11 INFJ Strengths and Weaknesses [W/ Personal Growth Tips]

As an INFJ, you’ve probably already noticed that while you’re great at understanding other people, understanding yourself can be quite a challenge.

One of the best ways to deeply understand your personality type is to learn about its strengths and weaknesses.

This way, you can learn to use your strengths and overcome your weaknesses to reach your full potential!

In this article, we will cover everything about the key INFJ strengths and weaknesses to help you better understand yourself and INFJs around you, including:

• 6 INFJ Strengths and Advantages
• 5 INFJ Weaknesses and Flaws
• 6 Personal Growth Tips to Thrive as an INFJ
• INFJ Strengths and Weaknesses FAQ

6 INFJ Strengths and Advantages

Without further ado, here are the 6 key INFJ strengths that make this personality type stand out from the rest:

#1. Creativity

As the rarest personality type, it’s no surprise that INFJs have a unique and creative mind. Most INFJs have at least one creative outlet that allows them to express their thoughts and emotions.

Although INFJs typically prefer to keep their creativity to themselves, some are more open and allow the world to take a glimpse at their inner world. A great example of this is Taylor Swift, who is well-known for writing breakup songs to cope with heartbreaks.

However, art isn’t the only field where INFJ creativity shines. One of the key INFJ strengths is finding creative solutions to problems, both personal and professional.

This creative problem-solving skill stems from INFJ cognitive functions. Although INFJ is a ‘feeling’ personality type, having introvert thinking (Ti) as a tertiary function helps INFJs to analyze problems from different perspectives. As such, INFJs often come up with out-of-the-box solutions to difficult situations.

#2. Strong Morals

Strong morals are among the key INFJ strengths and characteristics. It would be hard, if not impossible, to find another personality type that places so much emphasis on having strong morals.

INFJs are highly idealistic. They have a strong set of values, beliefs, and morals, and act accordingly. This makes them very reliable, as you can easily predict how an INFJ will behave based on their personal code of ethics.

#3. Altruism

One of the biggest INFJ strengths is altruism, which makes INFJs great friends, partners, colleagues, and parents.

INFJs care deeply about the people around them. Most also aspire to make the world a better place, which is why INFJs are quick to give without asking anything in return.

Even in the face of adversity, INFJs tend to place other people first. INFJs strongly believe that all people deserve to be treated with kindness and respect. For this reason, many prominent INFJs like Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi dedicated their lives to helping others.

#4. Strong Sense of Purpose

INFJs often feel like misfits, perhaps because their personality type is so rare. However, because they feel different from other people, INFJs typically develop a sense of purpose early in their lives, which is one of the biggest INFJ strengths.

INFJs have a natural interest in philosophy, which is why they often think about their purpose in life even at a very young age. They aren’t satisfied with mundane existence and believe that there’s more to life than just working a 9-5 job.

As such, INFJs seek meaning and purpose in everything they do, which helps them live meaningful lives.

#5. Empathy and Compassion

If you know anything about INFJ cognitive functions, you probably know that INFJs use extraverted feelings as their auxiliary function. Because of this, INFJs come across as warm, welcoming, and understanding individuals.

Generally speaking, INFJs are great listeners. They are genuinely interested in other people, no matter how close they are. As such, it’s not uncommon for INFJs to have heartfelt conversations even with strangers.

Despite being introverts, INFJs gain a lot of energy from interacting with other people and helping them. For this reason, counseling, psychotherapy, and psychology are among the most popular career paths for INFJs.

#6. Ability to Inspire

Perhaps one of the most unique INFJ strengths is the ability to inspire other people.

INFJs are very passionate individuals that love sharing their ideas. Since they have a strong sense of purpose, strong morals, and an altruistic nature, INFJs often become activists for human rights, animal rights, and other social causes.

Even though INFJs are introverted, their passion and dedication can inspire masses of people. It is exactly for this reason that many famous INFJs include spiritual, religious, and political leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela.

5 INFJ Weaknesses and Flaws

Although INFJs have many strengths, no personality type is flawless.

So, here are 5 INFJ weaknesses you should know about:

#1. Highly Sensitive Nature

INFJs are perhaps the most sensitive personality type, which is one of the biggest INFJ weaknesses.

INFJs tend to easily get upset and offended, especially when being criticized. Instead of using criticism to improve themselves, INFJs are prone to blaming themselves for their mistakes.

