Strategic thinking introverts have an uncanny way of turning fear and rage into righteousness. Strategic thinking introverts are primarily intellectually driven personality types in INTJs, ISTJs, and INTPs. Often, these introverts embark on a journey that leads them from disempowerment to self-discovery.
However, it is an emotional as well as an intellectual journey where nervousness serves as a life force for empowerment. How does this unique brand of introverts become forces to be reckoned with?
Experts have weighed in on introverts’ inner workings of anger and imagination.
Wakde (n.d.) said:
Introverts usually don’t express themselves, and it is true for their anger as well. They shut themselves down, channeling their emotions to the deepest, darkest corner of their minds. They will smile at you; they will converse with you. But deep down, the fury might just be simmering slowly. Why, then, do introverts refrain from expressing themselves a little more openly? Oh well, they do express their anger, but you’ll have to observe rather minutely.
Mathers (2019) postulated that:
Introverts tend to have a powerful imagination, and, owing to a sense of feeling apart from ‘normal people,’ are often drawn to creative, out-of-the-box, and innovative pursuits. The danger lies in the downward spiral driven by the combining of a negative outlook with obsessive imagination. This is rumination, and it can negatively charge us, making us depressed and anxious.
As described by Wakde and Mathers, the psychographics of introverts can be reconciled to reflect the degree of rage an introvert might experience during angry times. Strategic thinking introverts may demonstrate passive-aggressive behavior to quash the fallout of an active imagination.
Said another way, strategic thinking introverts have extreme personalities where the middle ground is often hard to decipher in a fit of anger and fear. Rarely will introverts be the initial aggressor in conflicts, and any physical or emotional violation is felt at a core or visceral level.
There is a consistent nervousness that serves as part of introverts’ lifecycle. This nervousness comes from external forces of real or imagined danger from their environment. Such anxiety might be nonexistent if introverts were left to frolic in their imaginations free of outside intrusion.
Chung (n.d.) identified five ways that introverts can overcome this fear:
- Using your gifts of introspection to understand fear. Fear becomes more manageable when you look at it, question it, and get to know it.
- Tapping into your deeper connections.
- Trusting your ability to be and stand alone.
- Using your skills of rumination and observation to avoid unnecessary risks.
- Letting your intense focus drive you forward.
Chung further asks and answers the questions: Are introverts more afraid than extroverts? Is there something inherent in the makeup of introverts that makes them naturally more fearful than extroverts? The answer to both of those questions is a loud and resounding NO!
However, more could be said about the internal makeup of strategic thinking introverts. While they are human and experience fear like everyone else, there is a difference. The differences are:
- These introverts have mainstream values and believe in fair play. They often form an overly optimistic belief about human nature at an early age.
- They grew up feeling alone and self-contained, leaving them without physical and emotional protection.
- First born and “only child” had to fend for themselves.
- They experience extreme insecurity and lack self-confidence.
- To survive physically and emotionally, they must create philosophies and systems for developing a sense of power.
Consequently, at an early age, strategic thinking introverts feel shut down and disempowered, which makes them preternaturally sensitive to the nuance of power within human interactions.
As strategic thinking introverts evolve and grow older, they may adopt a Machiavellian perspective about life and people. In this vein, they do what is best for the situation instead of conventionally correct.
Thus, the villainous nature of INTJ personality types in entertainment highlights how diabolical they can be under certain situations.
What about mainstream values and a belief in fair play?
As they age, strategic thinking introverts observe patterns of behavior that eat away at their previous idealism. Their experiences and facts do not support prior perspectives.
Although their fear does not go away, they supplement this fear with philosophical and physical protection that appears emotionally and intellectually sound. Strategic thinking introverts have a high moral code, and personal experiences may redefine what they currently believe.
These renewed ideas provide the freedom to behave as bearers of righteousness. As a result, fear turns into an internal rage with a sense of vengeance against trespassers.
Fear, Rage, and Righteousness
Anecdotal evidence suggests that strategic thinking introverts go through a three-step process of fear, rage, and righteousness over some time.
This process is demonstrated by a young child who is bullied and grows up to become a police officer. This child yearns for the day when he grows large enough to protect himself against the ridicule and abuse by bigger children.
As he grows, he may engage in physical activities like weight lifting and martial arts. Although he grows in self-confidence with the development of these skills, fear does not go away totally.
When there are potential conflicts, rage envelops the now, young man, who uses intellectualism and passive-aggression to vet the response to conflicts. Never one to push ordeals, these introverts gauge an aggressor’s interest in violating their moral codes. If a moral code is not broken, the rage subsides with an active imagination that weighs on what potentially could have transpired.
Because strategic thinking introverts view the world as a binary of black and white or right and wrong, protective professions like law enforcement might be a suitable fit. The law enforcement profession allows introverts to provide the justice in a society that they felt was lost as a child. Metaphorically speaking, an introvert can turn from Clark Kent to Superman.
In this context, pundits quickly suggest that these introverts make the worst police officers because this newfound power allows them to exert influence over people that never existed before. Essentially, they wreak havoc on society because they consistently replay past disempowerment experiences.
While this may be true in some instances, the intellectualism of introverts leads their decisions. They are still preternaturally fearful but exorcise this fear through progressive action. Isn’t that what courage and bravery are made of?
Feeling the fear of doing something, yet doing it anyway.
The Fear, Rage, and Righteousness concept are evolutionary for strategic thinking introverts in ways they may not be consciously aware of. They are primarily operating at the subconscious level.
Although self-aware strategic introverts live a life of nervousness, they grow to become comfortable within their skin. For many, their core sensitivity keeps them somewhat paranoid about people and the environment.
The harsher people and the environment appear, the more reticent and defensive these introverts become.
Eminent psychologist Alfred Adler once noted that individuals are slaves to their motivations. Turning fear into righteousness is part of a strategic thinking introvert’s journey. As easy as that sounds, the path is crooked and fraught with detours.
In the end, these introverts turn crooked paths into intellectual highways. And like any development by great minds, the road is filled with pain that eventually leads to intellectual enlightenment.
—Sean Michaels
Chung, M. (n.d.). 5 unique ways introverts can overcome fear. Introvert Spring. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3AT2MAf.
Mathers, A. (2019, June 20). The happiest introverts avoid these four things. Medium. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3o7cCqI.
Wakde, P. (n.d.). How do introverts deal with anger? Procaffenation. Retrieved from: https://bit.ly/3yKPXFk