Myers Briggs Type Indexes (MBTI)

[MixolydianPony]

I'm curious as to the Meyers Briggs personality types of the various members of this forum. If you know yours please post it below. If you don't have a clue what this is, here's information:

What it is:

Basically, a personality type index indicating how one perceives the world and makes decisions, etc. It consists of 4 letters, and each letter indicates an orientation of some sort.

I/E Introverted or Extraverted
S/N Sensing or iNtuitive
T/F Thinking or Feeling
J/P Judging or Perceiving

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myers-Briggs_Type_Indicator

A fairly accurate quiz for it:

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp

Bear in mind that your type index can change, it's not set in stone, especially if you only have slight tendencies one way or the other. It's far too easy to get caught up in this thing and let it dominate the way you interact with people. (Not that I'm speaking from experience, or anything...)

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I was thinking today about how different personality types approach music, and what better way to find out than to ask you?

So, included with your type index, it would be cool if you could answer the following questions as well:

1) Are you heavily into music theory, or does it just get in your way?
2) Do you write music because you like the way it sounds, or because it expresses something?
3) Are you a fan of labeling genres, or is everything just "music" to you?
4) Does your workflow consist of working on one song at a time until it's finished, or do you have a bunch of WIP files floating around?
5) Do you have an intense drive to be good at music, or do you just do it for fun?
6) If you play an instrument, are you meticulous about perfecting your technique, or are you more concerned with what you play, rather than how?
7) How critical are you of your own work? Do you tear your own compositions to pieces with self criticism, or do you tend to feel good about getting something done, even if it's not the best?

This is all fascinating to me, so I would very much appreciate you taking your time to respond to this.

tl;dr: Get back up there and read, you lazy m*****f***er.

[Symphon]

I'm ENFJ although the J (Judging) is only off by one percent of the Perceiving score.

I'm moderately involved in music theory. I know it and learn it, but I tend to stray away from it just enough to be free from it for the most part.

I tend to write music because it expresses an ideal or situation.

I like to label genres because it makes for easier conversation about it for the most part.

I have a lot of WiPs but I tend to never be on more than one of them at any given time.

I do want to get really good, but I'm more focused on it being fun.

More concerned with what I play, personally.

[ghelded_kultz]

I switch between INTJ and INTP depending on the day I take the test. When I first took it I was INTP than I did it for the Brony Survey and it was INTJ and retaking it now it was INTP the JP are close together.

1) Both actually, but more leaning to the second.
2) Both but leaning to the first.
3) I always use genres, find them wonderful and hate the rejection of genres with a passion.
4) WIP, WIP, WIP, WIP
5) Fun, fun fun and to piss people off (which is fun)
6) I play french horn and don't care at all about technique. That's because I am lazy though. In general I dislike virtuosity and the assumption that complex/good playing= better (never get me started on anything with the words classical (except neo-classical darkwave) or progressive). So I guess I am more for what I am playing.

EDIT: 7) I am sometimes critical of my songs but the only song where I've been really critical was my last one, and that's because we screwed up the vocals and didn't have time to fix them.

[itroitnyah]

I'm INTP. Sounds about right.

1) I love music theory. I can use it as a building block for my songs
2) I guess I like to write music because of the way it sounds. I really like to make something that sounds very well and great.
3) I like labeling genres so that we can find out favorite types of music but I'm not a huge fan of all the subsubgenres like "Lumpstep" "drugstep" or whatever.
4) I generally have 1 WIP file that I work on, but in this case I have 2 WIPs
5) I want to be good at music because answer #2.
6) I'm more concerned about what I play. But having a good technique to play is close behind it.

[LoreRD]

Can't open the link for some reason, but I think I'm INTJ

1) As a pianist, I think about a lot of theory while playing and composing. It's definitely not something that gets in the way.
2) A little bit of both here. I want to tell a story/paint a picture through the structure (express something), but make it interesting via sound design (how it sounds)
3) I try to emulate certain genres or artists sometimes, but in the end, composing in the correct genre isn't all that important to me (labelling music in genres is fun, though)
4) I have a lot of WIPs. A lot of them.
5) I don't plan on making music professionally, but I do have an intense drive to improve everything I do.
6) This one's easy. Technique is what's most important for me, and I focus a lot on trying to improve it.

