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[ceruleanswirl]

it's said that extremes, regardless of how positive or negative, are never good for a person. generally i agree with that. i believe that finding balance and compromise is the most efficient way to live happily

Comments

slippage...

[tricstmr]

note.. that mbti "idealists" are not quite the same thing as the positively connotated word "idealist"

mbti "idealism" only implies that when it comes to a judging function, these people are more likely to make judgements based on personal/communal values (feelings) rather than based on a logical/analytical approach (thinking).

In other words, mbti idealists are people who make decisions in based on a belief in certain ideals--but the content of these ideals is entirely open--whether the ideal is what we might consider "virtuous" or a "vice" is not determined by the status of being an mbti "idealist"

Re: slippage...

[andreya]

Oooh, this is actually very helpful to me.... Thanks!!

Re: slippage...

[nexrad]

A very interesting point. However, I would assert that the majority of MBTI found "idealists" lean more towards virtue. This, though, may be subject of my own world beliefs.

perhaps...

[tricstmr]

but I would merely aks whether you believe that mbti idealists lean more towards virture than any other types---and if so, why do you believe this? Do you have evidence to back this up??

I ask because I have had a ton of experience with "idealists" who were highly adept at emotional manipulation--and often, they were equally adept at either believing(a sympathetic reading) or just claiming (cynical reading) that it was the other person who was to blame for all of the problems that they were creating...

Does this make me believe that idealists are all this way... no.. but it does make me suspicious of claims that idealists are inherently more virtuous than any other type... I also sometimes wonder if the mbti designation of idealist doesn't create part of this... maybe if they were called Zealots/dreamers/romantics/visionaries/utopians (all synonyms of idealist) if this would necessarily occur...

[nexrad]

For "effective", I think definition is necessary

[jeroentiggelman]

i believe that finding balance and compromise is the most efficient way to live happily.

I think that that is too abstract to be particularly applicable to anything. Whether something is extreme depends on the place you give it on a wider scale. You can almost always find "more extreme" things if you want to, so it is mostly a matter of presentation.

As to adopting something as inherently positive or negative (aka "pigeonholing" or "fundamentalism"), that is generally very effective in establishing a clear path that can be trodden efficiently, but it has the drawback of being highly inflexible.

I much prefer to evaluate the meaning of abstract patterns in actual application to a real situation and re-establishing their (loca) value in that context.

idealist views are typically thought of as extreme

If you have a clear, defined view rather than just drifting with the tide, that can in one regard be seen as inflexible. On the other hand, it is the development of such views that may open up entirely new vistas.

how is idealism

[marybagain]

Although I may have very high personal ideals, in practice I tend to ask "What is the ideal in this specific context?" The answer may be a long way from what might be seen as absolutly ideal and it is almost certainly nowhere near whatever would be the extreme positions in the context.

Considering the extreme positions - the "ideal" scenario/outcome - can be an analytical method to arrive at an optimum result given the prevailing circumstances. I suppose it could be said that my ideal is to strive for this optimum result.

OK...first of all....

[whitewillow]

The first thing that comes to mind here is the fact that you seem to be defining the ideal for the idealist. Even outside of the context of mbti, to be an idealist does not mean that one shares a specific set of preset ideals. It simply means that one sees something as being that which is worthy of reaching for and making a part of their lives. One could see Hitler as an idealist...he had a goal which he saw as pure and noble and wished it to be a reality. Now, that doesn't classify his goal as being good, bad, or anywhere inbetween...it simply means that it was an ideal. I could have a vision that every family in the world should have a fluffy bunny and that this would somehow provide a level of happiness that is unequalled to anything else. Yah, fluffy bunnies and the happiness they provide. Thus, an ideal. A really crappy one, but an ideal

Re: OK...first of all....

[andreya]

LOL, fluffy bunnies!! Good one