Observing Myself,
for I faced a mirror as I held the camera out.

OBSERVING MYSELF:
Briefly, All About Joan:

Joan Ann Lansberry

Discovering newcomers to my pages seem more interested in my bio than anything else, I thought I should have a brief one, in addition to the lengthy spiel of years. Julia suggested I ought to give what sort of personality I was according to the Myers-Briggs test.

Having never taken such a test, I found two versions of this test on the web, one which did not have me screaming, but only pondering, and one which had me screaming.

I got the same results with either test, so I'm not sure why the one had to be so torturous. I am an INFJ (Reserved, Introspective, Friendly, Scheduling) person, as opposed to a ESTP (Expressive, Observant, Tough Minded, Probing) person.

I am curious, for this netted me as an IDEALIST, rather than the ARTISAN, which according to the Kiersey test, is my exact opposite, the ESTP.

Differences between them are described as:

The Values of Idealists: How different from their opposites, the Artisans. Where Artisans value excitement (from without) Idealists value enthusiasm (from within); where Artisans value their impulses, Idealists value their intuition; where Artisans value impact on others, Idealists value romance with others. And so it goes, Idealists valuing identity over stimulation, recognition over generosity, and the sage over the virtuoso.

Now this puzzles me as I consider myself to be an Artisan! I write, I make the occasional picture, these are artistic crafts. How can this be? Never do they suggest that the Artisan might be an Idealist as well! But, yes, the values that are listed above do seem to be those that guide me. Inner enthusiasm will sustain me when nothing outside myself exists at the moment for stimulation. I am never one to go by an unchecked IMPULSE, everything threads through the eye of intuition, THEN I decide.

Oh, I want IMPACT on others, but I think it can be done gently via a 'romance'. I value virtuousity extremely much, but find wisdom, such as what a sage should have, most useful of all. So the test has typed me quite well, over all.

I DO, however, believe I am ''Expressive, Observant, Tough Minded, and Probing'' in my art. At least, I TRY to be. So it's a curiousity. Maybe I balance myself with my various artistic expressions?

Without the 'J' part, the 'scheduling' aspect of me which likes closure and 'finished products', I might not have the push to see my artistic probing to the conclusions which I find so satisfying.

Many of the questions were answered easily, with no hesitation at all. But here are a few of the questions that had me screaming:

Are you more comfortable in making:
A. value judgments
B. critical judgments

'Value judgments suggest rating something as 'good or bad'. 'Critical judgments' seems to suggest a criticism that might offer a way to improve something, so I went for the critical, unsure if I answered exactly how they meant.

Which do you wish more for yourself:
A. strength of emotion
B. strength of will

''Both are important!'', I complained to Julia. I value 'strength of emotion'. I can't imagine being a creature of faint emotions. Yet I value 'strength of will', too. I possess both. But noting 'strength of will' has gotten me through more things, I finally settled on that choice.

Do you value in yourself more that you are:
A. devoted
B. reasonable

''Reason is a very good thing to have,'' I opined to Julia. An unreasonable person does not fair well in the world. Yet I value devotion as well. Julia offered, half joking, ''You can be devoted to reason,'' and it answered the question for me. Devotion amounts to passion, and without passion, life is dull indeed. I ticked 'devoted'.

In sizing up others, do you tend to be:
A. objective and impersonal
B. friendly and personal

I reasoned as follows: Objectivity is a good thing, and I try to do that, to not let my own bias cloud the issue. But I wouldn't say I'm 'puppy dog friendly' either. What I really am is INTUITIVE, I use my intuition to guide how I size others up, which is neither personal nor impersonal. However, 'objective' suggests the use of REASON, which I don't go by so much, using INTUITION, so I picked 'friendly and personal', as I believe that's a bit closer.

Which rules you more:
A. your feelings
B. your thoughts

I was nearly indecisive with this one. My thoughts are extremely active. All day long, the thought-mill is churning out one after another. I can get lost in my kingdom of thoughts, where I invent whole worlds. But my feelings are important, too. If I am moody, those around me know it, for I can't hide it. I am swept along by my emotional current, and I am fortunate that the seas are usually fairly calm, with gentle tides. Because it is my emotions that determine the sort of things I will think about, I ended up picking 'feeling'.

Are you more:
A. observant than introspective
B. introspective than observant

This question had me screaming the most of all of them! I really went around the bush on this. ''I value BOTH!'' I screamed to Julia. I try to be observant. An artist is only as good as her skill in observing things. If you don't observe something, you can't depict it. Yet I'm introspective as well. Without introspection, the artist in me can't evaluate the results of her observations. I observe, but I FIRST OBSERVE MYSELF, therefore I chose 'introspective'.

With Julia suggesting I reveal such test results, you might be curious as to how Julia is typed. Julia's results are quite similar to me, with the exception of the last category. She shows 'consistently as an INFP type'. This tends to be true. Our values are much the same, except that I possess an often driving nature to accomplish goals. The crankiness this sometimes produces, should anything try to circumvent me, awes her a bit.

All in all, it was a fascinating mind-game, and provided a few hours insightful entertainment.

For Those of you who want the DETAILED VERSION, I have also a
Short BIO (written in 2010)
and a:
L O N G BIOGRAPHY (written mostly from 2005 onwards): Book of Life
Also see:
The Essential Joan: Her Favorite Journal Entries
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