The INFP personality is otherwise known as the Mediator or Idealist personality. Their traits are Introversion (I), Intuitive (N), Feeling (F), and Perceiving (P).
INFPs are very optimistic people who try to make the world a better place. One of their standout qualities is that they’re very creative. If you give them a task, they’ll try to find creative and innovative ways of doing it. They often express themselves through art and other creative ventures.
However, they try to do things within the confines of idealistic principles and values. Every action they take is guided by their principles, personal feelings, and values.
INFPs are also warm-hearted and are known as healers. They’re compassionate and empathetic people who genuinely understand how others feel. This is why most INFPs tend to advocate for a better world and strive to correct the deficiencies they see in society.
INFPs are quite rare as they make up only 4% of the global population.
If you’re struggling to know whether you’re an INFP, here are the top signs you should look out for.
How To Know You’re An INFP
You’re a true introvert.
The characteristics of introverts are inherent in you. You enjoy spending quality time with yourself. Alone time is so important for you because it not only helps you to recharge but also aids your creative process.
You also enjoy socializing and meeting new people, compared to other introverted personality types. However, those relationships can only last when you constantly talk about things you like with them. Otherwise, you’d get socially exhausted.
Just like other introverts, small talk irks you.
Art is your creative outlet.
You’re an INFP if art is your creative outlet.
Most INFPs are creative and expressive, and one way of expressing this creativity fluently is through art. They are deep thinkers who spot non-obvious patterns, so they use art to share their ideas with the world.
This is why most of the famous INFPs are thinkers, writers, artists, actors, actresses, and poets.
This doesn’t mean they don’t express themselves through other means. They do, but art is their most prominent medium. In most cases, INFPs become very unhappy and dissatisfied with their lives when they don’t have a creative outlet to express themselves.
You’re social and approachable.
INFPs are often mistaken for extroverts, especially for their extroverted counterparts, ENFPs. You’re warm, social, and approachable, so you have no problem attracting people.
You don’t manipulate people or have any desire to be domineering. As an empathetic person, you can relate to everyone’s individual struggles, so you try to be as democratic as possible. People love being around you because they feel heard, valued, and appreciated.
They know that if they come around you, they won’t be judged or considered weird.
You’re super optimistic.
This is one of the obvious signs of the INFP personality. INFPs are optimistic people because they try so hard to see the good in everyone and every situation. You approach situations with the mindset that they can always get better, even when the hope is bleak.
This optimism helps you to go through very tough challenges in your life, and see good in people no matter how good or bad they treated you. In some cases, you may even feel responsible for their bad actions.
You love helping others.
You have the natural ability to help others, regardless of the situation. Your kindness pushes you to seek out ways to help others in need and give people a chance at something, whether they deserve it or not.
While this may seem like a good thing, you end up shortchanging yourself in the process. When someone asks you for a favor, you find it hard to say no. You end up doing that thing, even though it’s inconvenient or drains you.
You’re guided by principles.
Your principles guide your decision-making process. You don’t ever do things out of the blue. There must be underlying values and principles behind every action you take.
When deciding on something, you don’t stop to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of the situation. Instead, you look at what is right and what corresponds with your personal values. On the surface, this may look like a good attribute.
But INFPs get into trouble for this quite often because they tend to go with what they think is right without acknowledging the practicality of the situation.
You run away from conflicts.
INFPs flee from conflicts at the speed of light. Why?
As mentioned earlier, INFPs are warm and social people who go out of their way to help others. The problem is that they end up becoming people pleasers who hate stepping on other people’s toes.
Once they sense a conflict or disagreement rising, they tend to stop it or go away from that place for peace to reign. INFPs can be upset, hurt, or disappointed by someone but wouldn’t speak up because they don’t want to offend anybody.
Your mind is always roaming
The mind of a typical INFP never stops. It’s always roaming, trying to seek the next piece of information to ponder upon. Why?
The secondary function of an INFP is extroverted intuition, which causes them to focus on patterns and seek the deeper meaning behind things. INFPs enjoy reading books, watching movies, or getting information in various forms they can constantly think about.
You seek deep connections.
Just like other introverts, INFPs are turned off by small talk. When they meet someone that isn’t interested in similar things or has nothing intellectual to offer, they get bored.
