You
probably want to know who I am, and what qualifies me to author this
site. (If you don't care, you should care, because there are a lot of people on the internet who are highly opinionated about type and don't have the slightest qualifications or professional experience to back up their opinions.)
Hi! My name's Vicky
Jo, and I have preferences for INFJ! (In unison now -- "Hi, Vicky
Jo!") I have a PhD in Depth Psychology (with an emphasis in Jungian and Archetypal Studies), and I'm trained in the Interstrength
MethodTM,
which includes MBTI�
certification as a Master Practitioner (the highest level). I have hands-on experience with all
five of the models I will be referencing -- MBTI Dichotomies, Temperament, Interaction
Styles, Cognitive Processes, and Beebe Archetypes. I've read extensively on these topics
for several years, not to mention attending meetings, conferences, and
workshops (and presenting them!). I've completed my PhD program in Jungian and Depth Psychology, so I have a distinctly
Jungian slant to type.
The navigation here is a hoot. You'll get started by clicking the floating dolphin at the
right. There are menus and submenus, so it's a bit labyrinthine. The bouncing dolphin on the right will convey you through the site, escorting you to the main menu topics, or to the submenu topics. Watch the labels. You must catch on if you don't want to get lost.
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It's worth
noting that I don't include much "ISs do this" and "TJs do that" on this site. This is the wrong site if
that's what you're
looking for. I work with type as a depth psychology rather than as a descriptive psychology the way most people use it. I
feel type is systemic and wholistic, and too much letter talk ends up being
restrictive rather than empowering. That especially goes for that last letter -- J/P -- which
has all manner of inaccurate stereotypes associated with it.
I utilize a
slightly different approach to type than most type users. I don't box people in
using four dichotomies the way the MBTI is designed to do. I'm trying to
get people out of boxes they may be in without realizing it! I strive to
treat the functions as verbs, and believe we all have the
potential to develop those verbs. (I dislike restricting anyone's
potential!) At the same time, I believe we're born a certain type, and we
flower into that type through the course of our lives and through its many
seasons. (Perhaps this seems
like a paradox, but isn't that the nature of being human?)
Type is an
organized model of consciousness, so I look to it as a model of
development. It also describes our limitations, so you won't find much "alphabet soup" here, and I treat the code as
a starting point rather than an end-point. I also don't wax lyrical about "the test," because it's highly fallible (especially those
online freebies that misrepresent type).
What
possessed me to tackle this
web project? Okay, twist my arm and I'll tell
you. #1 Because I got tired of people
misunderstanding what the INFJ pattern looks like or how it manifests.
#2 It seems that people are hungry to learn more about type, but they
don't know how to access or utilize this knowledge on a day-to-day
basis. #3 Because I got tired of type being treated like "trait"
theory, and wanted to fight back against broad, sweeping (need I say
inappropriate?) generalizations based on limited understandings of type. As you will soon discover, I have some passion around
applying type, especially
when it comes to exploring my own particular type code, and this website seems like
the best outlet for expressing myself. So I'm
really creating this site for myself as much as
anything. I'll be quoting and citing a variety of sources, so it's not just my
voice you'll hear! (I confess I also sneak a little bit of life
coaching in along the way.)
I add
additional data whenever the spirit moves me -- I have little collections, computer
documents, varied scraps of paper, and xeroxes piled around that someday may coalesce into a
new page, a new paragraph, a new phrase. I started this site in 2001, and probably have some of the most sophisticated type information available (I get plagiarized a lot!). But there's no grand strategy -- the
100+ pages on this site somehow mushroomed into what you see now.
Yep, I used Comic Sans (horrors!), and dolphins are everywhere. Eventually
I'll give it all a facelift. If you'd like to make a small donation to help
defray the costs to do it (I pay for everything out of my own pocket), you are welcome to help:
Click here to donate.
For
those who want to be on the "cutting edge" of Type theory, let me recommend
my Virtual Type Workshop. I'm one of the first individuals to promote the eight-function model of type, and I created a program drawing on expert knowledge that teaches the eight functions of psychological types. (This is superior to speculation about the functions that I've encountered all over the internet -- for the price of one typical visit to Target you can learn from real experts, and not the fake ones!) It's available here:
Can You Spot It?
Recognizing the 8 Cognitive Processes
I
link to a feedback form at the bottom
of most pages, if you'd
be kind enough to give me some. I also provide a recommended
reading list. I added a blog so I can post
items without re-designing the entire website. You can also subscribe if you wish to receive occasional messages from me, such
as to notify you when I add significantly to
the site (of course I will not abuse your email
address).
If
you're interested in having a professional facilitation to have confidence
regarding your
best-fit pattern so you can really own and apply it,
visit my website Type
Insights.com to learn about my structured type discovery process
that teaches and explores 21 dimensions of type. I also offer coaching services, career assessments, a
SHIFT-IT graphic coaching process, and even a technique perfect for INFJs
that I call CoActive
Imagination. If you don't know what
life coaching is, here's a
link to a college paper that one of my Catalyst clients wrote to give some sense of the
process.
Thanks
for visitin
g!
I hope you get something worthwhile from the time you spend here. Feel free to
let
me know your thoughts!
-Vicky Jo Varner, PhD (Psych.)
Type Discovery Artist
MBTI Master Practitioner/Professional Coach
CPCC, PCC, IGIP, JCDC, ORSCer!
sometimes known as "The Type Fairy"
P.S. I get
lots of encouragement about finishing this site. Ha! I'll be honest: I doubt it will ever be "finished." If there's a particular
conversation you're hungry to have, drop me a line and consider
co-active coaching with me. If you haven't experienced life
coaching before, you will be amazed.