[Nine Volt]

I got INTJ, but the J was only 1% off.

1) Are you heavily into music theory, or does it just get in your way?
Neither, really. I use theory sometimes, but other times I just do what sounds good.

2) Do you write music because you like the way it sounds, or because it expresses something?
I like the way it sounds.

3) Are you a fan of labeling genres, or is everything just "music" to you?
I like labeling genres but I despise extremely specific subgenres. Of course, I can never think of how to label my own music, so there's that.

4) Does your workflow consist of working on one song at a time until it's finished, or do you have a bunch of WIP files floating around?
The number of WIPs I have currently numbers in the triple digits. I wish I was kidding.

5) Do you have an intense drive to be good at music, or do you just do it for fun?
More so the former than the latter, but I also enjoy it when striving to get better. This ends up meaning I have a finished song sitting in my projects for a week or so, trying to make it even better.

6) If you play an instrument, are you meticulous about perfecting your technique, or are you more concerned with what you play, rather than how?
I play guitar, and I'm most concerned with actually playing the song correctly rather than how I do it. I couldn't care less about technique TBH.

7) How critical are you of your own work? Do you tear your own compositions to pieces with self criticism, or do you tend to feel good about getting something done, even if it's not the best?
I like what I make and I tend to feel good about it even if it's not the best. I certainly don't tear it apart unless it genuinely sucks.

[CommandSpry]

I'm ISFP, I and P were 2% off.

1) Music Theory is something I'd like to learn, although it's not something I've considered for the time being; however I've been learning much about engineering, mixing, mastering, recording, stuff like that.
2) I think everyone will say both to this, since what expresses something you have an interest in will sound very nice to you.
3) Genres are very useful to exist, although I don't find one better than another in most cases. I listen to a really wide variety of them, both Non-EDM and EDM.
4) I have lots of WIPs, but there is only one that I will continue working on after I start it off with just a little melody before I head off to seriously work on another song.
5) I used to really try to become very good, but I've discovered I have no real talent for music, so I play around.
6) I don't play an instrument because I'm an idiot, I've failed to learn to play any instrument I've tried playing.

If we were to give 1/2 answers, it would be like

1
2
1
1
2
2

[Stu Beef]

oo, data and personal opinion!

I got E(11%) N(11%) F(64%) J(1%)


and I believe

1) I say this a lot: theory describes a certain historical context. Being aware of it helps me express within that context. Seeing as how everything that is now is a result of something that was before, being aware of that context also helps me be aware of what is happening right now.
Do I think expressly in technical terms? Hell no; pretty much everything I do is by ear. Although, I do like to see if I can verbally illustrate things in these technical terms from time to time. It's kind of fun.

2) I very much believe that sound and expression go hand in hand. That wasn't and isn't always true for all types of music, but, as a songwriter in the 21st century, it's hard to get away from. I'm more about challenging things though, so I guess my preference is expression (if you count musical middle fingers).

3) I'm a fan of appreciating things within their context. A singular genre to me embodies an entire timeline of stuff that preceded it. I try to give credit for where styles came from; both musically and culturally.

4) I dunno, I'm incredibly inconsistent. I generally try to put most of my effort into a single thing (so that I can actually finish something), but I have albums worth of material in stages from conceptualization to fully written (and maybe partially recorded).

5) Fun is an afterthought for me; I want to be a professional. Not to say that I sit at the computer stone-faced tapping notes into guitar pro (tbh I fuck around alot), I just can't afford to put too much personal feeling into the matter. Whether I want to or not, I have to improve and create. I can't really say I ever DON'T want to, but it's just a matter of priorities.

6) I play several instruments, and it depends on the instrument. I'd say trumpet is the only instrument where I am concerned with good technique 100% of the time (mostly cause it's balls hard to play). Not to say that when I pick up a guitar I play like ass. I just use instruments like that for personal stuff, and am not too concerned with being at a level where I can play anything that anyone asks me to.



EDIT FOR NEW QUESTION

7) I hate everything I've done to some degree, but I'm proud of what I've been able to accomplish. I'm still in the process of improving my craft so that I can reach the level that I want to be at in terms of EVERYTHING that would possibly involve me and music. I think I'll need a few years space to truly decide whether or not I can enjoy my current output.

[Mr. Bigglesworth]

INTJ
Introvert(78%) iNtuitive(12%) iNtuitive Thinking(1%) Judging(44%)

Makes sense to me. I'm probably the most withdrawn person I know. And yet I make loud, obnoxious genres. Go figure.

1) I try to follow music theory to the best of my ability, and I'm trying to learn more about it.

2) Both. Because fuck.

3) I label genres. Mostly because calling a piece of music "errrTHAT THING" bothers me.

4) I used to have 1 bazillion WIP files at any given time, now I usually have 1 project I focus a lot on and a couple WIP's I start while I'm at it. Those usually become my focus after the main project is done.

5) For the sake of creating something I have a passion for. Whether it's good or bad, I'm still creating

6) The first time I strummed a guitar I broke all the strings ._. also I literally can't play instruments because I was born with motor skill issues that make it insanely difficult to do. As for technique in general? Depends on my mood. Sometimes I'll spend a good few hours on one little section of a song, sometimes I'll just want to get something down.

[Quix]

Just like most other times I've taken this test, I got INTJ.

1. I like music theory, but I don't know much about it besides the basics that I've learned in school (scales, keys, etc.), so I need to read more about it.

2. I've never really expressed myself through my music, but I guess that could be related to how I feel held back by my current production skills. Right now, I would say that I make it more because I like the way it sounds than as a means of expression.

3. Genres are nice, but I'm not one for obscure labeling. In my music library, I tag the genre tag on my files very generally (rock, electronic, folk, jazz, etc.)

4. Right now I've got a lot of shitty WIPs that I'll probably never work on again, but at the times when I'm actually making decent music, I tend to stick to one project at a time.

5. Absolutely the first option. The main (and sometimes only) reason that I drive myself to do something production-related every day is because I want to get better. I want to make GREAT music more than anything else.

6. When playing trumpet, I tend to worry more about my technique more than the pieces themselves, but maybe that's because most of the songs we play aren't very interesting. When singing choral songs, I tend to care more about the piece, but I do worry about my technique a lot.

[MixolydianPony]

Thanks for the responses so far, this is quite interesting. I surprising number of INTJs, considering they only constitute less than 3% of the general population. Apparently, we congregate around ponies, internet, and music. xP

My own answers to the questions:

I'm quite thoroughly an INTJ...

1) Most music theory is second nature to me, I don't even pause to think about modes and keys. I do some things by ear, but I always start with the key. Never ever do chord progressions by ear.
2) I write things that I like the sound of. My preference for T over F minimizes my need to express emotions.
3) I use genres, more as tags than categories. I like things that are cross-genre, so pegging them into categories is worthless to me.
4) I haven't finished a song in months. WIPs, oh god, so many WIPs.
5) Depends on my mood.
6) Depends on my mood. I'd like to say that both are equal, but I think I value technique a bit higher than expression.

NEW QUESTION: 7) How critical are you of your own work? Do you tear your own compositions to pieces with self criticism, or do you tend to feel good about getting something done, even if it's not the best? (If you've already posted, I would encourage you to edit your original post.)

My answer to 7) Excessive self-criticism. Dear Celestia, I hate every note that I play. Nothing meets internal expectations.

[cyrricky]

ESTP

1) Yes. I think music without theory is absolute garbage.
2) Both.
3) I'm a fan if it's House subgenres.
4) I work on about two songs at once until they're both done, then move on to another two.
5) I do it primarily for fun.
6) Much more concerned about what I play rather than how.
7) I tear my pieces apart to try to make them the best they can be. I don't tolerate sup-par work, especially from myself.

[itroitnyah]

Oooh, a #7 as well?

I'm pretty critical of my own work, I think. I mean, I mix my work as I go, and I don't just set parts down to work on them later on in the song, so I don't end up with parts that dissatisfy me very often. However, when I send it to my friends, they tear it apart and I do my best to fix and correct. Which my biggest problems are mostly sound design and structuring, especially for some parts of songs, my structuring is only subpar.

[colortwelve]

So, included with your type index, it would be cool if you could answer the following questions as well:

1) Are you heavily into music theory, or does it just get in your way?
2) Do you write music because you like the way it sounds, or because it expresses something?
3) Are you a fan of labeling genres, or is everything just "music" to you?
4) Does your workflow consist of working on one song at a time until it's finished, or do you have a bunch of WIP files floating around?
5) Do you have an intense drive to be good at music, or do you just do it for fun?
6) If you play an instrument, are you meticulous about perfecting your technique, or are you more concerned with what you play, rather than how?
7) How critical are you of your own work? Do you tear your own compositions to pieces with self criticism, or do you tend to feel good about getting something done, even if it's not the best?

You've caught me at a good (read: bored) time, so why the hell not ^_^

I tend to get a different profile every time I take this damn test, but this time I got INTJ.

1. I wasn't into theory at first, but I've since realized its importance so fully that I plan to major in music theory and composition in college. It's better to me to know what boundaries I'm working within as opposed to throwing noise to the wall to see what sticks.
2. The two tend to go together for me. Since I usually go for a more atmospheric sound, I spend a lot of time making sure that the atmosphere of any given fragment of a track is coherent, and the product of this tends to be an atmosphere that pretty faithfully expresses me as a person, to whatever extent I understand that concept.
3. Music is music, but for the purposes of keeping my iTunes library full of only the best of as many genres as possible, I label music with fairly vague genre designations; for example, I have no dubstep, drum and bass, or electro house, only bass music.
4. I have a ton of WIPs floating around in my project folder at any given time, but I tend to get the bulk of the work for a track done close together without leaving space open to work on anything else. But in terms of ideas, I'm all over the place.
5. I started music because I thought it would be fun - and it still is - but what drives me these days is to understand how to make better songs and to actively apply this knowledge at my earliest opportunity. Besides, it gets boring doing the same thing over and over, so if I weren't always trying to improve, I'd have quit long ago.
6. Since I'm only at the earliest stages of learning an instrument, my concern is really about what I can play.
7. It always feels good to finish something, and that high tends to carry me nicely up to the point where I can get criticism from others - at this point, I fall back to earth and tear my work to shreds. I firmly believe that my music is horrible, but it's hard to keep that in mind when the ideas are flowing.

[Mondogreen]

ISFP
1. Theory's good to know
2. Art is expression
3. People love labels
4. I only work hard on one track at a time
5. The better I am, the more fun it becomes
6. Like I said, theory's good to know
7. Every track I've made has been more enjoyable to me than my last. Sounds like progress to me!

[Mr. Bigglesworth]

ok,

7) Sometimes not enough, so I'll need people to point shit out to me sometimes. Other times, extremely so. I'm probably going to be hyper-prefectionist for my entry into Rainbow And Rooted. Because I'd be even more likely to get rejected from that if I didn't XD

But I'm not blind to my own improvement, I've noticed that I'm getting better at a decent rate.

[Gray Ham]

INTP

1) I don't let it get in my way, but I tend to stick to it.
2) Dunno, it's just something I do to fill in time.
3) I'm very broad categorizing things in iTunes, purely because then I have a million genres with only one song in each category. (i.e. dubstep and house go under electronic and metal goes under rock)
4) I tend to make a start, and if I lose inspiration I either start something new or work on a WIP. When I run out of things for that I switch to something else, etc. etc.
5) I produce for the fun. Playing trumpet is a seperate story altogether.
6) I do my absolute best to improve my technique on trumpet.
7) I don't tear it to pieces, but I'm never satisfied.

[Makkon]

I took the quiz:

Extravert(11%) iNtuitive(38%) iNtuitive Feeling(25%) Judging(56%)
You have slight preference of Extraversion over Introversion (11%)
You have moderate preference of Intuition over Sensing (38%)
You have moderate preference of Feeling over Thinking (25%)
You have moderate preference of Judging over Perceiving (56%)

I'll come back and answer your questions later. It's late.

[Twy]

I really like this thread. Thanks for bringing up that personality test and giving us a place to discuss it!

Introvert(72%)
Sensing(38%)
Thinking(12%)
Perceiving(78)%

1) Are you heavily into music theory, or does it just get in your way?

I've never felt it's been in the way, but I don't have a particular interest in music theory nor do I feel the need to study it. In some ways I like not knowing much music theory... it's nice to not be able to know how formulaic you really are. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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2) Do you write music because you like the way it sounds, or because it expresses something?

I write music because I love listening to music. I'm essentially trying to replicate the enjoyment I've received from my favorite artists and tunes. I don't enjoy the actual process of making music as much as some, but there's a sense of pride and accomplishment I get upon kicking back and listening to something I have created and brought into the world. That's the feeling I make music for.
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3) Are you a fan of labeling genres, or is everything just "music" to you?

Bit of both, or neither. I understand why labels are used, but I only like them at a very basic level. When sub genres are discussed, I find nobody can seem to agree on what anything actually is anyway, so the point is kind of lost I think.
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4) Does your workflow consist of working on one song at a time until it's finished, or do you have a bunch of WIP files floating around?

I'm definitely a 'one thing at a time' kind of guy. I can leave basic chord progressions or melody ideas around on the back burner, but if I have a track half finished, I can't bring myself to work on anything else seriously until the song is done and off my mind.
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5) Do you have an intense drive to be good at music, or do you just do it for fun?

Both, with slight preference to learning to be good. For me, being "good" at music is fun. I'll always appreciate my good music more than my bad music of course, so being that I live for the end result and not necessarily the journey to it does give me a desire to try and improve. I'll always wish my music could sound better. I'll always want to impress myself and reach higher, closer to the artists that I admire so much. The better I can make my music sound, the happier I am naturally.

That said, it's very easy to be bogged down and slowed to a halt in music with thoughts of "not good enough, gotta figure out how to make it perfect", which can lead to a ton of frustration and result in me giving up for a while. Sometimes you've just got to appreciate a track or musical idea for what it is, and not what you wish it was.
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6) If you play an instrument, are you meticulous about perfecting your technique, or are you more concerned with what you play, rather than how?

I guess I play music as an extension of listening to music more than anything else. I like being able to connect with the music in a bit more of an intimate way sometimes, so I play along or construct songs with an instrument. I only ever feel a need to improve when I want to play something that I can't. Once I'm satisfied with my ability to play something almost perfectly, I feel no drive to improve.
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7) How critical are you of your own work? Do you tear your own compositions to pieces with self criticism, or do you tend to feel good about getting something done, even if it's not the best?

Absolutely both. I'm pretty damn bipolar about my own work. More often than not, I'm listening to my tracks thinking "that sounds horrible. I should have done something different there. Wow the mixing there is atrocious. I don't even know what I was thinking with that part. Still not as good as <X artist>." But I do occasionally just accept my music for what it is, the abundant flaws and all, and feel proud of what I do.

[CommandSpry]

I take great pride as being the only person here whose portrait is called "The Artist" xD

[XXDarkShadow79XX]

ENTJ
Extravert(78%) iNtuitive(38%) iNtuitive Thinking(38%) Judging(22%)
You have strong preference of Extraversion over Introversion (78%)
You have moderate preference of Intuition over Sensing (38%)
You have moderate preference of Thinking over Feeling (38%)
You have slight preference of Judging over Perceiving (22%)

I rushed through the quiz and barely paid attention to some questions, but this actually seems about right.

As for those other questions,

1. I'm pretty darn obsessed with learning it, but I still suck at it.
2. I like the way it sounds. Shallow, I know, but my music doesn't really express anything.
3. GENRES.
4. I have an unholy amount of wips and just projects of me screwing around.
5. This is what I want to do with my life, but I'm not sure if I can, considering how lazy I am with it.
6. asdf
7. My own work is the absolute epitome of terrible to me. I love getting things done, but only because I'm sick of hearing them. Okay, maybe I enjoy my own tracks every once and a while. :)

[Symphon]

Oh, new question!

Personally, I have a process: When making the track, this is the best track I've ever created. When reviewing before export, this is the worst thing known to mankind. When exporting and uploading to show to others, this is my pride and joy. When accepting criticism, this is an abomination to music.

Those a bit of exaggerations to my thinking process but about what I go through, and for a reason. When I make the track, I don't want to lose motivation so I put myself in that mindset. When reviewing, I don't want it to be underwhelming, so I rip it apart myself. When showing it to others, I don't want to downplay myself so it seems like I'm fishing for compliments. When accepting criticism, it's seen as not that great so I can easily absorb the criticism given. It really helps the creative process.