INTP PERSONALITY

Whether the chicken crossed the road or the road crossed the chicken depends on your frame of
reference.
Albert Einstein
The INTP personality type is fairly rare, making up only three percent of the population, which is
definitely a good thing for them, as there’s nothing they’d be more unhappy about than being
“common”. INTPs pride themselves on their inventiveness and creativity, their unique perspective and
vigorous intellect. Usually known as the philosopher, the architect, or the dreamy professor, INTPs
have been responsible for many scientific discoveries throughout history.

INTPs are known for their brilliant theories and unrelenting logic – in fact, they are considered the
most logically precise of all the personality types. They love patterns, and spotting discrepancies
between statements could almost be described as a hobby, making it a bad idea to lie to an INTP.
Ironically, owing to their Prospecting (P) trait, INTPs’ word should be taken with a grain of salt – it’s
not that they are dishonest, but INTPs tend to share thoughts that are not fully developed, using
others as a sounding board for ideas and theories in a debate against themselves rather than as
actual conversation partners.

This may make them appear unreliable, but in reality no one is more enthusiastic and capable of
spotting a problem, drilling through the endless factors and details that encompass the issue and
developing a unique and viable solution than INTPs – just don’t expect punctual progress reports.
People who share the INTP personality type aren’t interested in practical, day-to-day activities and
maintenance, but when they find an environment where their creative genius and potential can be
expressed, there is no limit to the time and energy INTPs will expend in developing an insightful and
unbiased solution.

They may appear to drift about in an unending daydream, but INTPs’ thought process is unceasing,
and their minds buzz with ideas from the moment they wake up. This constant thinking can have the
effect of making them look pensive and detached, as they are often conducting full-fledged debates in
their own heads, but really INTPs are quite relaxed and friendly when they are with people they know,
or who share their interests. However, this can be replaced by overwhelming shyness when INTPs
are among unfamiliar faces, and friendly banter can quickly become combative if they believe their
logical conclusions or theories are being criticized.

When INTPs are particularly excited, the conversation can border on incoherence as they try to
explain the daisy-chain of logical conclusions that led to the formation of their latest idea. Oftentimes,
INTPs will opt to simply move on from a topic before it’s ever understood what they were trying to
say, rather than try to lay things out in plain terms.

The reverse can also be true when people explain their thought processes to INTPs in terms of
subjectivity and feeling. Imagine an immensely complicated clockwork, taking in every fact and idea
possible, processing them with a heavy dose of creative reasoning and returning the most logically
sound results available – this is how the INTP mind works, and this type has little tolerance for an
emotional monkey-wrench jamming their machines.

Further, with Thinking (T) as one of their governing traits, INTPs are unlikely to understand emotional
complaints at all, and their friends won’t find a bedrock of emotional support in them. INTPs would
much rather make a series of logical suggestions for how to resolve the underlying issue, a
perspective that is not always welcomed by their Feeling (F) companions. This will likely extend to
most social conventions and goals as well, like planning dinners and getting married, as INTPs are far
more concerned with originality and efficient results.

The one thing that really holds INTPs back their restless and pervasive fear of failure. INTPs are so
prone to reassessing their own thoughts and theories, worrying that they’ve missed some critical
piece of the puzzle, that they can stagnate, lost in an intangible world where their thoughts are never
truly applied. Overcoming this self-doubt stands as the greatest challenge INTPs are likely to face,
but the intellectual gifts – big and small – bestowed on the world when they do makes it worth the
fight.

