How future-oriented are you?

[Max T]

INTJs are meant to be unusually forward-thinking.

On a spectrum of "here and now" 2007__________________2017...
where do your thoughts often focus on?

Present day stuff (even next week) is so mundane whereas I find the future to be energising. Not in a day dreaming sense, rather factual with plans and targets.

Examples:
- planning to reach certain goals such as married by 40,
- examining the outlooks of more senior INTJ members of our forum (will I be like you?),
- assessing when UK house prices will fall,
- imagining which of my dogs will have died by 2012 and how the others will cope and
- thinking how this forum will look next year.

Do you feel the same and if so, when will you post your views? ;D

[The Rose]

I am very future-oriented.

When I was 9 years of age, I started counting how many more years I had
until I could move away from home (dysfunctional family).
When I was 15 1/2, I started counting by months.

When I was 19, I knew I didn't want to get to be 40 someday
and regret not trying to make it in the music business,
so I moved to Nashville. (I know. You guys hate Country music.)

I'm so forward thinking, I hit my crises early:
age 30 hit me hard... at 28!
age 40 hit me at age 38!
One great thing about turning 41...
I wasn't 40 anymore... phew! ;)

More often than not, these days, I'm more worried about the future than I am planning for it.

[Firelie]

I plan for the future all the time. It's a good way to get bills paid on time. :D

I really don't want to be working data entry in some beige cubicle when I'm 40, so I'm endeavoring to change that by getting a degree... I have 5 more classes to take before I can turn in a portfolio and move on to upper division classes, so I'm planning on how to get those out of the way in the next couple of terms so that I don't have to wait another year to move on with my schooling...I want to still be healthy when I get to middle age, so I've changed my eating habits...and for the more immediate future, I want a camera... I don't think too far into the future because I really have no idea what to expect, I think it's because I haven't been an adult long enough to have any idea.

[Rei]

I plan out generally where I want to be by what age... (As in what ages I want to enter which stage of life... as well as financial wise)

Considering I'm still getting my education, I end up having to make decisions involving my future constantly. *I tend to naturally dwell on "How in the world do I get there by that time?" a lot. *But I try not to think too far ahead in detail (eg when house prices will fall = when I should buy a house), because that's usually intimidating and it never works out the way you plan anyway.

And it's funny you should mention the death of your dogs. Because i've though about that too. *My dogs are 3 years apart, but one is a large breed and the other is a medium breed, so they'll die at around the same time. *Which really sucks, because when one dies, the other is likely to get depressed and follow it =/.

[Rei]

I am very future-oriented.
More often than not, these days, I'm more worried about the future than I am planning for it.


Well then maybe you should make some plans so you don't have to worry.

[Evalis]

Before I finished college I had already planned the entire 4 years and about 10 years after. The idea being that I would spend a year searching for an HR position with a reputable company, spend 5 years working my way up as an employee of that company, then branching out to start an HR consultant firm either alone or with a single partner. The next few years were too iffy to plan anything, though I envisioned a corporation of hires hand-picked by myself to assist in expanding the company.

Unfortunately this only the first 5 years of this went as planned (College finished with honors, 1 year searching.. no HR job)

Currently my plans involve staying at my current (shitty) job to support a 5 year period of investing 80% of my after-expenses income.. Once I complete this, assuming nothing changes, I will continue my investing and seek out employment elsewhere.. Assuming I do not find anything more rewarding on a cognitive level, I will continue until I am 45 and retire (with a net of 1.7 million - yes I've already calculated this)

If it changes positively financially, then I will continue investing, remain at the same job, and simply provide myself with more disposable income.

If my job changes to something more rewarding on a cognitive level, then I will discontinue my investing, move out into a much nicer place and continue working until 65 (still leaving 1.7 million or so for retirement - though worth a lot less due to inflation)

So uhm.. definately a planning type person ^^;

In fact.. all the RPGs I play include characters that have already been defined up to the maximum level even before I play them XD

[TeleportThis]

Not really. I have vague ideas about what I want to do in the future, and do today, what will help me do that someday; but I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present. I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans for anything until I actually have to make a decision. I don't really know what I want though. I think if I knew what I wanted, I'd be much more active to making them happen. Right now I'm just going with the flow.

[The Rose]

Not really. *I have vague ideas about what I want to do in the future, and do today, what will help me do that someday; but I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present. *I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans for anything until I actually have to make a decision. *I don't really know what I want though. *I think if I knew what I wanted, I'd be much more active to making them happen. *Right now I'm just going with the flow.How sure are you that you are an INTJ?

