It’s hard to lie to someone who has strong intuition. More so if they’re an INFJ who already predicted what’s on your mind even before you say it!
Psychics, mind readers, and detectives— these are the common descriptions people say about INFJs.
Now, this so-called ‘mind-reading’ is an interesting skill for INFJs, that’s for sure. But unfortunately, it’s probably a curse, too.
See, this ‘mind-reading’ has no on-and-off switch. And they can’t simply turn off being a highly sensitive empath.
Just imagine how anxiety-inducing it is for INFJs to see people around them lie or try to manipulate them. Picture how difficult it could be to know things they can’t explain, leading others to misunderstand them overall.
Yep, INFJ just know things that other personalities will never understand, but hopefully, through this post, you’ll grasp how they ‘read minds’ so well.
How Intuitive Are INFJs?
If we were to scale an INFJ’s intuitive prowess, with one being the weakest and five being the strongest, they easily fall under a five.
Their perception is based on intuition, but emotions guide their decision-making process.
They feel it when something is ‘off’ with a person.
Say, whenever they get a gut feeling that you go through a difficult time, they feel it. But hey, that’s the extent of their Feeling function. To feel.
But to give specific advice, INFJs run their intuition honed with depth and profound analysis of the situation.
See, INFJs are not as goofy as you think. These Advocates have strong convictions because of their perceptions, and if you ask them for advice, they can give you logical explanations you never knew you needed.
Also, INFJs are deeply empathetic and feel someone’s emotions like it is their own. Such INFJ traits allow them to connect with someone, even those they just met, beyond the surface level.
Intuition and a strong drive for empathy?
No wonder INFJs always check on close friends they felt offended or hurt. I must say they have this self-imposed responsibility to make people feel better.
But if there’s a downside to being highly intuitive, it’s that they can’t shut it off even when they want to at certain times, leading to oversensitivity.
Can INFJs See The Future?
The most common question that other personalities ask about these idealists is, ‘Can INFJ see the future?’
The simple answer is no, INFJs cannot exactly tell what the future holds for someone, but they can predict how someone will most likely act based on emotional and behavioral patterns and responses.
They easily notice slight changes in a person’s behavior and conclude that there’s something wrong.
And through their pattern spotting, they predict how a person behaves next—thus, seeming to read minds.
INFJs are not psychics, as they are more like laidback detectives. Like investigators, INFJs keep mental tabs on relevant statements, tones, and facial movements that a person unconsciously does, which they use to foresee what they will do next.
More than a psychical ability, their skill to predict is more empirical as it also takes a lot of logical perception.
INFJs as mind readers are a common myth that INFJs themselves often debunk. Although, I think we should give credit to their effective judgment skills.
Is INFJ Intuition Always Right?
The better an INFJ knows a person, the better they can predict that person’s behavior. However, even the most observant INFJ cannot predict with 100% accuracy all the time.
Knowing that they are more skilled observers than lucky psychics, people still ask, ‘Is INFJ intuition always right?’.
To put it simply, INFJs cannot always be right, but they can predict your actions more accurately after frequent interaction and mapping out your patterns.
Prediction or Self-fulfilling Prophecy?
Talking about accuracy, here’s another thing I noticed as someone with several INFJ friends.
From experience, I don’t know why but often, their words really do materialize. However, I’m quite a skeptic.
Did they say their insights because they knew it’d happen, or did things happen because they said it, then worked on it?
Do they really predict events, or is it more of a self-fulfilling prophecy?
Honestly, I sometimes think it’s the latter. Their intuition instigates fiery determination in INFJs. As we know, introverted intuition (Ni) allows them to come up with logical, unbreakable conclusions.
High Ni-users like INFJs, INTJs, ENFJs, and ENTJs stick with what they believe in their minds.
So at some point, Ni-users like INFJs are drawn to follow through with their strong beliefs and fulfill their own ‘predictions’.
INFJs Use Deductive Reasoning
INFJs use deduction, or the use of evidence to connect different clues to give a well-thought answer, to formulate predictions.
What’s more, introverted intuition (Ni) is INFJ’s default way of thinking.
That means, unconsciously, INFJs perceive and always narrow down information into profound conclusions by default. If not, it will surely give them a headache.
Remember when INFJs never seem to move on? Yup, they don’t move on when they find no conclusion.
People, they need closures that make sense!
Going back to deductive reasoning…
Through deduction, an INFJ may perceive your unusually low-pitched and shy voice, your reluctance to join a party, and the shallow excuses you use as related to your financial situation.
“Why does she reject invitations when she enjoys parties very much?”
“Why did she get quiet whenever we talked about expenses?”
“I don’t hear her suggesting. That’s odd.”
As intuitive people, they deduce from what they can and can’t see. Connect the dots and bam. That, my friend, is how INFJs make predictions.
However, although INFJs may easily assess friends and family, they cannot easily predict foreign reactions from people they have not interacted with.
Overall, an INFJ’s mind-reading capabilities are often limited to the behavioral patterns they have accumulated over time.
INFJs are not mind readers. But dang, they are well-skilled empaths and low-key observers who make spot-on conclusions, and that’s scarier than your average psychic.
Conclusion
Aside from being excellent observers, INFJs are ideal friends we can rely on if we need someone to connect with on a deep emotional level.
We can rely on INFJs to notice if we are distraught, in love, or in pain.
But we shouldn’t take advantage of how empathetic INFJs are, as they also deserve to be treated with the same attention and care they give to people.
You may also like:
- How Do INFJs Feel In This World?
- How To Spot an INFJ: 8 Tell-tale Signs You’re Talking With One
- INFJ VS. INFP Differences: Which One Are You?