Famous INTPs:

INTP STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

INTP STRENGTHS

 Great analysts and abstract thinkers. INTP personalities are great at noticing
patterns and seeing the big picture. They also possess an impressive ability to jump
from one idea to another, linking them in ways that usually bewilder most other
personality types.
 Honest and straightforward. INTPs do not play social games and see no point in
sugarcoating their words. They will clearly state their opinion and expect others to
return the favor.
 Objective. People with the INTP personality are very logical and rational individuals
who see no point in involving emotions in the decision-making process.
Consequently, they tend to pride themselves in being fair and impartial.
 Imaginative and original. An INTP’s mind is always working, always producing
ideas regardless of whether those ideas are likely to see the light of day. Not
surprisingly, INTPs have no difficulties coming up with innovative, original solutions.
 Open-minded. INTPs tend to be open-minded and willing to accept ideas different
from their own, provided that they are supported by facts and logic. Furthermore,
INTPs are usually fairly liberal when it comes to social norms and traditions, judging
people solely on the basis of their ideas.
 Enthusiastic. INTP personalities can spend an enormous amount of time trying to
figure out something they are interested in. They will also be very enthusiastic when
it comes to discussing that topic with other people.

INTP WEAKNESSES

 Absent-minded. INTPs are able to focus all their efforts on analyzing a specific
idea, but this usually comes at a cost of ignoring everything else. They may be
forgetful or simply miss things that have nothing to do with the object of their
interest.
 Second-guess themselves. INTP personalities may be excellent analysts, but they
often lack the decisiveness of Judging (J) types. An INTP may find it quite difficult to
 decide which idea is the best one, always looking for more information and doubting
their own conclusions.
 Insensitive. INTPs are likely to find it difficult to include emotions in their decision-
making process, focusing all their efforts on getting the rational basis right.
Consequently, they may often come across as insensitive or be puzzled when it
comes to dealing with an emotionally-charged situation.
 Very private and withdrawn. INTPs are often reluctant to let anyone inside their
minds, let alone their hearts. They may often come across as shy in social settings
and even the INTP’s friends are likely to have a difficult time getting to know them
well.
 May be condescending. INTP personalities are usually proud of their extensive
knowledge and reasoning abilities, but they may get easily frustrated trying to
describe their thoughts to other people. INTPs enjoy presenting their ideas to other
people, but explaining how they got from A to Z is another matter.
 Loathe rules and guidelines. INTPs need a lot of freedom and have little respect
for rules and traditions that put artificial limits on their imagination. People with this
personality type would rather have less security and more autonomy.
 INTP personalities are likely to be very knowledgeable, intelligent friends, but they
are notoriously difficult to get to know, and few people have the patience and
determination to get through their shields. The INTP’s mind is always buzzing with
ideas, riddles, and solutions. In contrast, though, communicating with other people
is often more a nuisance than a pleasure for an INTP. Consequently, INTPs tend to
be very picky when it comes to choosing friends. If the other person has significantly
different interests or simply cannot cope with the INTP’s endless stream of ideas, it
is unlikely that the INTP will see them as close friends.
 Bearing this in mind, it is not surprising that INTPs are likely to have a very small
circle of good friends. Many personality types seek friends for chatting, emotional
support, social validation etc. INTPs tend to dismiss these things as trivial, and this
naturally restricts the pool of potential friends. People with the INTP personality type
are bound to gravitate toward other Analyst (NT) types who share their passion for
theoretical discussions and intellectual riddles. That being said, INTPs will value and
respect their friends greatly and will work hard to keep these relationships strong.
 INTPs friends are unlikely to be very warm or emotionally supportive. If you are
having some issues, the INTP will easily come up with several rational solutions, but
do not expect them to understand your feelings or know how to explain something
that is more emotional than logical. This does not mean that INTP friends have no
feelings and should be seen only as walking encyclopedias—quite the contrary.
INTP personalities may have very strong sentiments, but they are likely to be hidden
from plain sight. Still waters run deep.
 INTP friendships are likely to be unambiguous, strong, and straightforward, free
from power games and emotional baggage. INTPs reward their friends’ loyalty and
understanding with thought-stimulating ideas, sound advice, and reliability. It is not
easy to become an INTP’s friend, but if you are inclined to try, you will find that such
a relationship is worth the effort.
INTP CAREERS
The INTP personality type possesses a unique combination of traits, and typical INTP
career choices reflect this as well. We will now discuss the traits that make INTPs
successful in their chosen careers – please feel free to suggest any additions or simply
leave some feedback in the comment section below this article.

