The Intersection of Myers-Briggs, Zodiac Signs, and Numerology

I've always wondered at the popularity of things like Myers-Briggs Personality Assessments, our cultural obsession with zodiac signs and astrology, and the newfound interest in numerology. It occurred to me that while we ought to know ourselves best, we are faced with crippling doubt as to our own identities and who can blame us? We're bombarded with media messages everyday telling us who and what we should strive to be.

And really, this quest to pin down our personalities and identities like an insect to a piece of cardboard isn't anything new - the philosophical sciences have been debating about what makes us tick for thousands of years. Today, we have at our fingertips so many resources as clues into understanding who we are and why we do the things we do. Entire seminars are held about communication styles, personality types, astrological alignments, and how it all determines our place in the universe.

I say, please take it all with a grain of salt.

My Life Path Number ( 9, for those of you who are curious) tells me that I'm a humanitarian, that I'm a spiritual person by nature and that I'm deeply emotional and in tune to the needs of others.

My sun sign (Libra) informs me that I'm a social butterfly, that I enjoy being around other people, that I'm a regular diplomat - able to see and weigh opposite perspectives with ease - and that I'm inclined towards aesthetic perfection.

Couple that with my moon sign in Aquarius (another flighty air sign) - which implies that I'm a deeply private and intellectual person, independent and aloof, kind of mysterious. Sounds a little bit at odds with my alleged, outward Libra self, hmmm?

After running the gamut several times with various "personality type" assessments and the Myers-Briggs crowd, it's been determined that I (mostly likely) fall into the INTJ (Introvert, iNtuitive, Thinking, Judging) personality type - the mastermind architect who sees and analyzes all things, makes decisions logically, and keeps their feelings internal and close to the chest.

Well...that sounds a bit different than what the stars have decided for me, no?

And here's why we should take all these things with a grain (or a handful) of salt. They are only predictions of possibilities - they can't truly account for or know all of our lived experiences, they can't predict particular interests or passions that will shape us, and they certainly don't take into account our health situations.

I'll be honest, I put a little more stock into the Myers-Briggs assessment but I don't stake my whole identity on it either. It does help me to understand more about how I take in information, where I derive my personal energy, and how I make decisions: I like sets of data and patterns, I feel better when I spend time alone, and I prefer to decide using logic rather than emotion.

While I may feel totally awkward and vulnerable displaying my emotions to others or witnessing a waterworks show from someone else, it doesn't mean that I don't have any feelings or that I don't care deeply about causes that are important to me. It doesn't mean that I don't have passion for what I do and a desire to not be a total dick to people.

While I definitely identify with my moon sign over my sun sign, I can admit that some aspects of Libra fit me to a T: I'm always performing a balancing act in some way - weighing the pros and cons of any situation or idea - and I've been told on more than one occasion that I would have made a great lawyer or master debater. If only I wasn't so darned introverted and unconcerned with others' misinformed opinions!

The Number 9 suggests that I'm in tune with the emotional needs of other people and while I might say that's true to an extent, it didn't come naturally. Emotional intelligence is something everyone has to work at, particularly those of us who are often stuck in our own heads 90% of the time. It's a skill to cultivate, a set of patterns and ideas to analyze, a sort of psychological fascination with what makes people tick - and so that appealed to my INTJ sensibilities I suppose.

If Number 9 also says I'm "spiritual" - I imagine that's because of that unending quest for knowledge and mastery, that desire to uncover the mysteries of life and space, and further intellectual understanding. I imagine that's why I was so drawn to paths like paganism and witchcraft, and why my high school supplemental reading often veered into Buddhist texts and The Satanic Bible. Try explaining to your math instructor why that's peeking out of your schoolbag!

This intersection between my identities as a Libra, Aquarius, INTJ, and "Nine" kinds of rolls me up into one big bag of contradictions that just sort of...work. I'm spiritual - but only incorporate practices that have scientific and psychological backing. I'm artistic and wordsmithy - but I put the bigger picture together systematically, like a puzzle rather than sporadically.  I'm quiet and withdrawn - but come to life when the topics or people at hand vibe with my energy.

I'm sure most people are this way. We're all multi-faceted beings and instead of trying to shove ourselves into little categorically neat boxes, wouldn't it be so much nicer to just accept ourselves for the lovely chaotic messes that we are?