Lauren Sapala

Category: Introverts, INFJs, and INFPs

  • Why INFJs Can’t Get What They Want Out of Life

    Why INFJs Can’t Get What They Want Out of Life

    One of the questions I hear the most often from INFJ personality types is:

    How come I’m always dissatisfied?

    Many INFJs feel like they are never content in life, and most of us blame ourselves. We believe it’s a problem with our own perspective, or an issue with us not being grateful enough for what we have. But this isn’t just a “you” problem, this is an INFJ problem.

    For INFJ personality types, experiencing a high quality of life is very important. We’re not satisfied with just having a steady job that pays the bills, and sharing social connections with people just because we have a few superficial things in common. (more…)

  • The Problem of Success for INFJs and INFPs

    The Problem of Success for INFJs and INFPs

    INFJ and INFP personality types are two of the MBTI types that tend to have the most trouble feeling successful in life. It’s a problem that not many of us talk about, but almost all of us deal with at one time or another.

    We might work a stressful, demanding job and not be paid very much, or we might always be taken advantage of at work. We might be passed over for promotions. We also have trouble feeling successful in our social lives. Many INFJ and INFP personality types feel like most of the people in our social circle don’t appreciate our quiet gifts. (more…)

  • 3 BIG Signs You Can Trust Your Intuition

    3 BIG Signs You Can Trust Your Intuition

    Since most of my clients are either an INFJ personality type or an INFP personality type (and every single one of them is an empath) I often get questions from them about intuition. They want to know how they can access their intuition, how they can increase it, and how they can understand it better. Because even though these types are born naturally intuitive, we live in a society that does not encourage intuition, or intuitive types. Our surrounding culture is almost solely focused on figuring things out through rational thought, i.e., thinking and problem-solving.

    Intuition does not work in this way. It’s not like brainstorming. It’s not a conscious mind activity, although you can use the conscious mind to get yourself more comfortable with it. Something else that greatly helps is knowing what you’re looking for. If you have some idea of the clear signs that accompany intuition then you can more fully relax into receiving it. (more…)

  • The Best Method to Develop Intuition

    The Best Method to Develop Intuition

    In my last article, How to Actually Listen to Your Intuition, I talked about how anxiety gets in the way of us listening to our intuition, because when we’re anxious we’re coming from an emotionally reactive place and so we make decisions based on those emotions and reactivity.

    These decisions soothe us in the short term because they take away the anxiety for the moment. When we’re freaked out and constantly in an emotionally reactive state, that’s all that seems important. But this blocks you from accessing your intuition and working with the messages it’s trying to send you. (more…)

  • How to Actually Listen to Your Intuition

    How to Actually Listen to Your Intuition

    So many naturally intuitive people know they get solid information from their intuition, and they are even aware of when it is showing up in their lives, but it can be very difficult for most of us to listen to our intuition, even if we have a naturally intuitive temperament.

    I’ve worked with countless intuitive people (INFJ personality types and INFP personality types) who have this problem. They get a feeling about something, or they just “know” what is going to happen. They might see an image in their mind, have a vivid dream, or hear their inner voice warning them about something, and many times that message gets louder when it is ignored. But still, the person pushes it away. (more…)