Let us begin with one of the most prominent personality traits shared by all INTPs—their
love for theoretical methods and ideas. The best INTP careers turn this unique trait into a
major strength as very few other personality types enjoy theories as much as INTPs do.
For this particular reason, INTPs are excellent career scientists (especially in highly
theoretical fields such as physics or chemistry), mathematicians, technical writers, or
system analysts.

Next, INTPs enjoy finding and analysing underlying principles and ideas. Many typical
career paths allow INTPs to utilise this trait, even though this often comes with practical
applications that do not really interest INTPs. For instance, INTPs can be great corporate
strategists, business analysts, video game designers, programmers, or engineers (this
career is particularly suitable for INTPs due to their love for theory).

INTPs tend to be very independent (even somewhat eccentric), hold themselves to very
high standards, and dislike managing other people or being managed, especially later in
their career. These traits are rarely seen as attractive in the modern corporate world, and
INTPs should avoid mentioning them in a job interview. However, if their manager proves
to be insightful and open-minded enough, the INTP will be a never-tiring generator of
brilliant and unique ideas. Some of the best INTP careers making good use of these traits
may focus on legal, freelance consulting or forensic or laboratory research routes.

Finally, INTPs are typical “lone wolves” and typical INTP careers revolve around this trait.
They live in their own minds, love solitude, and tend to despise small talk and other social
necessities. INTPs do not really understand or enjoy emotional exchanges and are
unlikely to spend a significant amount of time chitchatting with their colleagues or
customers. For these reasons, customer-facing careers are highly unsuitable for INTPs;
they would do much better in roles that focus on data and theories rather than people. For
instance, INTPs may be excellent lawyers, data analysts, or even journalists, as long as
they find the field interesting. These are some of the best career choices for people with
this personality type.

INTP COLLEAGUES

 Insightful and unbiased—INTPs stay out of gossip but are able to decipher the
underlying motives quite easily.
 Reluctant to mingle and chat but enjoy discussing new theoretical ideas with co-
workers they consider equal to themselves
 Cautious and suspicious of other people’s motives
 Prefer working alone and dislike sharing ideas with “untested” colleagues
  Very uncomfortable with expressing emotions or being around people who are
expressing them—INTPs do not really know what they are supposed to do in such
situations.
 Enjoy solving riddles and noticing patterns

INTP MANAGERS

 Have very high standards, especially for themselves

 Dislike explaining their ideas and expect subordinates to be as insightful as they are
 Very tolerant and flexible
 Open to suggestions, as long as they are logical
 Secretly dislike managing other people
 Easily notice discrepancies
 Loathe schmoozing and strongly resist all forms of emotional manipulation

INTP SUBORDINATES

 Very innovative, original, and resourceful, but demand a lot of freedom in return
 Do not care much about being liked and are less concerned about job security
compared with other personality types—these notions do not hold much value to
INTPs.
 Dislike routine work and implementation of ideas, would much rather focus their
energy on generating new ideas
 Need to be accompanied by an “implementer” [preferably someone with an
Observant (S) personality type] who could put their ideas into practice; this may take
time and clever management, however—such things cannot be forced on an INTP.
 Receptive to criticism, but will not understand emotional arguments
 Typical “lone wolves”—INTPs function best when they are left alone.

 Albert Einstein, scientist

 Charles Darwin, naturalist
 William James, psychologist and philosopher
 Dwight D. Eisenhower, U.S. President
 C. G. Jung, psychiatrist
 Socrates, philosopher
 Sir Isaac Newton, mathematician, physicist and astronomer
 J.K. Rowling, author
 Abraham Lincoln, U.S. President

Some famous fictional characters that exhibit INTP characteristics include:

 Sherlock Holmes
 Brian Griffin, Family Guy
 Data, Star Trek: The Next Generation
 Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter