Portrait of the Healer Idealist (INFP)
Healers present a calm and serene face to the
world, and can seem shy, even distant around others. But inside they're anything
but serene, having a capacity for personal caring rarely found in the other
types. Healers care deeply about the inner life of a few special persons, or
about a favorite cause in the world at large. And their great passion is to heal
the conflicts that trouble individuals, or that divide groups, and thus to bring
wholeness, or health, to themselves, their loved ones, and their community.
Healers have a profound sense of idealism that
comes from a strong personal sense of right and wrong. They conceive of the
world as an ethical, honorable place, full of wondrous possibilities and
potential goods. In fact, to understand Healers, we must understand that their
deep commitment to the positive and the good is almost boundless and selfless,
inspiring them to make extraordinary sacrifices for someone or something they
believe in. Set off from the rest of humanity by their privacy and scarcity
(around one percent of the population), Healers can feel even more isolated in
the purity of their idealism.
Also, Healers might well feel a sense of
separation because of their often misunderstood childhood. Healers live a
fantasy-filled childhood—they are the prince or princess of fairy tales—an
attitude which, sadly, is frowned upon, or even punished, by many parents. With
parents who want them to get their head out of the clouds, Healers begin to
believe they are bad to be so fanciful, so dreamy, and can come to see
themselves as ugly ducklings. In truth, they are quite okay just as they are,
only different from most others—swans reared in a family of ducks.
At work, Healers are adaptable, welcome new ideas
and new information, are patient with complicated situations, but impatient with
routine details. Healers are keenly aware of people and their feelings, and
relate well with most others. Because of their deep-seated reserve, however,
they can work quite happily alone. When making decisions, Healers follow their
heart not their head, which means they can make errors of fact, but seldom of
feeling. They have a natural interest in scholarly activities and demonstrate,
like the other Idealists, a remarkable facility with language. They have a gift
for interpreting stories, as well as for creating them, and thus often write in
lyric, poetic fashion. Frequently they hear a call to go forth into the world
and help others, a call they seem ready to answer, even if they must sacrifice
their own comfort.
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