The reason I ask because "...I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present" is what "S"s tend to do.
And "I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans..." is what "P"s do.

That would make you an ISTP, unless the "I" and the "T" are different, too.

[Tarrick]

The reason I ask because "...I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present" is what "S"s tend to do.
And "I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans..." is what "P"s do.

That would make you an ISTP, unless the "I" and the "T" are different, too.


Actually, S people focus on non-theoreticals, either the Present or the Past. Guardians (SJs) focus on the past and compare it to the present, whereas Artisans (SPs) live much more in the present.

[TeleportThis]

Not really. I have vague ideas about what I want to do in the future, and do today, what will help me do that someday; but I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present. I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans for anything until I actually have to make a decision. I don't really know what I want though. I think if I knew what I wanted, I'd be much more active to making them happen. Right now I'm just going with the flow.How sure are you that you are an INTJ?

The reason I ask because "...I tend to focus on doing what needs to be done for the present" is what "S"s tend to do.
And "I also like to keep my options open, so don't set plans..." is what "P"s do.

That would make you an ISTP, unless the "I" and the "T" are different, too.



Oh you caught me. I've been undercover. Really though, I posted my numbers in that thread that asked for them, and I'm not very strong in the I, N, or J, parts, but I am definitely a T. When I was younger, I was always tested as an INTP, then I took it again and got ENTJ, but I think that E was influenced by me living with an extremely E person at the at the time. Ever since then I've been tested as an INTJ.

[Jezebel]

Also, just about everyone will exhibit some traits of other types. I wouldn't come to the conclusion that someone was mistyped based on just a couple things not being characteristic.

[The Rose]

Also, just about everyone will exhibit some traits of other types. I wouldn't come to the conclusion that someone was mistyped based on just a couple things not being characteristic.Right, I agree with you, but he referred to them as his tendencies, the way he normally is most of the time.

[Jezebel]

Right, I agree with you, but he referred to them as his tendencies, the way he normally is most of the time.
I don't mean the frequency someone uses any particular trait, but that there is more to each preference than any isolated traits. In this case, I think there's more to S/N and J/P differences than making plans for the future.

[TeleportThis]

I'm a girl by the way.

[Rei]

I'm a girl by the way.

Your name seems to keep making me want to think you're a guy even though I KNOW you're a girl... *smacks self on the forhead*

[wedekit]

I already feel like I have a mind like a 50-year-old.

[Tarrick]

Query how you know what a 50 year old's mind is like.

[wedekit]

Query how you know what a 50 year old's mind is like.

Mid-life crisis at the age of 20.

[The Rose]

Right, I agree with you, but he referred to them as his tendencies, the way he normally is most of the time.
I don't mean the frequency someone uses any particular trait, but that there is more to each preference than any isolated traits. In this case, I think there's more to S/N and J/P differences than making plans for the future.Once again, I agree with you, but the things she mentioned were foundational behaviors associated with deciding whether you are an S or an N, and whether you are a J or a P.
It was almost straight from the pages of the books I use to determine type.

Also, in my defense, I would like to point out that I only asked her if she was sure.
I did not jump to any conclusions, or tell her she was wrong.

Of course, you are right, it takes more than one trait to determine someone's type,
but it was also said in the context of denying the opposite tendencies to be future-looking (N), and to have closure (J),
and that, in combination with these tendencies being fundamental traits, in my belief anyway, that's why I asked her how sure she was that she was an INTJ.

[rwyatt365]

I guess I'm an outlyer like TeleportThis...

I don't make, and never have made long-range plans. The closest I've come to that is when I was a kid thinking, "I'll be 46 in the year 2000", and that's about as far as that thought went. I have had some vague "conceptual" plans over the years. And when I needed to achieve a goal (at work, or at home) I would draw up a detailed plan. But I never laid out a n-year life plan.

[Max T]

I guess our future- orientedness is expressed in a number of ways as an underlying theme emerges from this forum:

-personal life forward planning (see above)
-hobbies involving fantasy role playing games (see elsewhere)
-science fiction and fantasy books
(see here:
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-the history thread ( To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
... well history is time travel... :-?
-general interest in technology

But our tendency increasingly conflicts with today's "Make the most of now" society ("make..." is Vodafone's latest slogan- a company with a finger on the pulse).


Evalis- I think in the exact terms of delayed gratification, saving and investing that you describe. Einstein was right when he said that compounding was the 8th wonder of the world- seeing your savings grow at an exponential rate is just amazing and 15 years from now will hopefully be a very cool time for both of us.

I've taken an 8 mth 'career break' self-teaching to get better at investing, to try and compound 20+% p.a. over the next decade.

But it's not material wealth I'm seeking (don't care for flash cars etc.), but just plain independence to do our own thing 24/7. Bliss. And then to donate it to causes we believe in before we die. True bliss.

Check out this site (wait for it to load):
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[Evalis]

HA! I am amused that the website calculated the same 1.7 million for me. I've taken finance and calculus, so I was able to do the calculations myself, but still.. reassuring. I'm assuming a 15% interest rate. So far I have been able to achieve more than that, but it's only been 2 years in.

My fund choices are based off of results from here: To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

But the idea has always been financial independance. The ability to do whatever the heck that I want, without being forced to conform to social norms. This is why I am willing to stop investing if I find a job that I thoroughly enjoy, as it will satisfy the requirement of 'doing whatever the heck I want'

Being future oriented may also have something to do with our natural talent to understand patterns and connections, thus immediately providing a 'mathematical outlook' on things that other people may not normally grasp. EI: Going to a concert is fun, and will cost $120..., INTJ: Going to a concert is fun, will cost $120. and will cut into my other purchases/expenses/time. Seeing the link-consequences of doing something often automatically instills a future oriented mindset.. as those consequences may not be immediate.

[Rei]

But it's not material wealth I'm seeking (don't care for flash cars etc.), but just plain independence to do our own thing 24/7. * Bliss. * And then to donate it to causes we believe in before we die. * True bliss.

Good point. Not to mention not having to work with people who blow your mind with their stupidity anymore.


...
Time to look into possible future investments =/

[Guido]

Good point. *Not to mention not having to work with people who blow your mind with their stupidity anymore.

Speak for yourself :/

As for investments, I bought NVDA about 6 months ago and doubled. Since this was my first investment, I've decided that I am the stock MASTER. Seriously though, it's going to suck when other investments don't go so well, as this will probably always be my benchmark.

[bikerscars]

Being future oriented may also have something to do with our natural talent to understand patterns and connections, thus immediately providing a 'mathematical outlook' on things that other people may not normally grasp. EI: Going to a concert is fun, and will cost $120..., INTJ: Going to a concert is fun, will cost $120. and will cut into my other purchases/expenses/time. Seeing the link-consequences of doing something often automatically instills a future oriented mindset.. as those consequences may not be immediate.

i agree...as a matter of routine i convert costs into hours @ work(equates to a level of frustration) and then determine if the cost is worth it; i tend to be frugal by choice.

[Rei]

Good point. *Not to mention not having to work with people who blow your mind with their stupidity anymore.

Speak for yourself :/

As for investments, I bought NVDA about 6 months ago and doubled. Since this was my first investment, I've decided that I am the stock MASTER. Seriously though, it's going to suck when other investments don't go so well, as this will probably always be my benchmark.


Meh, my sister's in the financial whatever business. I was playing a economics game, and she was instructing me on what to buy.

[Max T]

Just a last ramble on investing- a very ‘future-oriented’ practice.
Guido and Rei, if I could just share a few investing learnings that I wish I knew 10 years ago:

The two key issues to picking investment funds are a. annual interest returns and b. initial and yearly fee. Clearly maximise the former and minimise the latter.

- Of the different investments: commodities, bonds, shares, T-bills and property, shares produce greatest long term (over 8+ yrs) returns of 10% p.a. This is based on 100 yrs of research but little indicator of future returns.
- An index tracker is simply a fund that tracks the US stock market and therefore = 10%p.a. and have v. low fees (because it is passive and not actively managed).
- >80% of actively managed investment funds underperform the market. Therefore they produce returns <9% p.a. In light of this, a simple index tracker is a smart investment cos it’s cheap.
- Of the remaining 20% that outperform the market, 18% will simply be enjoying a few good years (i.e. luck) and will then revert to the mean (<9% p.a.).
- So that leaves 2% that will generate >13% p.a. returns. Some of these I recommend are: Legg Mason value funds, Weitz funds, Fuller and Thaler funds, Gabelli value funds.
- If you do invest in shares, leave the allotted money alone for min. 5 yrs. Ideally, never ever touch it and, if needed, withdraw and spend the yearly returns only. Leave the capital alone to compound itself.

That's to realise between 13- 17% p.a. averaged over a decade (there will be good and bad years)- sure beats 4-6% bank deposit interest.

To push into 20- 30% p.a. returns will require picking stocks yourself. Bear in mind that most individual investors not only fail to beat the market but also often fail to actually make money, breaking-even instead. Picking stocks is harder than it looks.

I recommend researching the 'value investing' discipline. Value investing fits the INTJ mindset like a glove:
- it exploits market fear and so requires total emotional detachment and a different mindset from the masses (easy!).
- it relies heavily on examining selected companies, suiting our analytical mind.
- requires a long-term perspective (holding stocks for between 18 mths - 10+ yrs), as befits our future- orientation.
… And once proficient, you can do it on a part-time basis whilst holding a full time job.

However, it does require spending c.4 hrs/ week for years picking your own stock. Also needs a basic understanding of accounting and investor psychology, together with a thorough understanding of value investing and general business itself. Takes approx. 1- 2 yrs of research to become reasonably competent (but even then you’ll make occasional hideous mistakes as I have). I suggest this book for the basics:
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If you’re not really keen on business and doubt you’d allocate the time, I advise investing in the recommended funds above and excel in and enjoy your other areas.

[v1cious]

i had a mid-life crisis when i was 18

[Rei]

i had a mid-life crisis when i was 18

I can relate :(

[Jeroen Jan-Willem]

On a spectrum of "here and now" 2007__________________2017...
where do your thoughts often focus on?
I do think of the future, but mostly in terms of where I want to go [long term] and not so much on when I want to be there exactly.

[thegnat]

Once I have academic plans set (i.e. due dates and exams) for the next two weeks or so, I don't like to make any plans much further ahead unless it's a lab report. I'll be the first one to start working on it. However I'll have the weeks planned immaculately.

What I do hate though is planning vacations once the semester's over before I'm even done with finals. It reminds me of finals, I don't want to plan that far ahead!

On the other hand I like to toss around things like:

What will I be doing once I graduate? Research? Industry?
Lately I've been asking myself, What kind of lifestyle, hobbies will you have? I've been kind of planning that out. I want to breed horses as a side of whatever job I get...probably something to do with environmental inorganic chemistry.
Like Max T said,goals, like getting married before 40
Will I take a year off before grad school if I go to grad school? yes. I'll get a job but not only that I want to travel to Europe sometime. Spain preferably.

I'm also the first one to start thinking about what classes I'm going to take. I had the classes I was going to take planned out for each quarter of each year freshman year and now I did that again (because I transferred) last year. I knew what I would be taking next semester last year.

However, really, the only futuristic thing I don't plan or want to think about is my wedding. Most girls my age like to talk about that and I'm like bleh, who cares for that right now? I don't even have a boyfriend, why worry about it? haha.

[Rei]

I'm also the first one to start thinking about what classes I'm going to take. *I had the classes I was going to take planned out for each quarter of each year freshman year and now I did that again (because I transferred) last year. *I knew what I would be taking next semester last year.

However, really, the only futuristic thing I don't plan or want to think about is my wedding. Most girls my age like to talk about that and I'm like bleh, who cares for that right now? *I don't even have a boyfriend, why worry about it? haha.
Yeah... I got my whole next year's worth of courses planned by the middle of second semester last year. Making sure it's the fastest/most efficient way of completing my major and squeeze in a minor or two ;)

What I plan: my career... What I don't plan: my life...
Like you say, I don't even have a boyfriend. The future is uncertain

[deicruxified]

lol...as head of the operations, i scheduled climb for the whole 2007 (and i flipped when typhoons came). we got one coming this oct 30-nov 2 but when i was talking to my team, i only had one sentence about that trip and was planning on going to some other place on april 2008. lol. i may sound defending myself but i'm done planning with the rest of the trips for 2007 so i talk about 2008 most of the time.

[deicruxified]

i had a mid-life crisis when i was 18
ditto... i was thinking on what i should write in my last will and testament... there was a time when the rest of the family thought i was suicidal coz one time when i was 16 when we had our family reunion dinner, i just thought opening up a topic on death would be necessary so i said, "mom, i would just like you to know that i want my body to be cremated when i die." everyone stopped eating and i was hearing silverwares dropped lol

[Rei]

i had a mid-life crisis when i was 18
ditto... i was thinking on what i should write in my last will and testament... there was a time when the rest of the family thought i was suicidal coz one time when i was 16 when we had our family reunion dinner, i just thought opening up a topic on death would be necessary so i said, "mom, i would just like you to know that i want my body to be cremated when i die." everyone stopped eating and i was hearing silverwares dropped lol

O_______o
Never talked about that... I'd just like to assume that my mother's not going to have to see me die.
I've thought about how much of my body I want donated when I die though... does that count?

[GOD]

How future orientated am I....

Probably very, I started saving for University when I was 14.... yada yada..

To me, the future is a bit like a game of baseball. The field of play is where I'm aiming for, the bases are milestones, and a home run is just the start of another round. I constantly strive to improve my batting average by looking at the opposition placements and understand how/what is being pitched at me.

However, there's a balance between future orientation and planning for it in a detailed manner.
Basically I have a pipeline of objectives which are blurred but reasonably discernable far out into the future, and as they get closer I bring them into focus.

Also, I'm more into scale of objectives rather than the distance from which I can visualise them. Classically I look for big win objectives.... while constantly looking to see whether they fall within all the parameters set for them to be acceptable. I am definitely not risk averse when something meets all the criteria.

...all the above is a bit cryptic, but hey, it will give you something to think about.. ;D

[Blacklustre King]

I have thought forward several centuries.

[Zilal]

I have a bad habit of worrying... it's my only vice... so yeah, I think about the future all the time! Mostly I worry about things that might happen in the next few hours to the next year. Heh. Trying to change this habit to one of planning though.

I actually caught myself thinking about the past yesterday. A rarity. It's really funny, I suppose, I worry about everything but I never regret anything. Not terribly logical.

[PortInStorm]

I usually think 2-5 years in advance. Especially planning my schooling. So I've already started my second career at the ripe old age of 31 (I was in my first for about 7 years minus schooling for it), and having already applied for several masters' programs, I'm thinking of where to spend the PhD (if I get there), how to get experience afterwards, and where I'd eventually like to end up.

I calculate how long I think it'll be before we pay off the house (about 5-7 years, being a student n'all), then how (in what way) we'll live in a trailer on property we'll have bought, how long til we save up the money to build...

I think about what the future will be without kids (good and bad)

How I'll ever clean out my parents' house when they pass

How I'd manage if we got divorced, the earliest I could financially sustain myself in the current career

And ya.. how I'll manage when the dog dies

It's a wierd combo of future and contingency, really

[jjelovich]

I live today for the future. Enough said =)

[Antares]

INTJs are meant to be unusually forward-thinking.

On a spectrum of "here and now" 2007__________________2017...
where do your thoughts often focus on?

Present day stuff (even next week) is so mundane whereas I find the future to be energising. Not in a day dreaming sense, rather factual with plans and targets.

Examples:
- planning to reach certain goals such as married by 40,
- examining the outlooks of more senior INTJ members of our forum (will I be like you?),
- assessing when UK house prices will fall,
- imagining which of my dogs will have died by 2012 and how the others will cope and
- thinking how this forum will look next year.

Do you feel the same and if so, when will you post your views? ;D

At 6, I wanted to be in the top of my class. Status: FAILED. Miserably.

At 9, I wondered what High School would be like and the chances of me actually getting a good grade.

At 10, I was lamenting of the cruelties of life and how time flies like grown-ups. Something most of my peers don't do.

At 11, I dreamed of getting a boyfriend.

At 12, I wanted to be popular.

At 13, I dreamed of an everlasting romance with this guy.

At 14, I strive to be the best in all of high school, and having more success currently.

In 2017, I plan to be sitting for exams for a Master's degree and buying my first apartment.

Well. That is the plan anyway.

I often think about when my dog will die and how I will feel when he does. I wonder whether I'll ever get married. I've imagined countless ways I can meet my end. I think about death quite a lot. Depressing. I know. I wonder what I will look like thirty years from now? Sixty years from now? Will my intellect plunge so deeply of old age that I cannot think for myself? Will I get cancer? I wonder what my parents will look like ten years from now. I wonder about my economic situation at age 30. Will I be a low-paying Janitor or a respected scholar? Will I live to see a third world war? Would all hell break loose in the environment and the economy? Would real-estate appreciate so greatly that I wouldn't even be able to afford a cottage? I'm very anxious about the future, actually.

[Paragon]

I planed to get a mustache when i was 6 years old. I still like to plan, but i don't have a mustache yet:).