I walked into a meeting with my one of my professors, hoping to get an idea of how to get a better grade on his papers. I left with a better understanding of myself as a whole and a completely new way of thinking for everyday life and his papers.

He introduced me to the Myer Briggs Type Indicator. This is a test to help you understand the way you, as an individual, judge and/or perceive things that you come across in your daily surroundings.

The test only asks four questions or sort of comparisons.

Favorite world: Do you prefer to focus on the outer world or on your own inner world? This is called Extraversion (E) or Introversion (I).

I have always been an introverted person. I would rather sit quietly and listen than be the center of attention. I prefer small groups of people or even one-on-one time than going out in big groups. Honestly, big groups of people really freak me out. I think everyone has a little bit of both intro and extra, but when it comes down to comparison I am 100% an introvert.

Information: Do you prefer to focus on the basic information you take in or do you prefer to interpret and add meaning? This is called Sensing (S) or Intuition (N).

My professor handed me an apple. He told me to to tell him the first thing that came to mind when I touched it. The first thing I told him was a story. I told him that my friend Rachel once ate the bruise on an apple first to get it out of the way. When she bit into it, she realized that the whole apple was rotten and spit it out onto the person sitting across from her. To this day, every time I eat an apple, I think of this story. And because I told him about this story he immediately knew that I fell under the category of Intuition.

If you are a sensing person, you might describe the apple as red, round, kinda hard (if it's not completely rotten) and maybe you would describe the taste as fresh or juicy.

Decisions: When making decisions, do you prefer to first look at logic and consistency or first look at the people and special circumstances? This is called Thinking (T) or Feeling (F).

I'm a gut feeling kind of person. When I make a decision it is not because I have sat down all day and weighted my options, I just knew right away. I look at the emotions of the people involved and come to a conclusion from there. I used to be the person to make a billion pro/con lists but I knew that it wasn't going to help, it was just back to the gut feeling thing.

Structure: In dealing with the outside world, do you prefer to get things decided or do you prefer to stay open to new information and options? This is called Judging (J) or Perceiving (P).

I am perceiving. I am able to understand what is going on around me but also what is going around other people. I can see both sides in a conflict or situation before coming to a conclusion. I perceive before I judge.

I am labeled as INFP: Sensitive, creative, idealistic, perceptive, caring, loyal. Value inner harmony and personal growth, focus on dreams and possibilities.

This chart from has laid out all the possibilities for the Myer Briggs Type Indicator.

I understand this may be some scientific mumbo jumbo, but it goes back to the basics. Realizing the category I fit into helped me be a better student in college, helped my relationships/friendships, and it just helped me understand myself as a whole.

More information can be found at the official Myer Briggs website, myerbriggs.org!