apply to people who have tertiary Ti. People who have very good Ti like it when people use precise and official terminology instead of other terminology that may not be the correct terminology. They may have an extensive vocabulary also. People who have dominant Ti are not fazed by emotions, they see things in a very objective and do not like bias. They may acknowledge that they can be unbiased at times but they will try their best to be as objective as possible. When a dominant Ti receives new information, whether it be true or not, they test it against their internal model to see if it fits. If it doesn't fit, but they still think it may be true, somehow, then then may re-evaluate their whole mental framework. Do NOT forget about analysis paralysis. This is a dream and a demon at once.

Extraverted thinking
(Te)

- Objective
- Fair
- Fact-oriented
- Organised
- Goal-oriented

People with dominant Te are focused on external thinking. They are very fair, as soon as something contains some kind of emotion, they may try to put it aside so that they can focus on the most efficient solution that is not influenced by feelings. Because of this, they can be seen as cold by lots of people, but this isn't always the case. They may "cold" to you because they actually care for your welfare. People with dominant Te are results-oriented and they do not like people influencing them and standing in the way of the results of something. People with high Te may do well in management roles. They also like to make sure that their world is organised because they are focused on the external world rather than their internal world like their Ti counterparts.

PERCEIVING FUNCTIONS

Introverted intuition
(Ni)

- Insights/hunches
- Future-oriented
- Strategic
- Big picture
- Possibly mystical to observers
- Converging intuition

I myself am not sure how to describe Ni. Ni is the sort of function someone can know what will happen in the future. Not too much in a mystical way, but their unconscious mind just processes data and then when they're doing their everyday life, the answer to something might just pop up into their heads. Ni is the only perceiving function that is not under our control. Ni dominant individuals are focused on their own internal thoughts, concepts, and ideas as opposed to Se, the opposite function to Ni, which is focused on the physical world. Big picture people and strategic. When Ni is paired with Fe, as the case in INFJ and ENFJ, they can use their insights to help people. When combined with Te, like with INTJ and ENTJ, the person can use their insights for products, systems, and things rather than on people and on human issues.

Extraverted intuition
(Ne)

- Ideas diverging
- Brainstorming
- Big picture
- Seeing patterns and trends
- Possibilities
- Future-oriented

People with dominant Ne are focused on ideas and thinking of as many possibilities as possible. They are also very focused on the future. They are excellent at brainstorming. If you want someone to help you with coming up with ideas, find an Ne dominant person. They will be sure to shoot out ideas like bullets in a gun. These people may speak very fast and also be quite eloquent. Ne dominants are good at seeing connections in things. This can make them seem as very witty people.

Introverted sensing
(Si)

- Tradition
- Looking back on the past
- Aware of internal sensations
- Doing things like they've always been done, like always eating the same food at a restaurant

Extroverted sensing
(Se)

- Physical world
- The present moment
- The senses
- Sometimes reckless, not always
- More often than not, good at sports, but again, that's a bit stereotypical

There's a brief description of the functions. Next up, we'll look at which MBTI types have what functions and why.