On top of that, INFJs are very sensitive to other people, which can lead them to sacrifice their own needs and wishes. Ultimately, this can cause INFJs to build one-sided relationships, which leads to disappointment.

It’s important to mention that INFJs aren’t just emotionally sensitive. They also tend to have a very sensitive nervous system. For this reason, INFJs are prone to sensory overload and can feel uncomfortable in a chaotic environment.

#2. Perfectionism

Perfectionism is by far one of the biggest INFJ weaknesses that can prevent INFJs from reaching their full potential.

Many INFJs are afraid of failure. Because of this, they might stop themselves from achieving their goals if they aren’t confident they will succeed and live up to their own expectations.

For example, if an INFJ wants to write a book, they may hinder their writing process by editing the first chapters of the book over and over again to make sure they convey the message exactly as they intended. Such perfectionism can lead the INFJ to lose motivation for writing before they finish the book.

Alternatively, an INFJ may decide not to publish the book purely because they’re afraid it will get negative reviews, that no one will buy it, and so on.

#3. Fear of Conflict

INFJs are very compassionate, diplomatic, and peaceful individuals. That said, they are often afraid of conflict, which is another one of the biggest INFJ weaknesses.

As mentioned above, INFJs are highly sensitive people. They dislike conflict and do whatever it takes to avoid it.

Sometimes, however, INFJs avoid conflict at their own expense. For example, they may avoid speaking out about something that bothers them just to avoid confrontation.

#4. Tendency to Self-Isolate

INFJs are introverted and private people. As such, one of the main INFJ weaknesses is their tendency to self-isolate.

Despite being introverts, INFJs still need to interact with other people. However, when INFJs face problems, they rarely reach out to others. Instead, they choose to spend time alone. This can lead to overthinking, which might worsen the situation.

#5. Difficulty Compromising

Although INFJs are generally good at making agreements, they might have trouble compromising when the situation concerns their values, morals, and beliefs.

To many INFJs, compromising means sacrifice. That’s because INFJs equate changing their beliefs, values, and opinions to losing a core part of themselves.

However, having this firm grip on their beliefs and values can hinder their self-development, as change is a necessity for personal growth.

6 Personal Growth Tips to Thrive as an INFJ

If you’re an INFJ, it’s very likely that you’re already thinking of ways how to improve yourself after learning about the key INFJ strengths and weaknesses. After all, you’re a perfectionist!

So, here are some useful personal growth tips that will help you overcome the above-mentioned weaknesses and improve yourself:

1. Learn to handle criticism. Criticism isn’t bad in and of itself. Constructive criticism can help you become a better person/ partner/employee. As such, you might find it useful to learn to accept criticism instead of regarding it as a personal attack.
2. Create a comfortable living environment. To avoid stress and burnout, make sure you live and work in a comfortable environment. Consider taking it a step further than just keeping your room tidy. For example, you might want to change your living room wallpaper if its colors are too intense.
3. Remember your goals. If you struggle with perfectionism, make it a point to regularly remind yourself of your goals. This way, you will turn the focus from the details to the big picture, which can help you make progress.
4. Embrace conflict. Conflicts are a natural part of any relationship. Without them, you might be unable to solve problems and build stronger bonds with people. As such, instead of being afraid of conflict, learn to embrace it.
5. Create a support network. You might be used to listening to other people, but it’s important that you have someone to confide in, too. As such, don’t hesitate to reach out to your closest friends and family members when you need support.
6. Learn to let go. Although it can be hard, allow yourself to let go of any beliefs, values, and opinions that no longer resonate with you. It doesn’t make you a hypocrite - on the contrary, it shows you’ve learned how to grow.

INFJ Strengths and Weaknesses FAQ

Key Takeaways

And that’s a wrap!

By now, you should have a deep understanding of the key INFJ strengths and weaknesses. And more importantly, now you know exactly how to outgrow your weaknesses!

Before you go, let’s quickly go over the key points of this article:

• The key INFJ strengths include the ability to influence other people, creativity, altruism, empathy, as well as having strong moral principles and a sense of purpose
• INFJs can be hypersensitive, perfectionistic, conflict-averse, inflexible, and unable to ask for help, all of which are the main INFJ weaknesses.
• Learning to be more flexible in your beliefs, accepting criticism, and facing conflict are some of the most effective ways to overcome your weaknesses and thrive as an INFJ.

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