INFPs seek deep, genuine, and emotional connections. They’re constantly on the lookout for stimulating and intellectual relationships that can expand their knowledge.
INFPs need people with whom they can have meaningful one-on-one conversations. They have a lot of information and insight that if they don’t let it out, it feels like they will burst.
You love to daydream.
INFPs design a fully functional world in their minds. They love daydreaming, drifting their deep thoughts to things that can possibly happen. This is why they enjoy abstract concepts and conversations like talking about philosophy or science.
INFPs have a very vivid imagination, so it’s easy for them to get lost in their own world. They can get so lost in their thoughts that they literally need someone to distract them from the experience.
They are great at self-expression
As mentioned earlier, INFPs are creative people who use art to express their thoughts and feelings. They know how to properly articulate and define the ideas they have and communicate them in a way that’s easily understandable.
Their love for self-expression, language, and communication often draws them to the arts- writing, music, poetry, painting, and the like.
You dislike criticism.
One of the challenges INFPs have is that they dislike criticism, even when it’s coming from a good place. Why?
Typical INFPs are people pleasers. They love doing things to ensure that everyone else is settled, even though it’s physically, emotionally, and psychologically draining. They hate stepping on people’s toes or intentionally hurting people.
Because of this, they can’t handle criticism well. When someone criticizes their actions, they feel they didn’t do right by them, so they feel very upset. They tie their self-worth and value to other people’s opinions. Harsh feedback can ruin their day, no matter how small.
You love living a simple life.
Flamboyant and materialistic lives don’t attract typical INFPs. You wouldn’t see them trying to get the latest car or buy the most expensive furniture in the building.
They can have all the money in the world but choose to settle for a minimalistic lifestyle while spending the rest on helping people and fighting social injustices.
You’re hopelessly optimistic.
INFPs are often beacons of hope and optimism in their communities. Their optimism helps them to overcome any disappointment or challenge they may face. When there is despair and depression, INFPs ensure that there is sanity and decorum, and people don’t grow weary.
They tend to see the good in every situation and applaud people for their simplest achievements. People enjoy staying around them to get a dose of their positivity.
You hate boring or repetitive tasks.
INFPs are artistic and creative people, so they’re scared of repetitive tasks even if they’re the simplest things in the world to do. This is why typical INFPs struggle with things like doing the dishes, cleaning their rooms, or organizing their bookshelves.
You’re always inspired by a great intellectual discussion or by some creative piece of art. If you’re stuck in a job that doesn’t allow you to express your creativity, you freak out.
Everything in your life must have meaning.
INFPs seek great meaning in their lives. Most of their actions are tailored toward making an impact in the world or doing something meaningful for other people. Money, fame, and status have never been major motivators behind your actions.
This is why when they see other people become greedy or struggle to get all the fame in the world, they feel out of place. It never makes sense to them.
You’re very thoughtful and considerate.
People know you for your thoughtfulness. They get out of your way to ensure that everyone is catered for, even before they think of themselves.
INFPs have no problems sharing what they know or love with other people. When they truly love someone, they can go to great lengths to make sure that they’re happy.
This is why they often get disappointed when people don’t treat them the way they treat others. In their minds, everyone is supposed to act like them. But unfortunately, that’s not how life works.
You’re prone to spontaneity.
INFPs are flexible people that can adapt to any situation or person easily. They’re more prone to taking spontaneous actions and going with the flow, compared to other introverted personality types.
The typical INFP hates schedules and routines. They feel restricted by them. This is why they easily cancel last-minute plans or suddenly decide to do something they didn’t plan to do earlier. It all depends on their mood.
You’re a hopeless romantic.
INFPs are passionate romantics, no matter how many times they have a heartbreak or face severe disappointments. They’re very sweet and caring toward their partners, even to the point of overlooking their flaws or red flags.
INFPs imagine a perfect relationship, so they always have high expectations of their partner, which may be hard to come by.
You always want to try something new.
INFPs are very innovative people. When they come into a space where things have been done a certain way for years, INFPs try to change that. It can be as small as trying a new way to make cookies or as big as setting new rules for employee engagement at a large corporate firm.
Conclusion
INFPs are very artistic and creative people. If you want to gain clarity on whether you’re an INFP or not, take this personality type test.
