I'm Not Crazy, I'm Just Not You: The Real Meaning of the 16 Personality Types

Rating:
Summary: A Mixed Bag for MBTI-philes
Review: As a layman fascinated with all things MBTI, I picked up this book with eagerness, hoping it might give deeper insights into what other books and Websites discussed, or tread new ground. I was somewhat disappointed.

The authors DO start with some fairly clear, insightful examples and definitions of the MBTI categories, including a wonderful story about an E father and an I son. However, they soon veer from clarity and insight into what I can only call high-level "mush" -- paragraph upon paragraph of needless exposition and feel-good truisms. As noted in another review, Pearman and Albritton's prose is an inconsistent mix of clear, focused text and fluffy, platitude-filled philosophy on having appreciation and understanding for those different from you. While I do appreciate their emphasis -- not stereotyping others and working hard not to just understand them in an academic way, the writing is simply too "lite" and jarring with the text that is specifically MBTI-centered. When they remain on-topic about MBTI and how types interact, the book is good (though not anything drastically different/deeper than other books in the marketplace).

They do offer some very good insights into what the different types value, especially in regards to communications. This is where the book is most valuable -- as a beginning point for understanding HOW and WHY you communicate the way do, and ways to bridge differences with others. However, their many charts tend to get a bit numbing after a while, and some don't do a very good job of show clearer delineation between the 16 types. And for whatever reason, the authors completely ignore Keirsey's distinction between character and temperament; using it could have helped them carry their thesis farther and with more punch.

Worth reading -- or at least skimming -- if you really enjoy MBTI-related material, but for those new to MBTI or looking for more practical, user-friendly texts, I recommend looking into Keirsey's or Kroeger's works.

Rating:
Summary: A Mixed Bag for MBTI-philes
Review: As a layman fascinated with all things MBTI, I picked up this book with eagerness, hoping it might give deeper insights into what other books and Websites discussed, or tread new ground. I was somewhat disappointed.

The authors DO start with some fairly clear, insightful examples and definitions of the MBTI categories, including a wonderful story about an E father and an I son. However, they soon veer from clarity and insight into what I can only call high-level "mush" -- paragraph upon paragraph of needless exposition and feel-good truisms. As noted in another review, Pearman and Albritton's prose is an inconsistent mix of clear, focused text and fluffy, platitude-filled philosophy on having appreciation and understanding for those different from you. While I do appreciate their emphasis -- not stereotyping others and working hard not to just understand them in an academic way, the writing is simply too "lite" and jarring with the text that is specifically MBTI-centered. When they remain on-topic about MBTI and how types interact, the book is good (though not anything drastically different/deeper than other books in the marketplace).

They do offer some very good insights into what the different types value, especially in regards to communications. This is where the book is most valuable -- as a beginning point for understanding HOW and WHY you communicate the way do, and ways to bridge differences with others. However, their many charts tend to get a bit numbing after a while, and some don't do a very good job of show clearer delineation between the 16 types. And for whatever reason, the authors completely ignore Keirsey's distinction between character and temperament; using it could have helped them carry their thesis farther and with more punch.

Worth reading -- or at least skimming -- if you really enjoy MBTI-related material, but for those new to MBTI or looking for more practical, user-friendly texts, I recommend looking into Keirsey's or Kroeger's works.

Rating:
Summary: Great Addition to Jung and Myers-Briggs
Review: I find this book to be intellectually rewarding. I have studied Character Typing alot and in college it is my major. This book helps you really understand the many facets of type and how they interact. Thanks

Rating:
Summary: Great Addition to Jung and Myers-Briggs
Review: I find this book to be intellectually rewarding. I have studied Character Typing alot and in college it is my major. This book helps you really understand the many facets of type and how they interact. Thanks

Rating:
Summary: Paradoxically fluffy and profound
Review: I think this, aside from Keirsey's, "Please Understand Me II," is probably the most useful book I've found in understanding the overarching theory and subtheories of Jungian-Briggsian personality theory. This slim volume manages to convey a number of different sub-theories of how preferences interact, from the conflicts between the Perceiving and Judging functions, to temperament. Sometimes these models can seem to conflict with each other, however, this seems to flesh out the theory more than a simple one-perspective guide ever could.

It does all of this in an oddly sketchy, yet very iNtuitive way: for each type, the profile is just a series of phrases that describe the dominant and auxiliary functions. And yet, these same sparse phrases manage to trigger lines of thought and association, that can lead to a larger understanding of just what each preference means, and how to understand their interaction in each of the sixteen types. I think, in fact, it is this exact lack of detail, that assists one in understanding personality typing in a more profound way, one that almost defies expression in words.

There is some wonderful advice (quick, and to the point) on dealing with inferior function eruptions for each type, as well as symptoms of these grip experiences (if you're interested in this aspect, supplement with Naomi Quenk's wonderful book, "Was That Really Me?" for a more in-depth look at inferior functions), so that you can diagnose yourself quickly, and find ways to correct your imbalance. There are also some wonderful suggestions on how to communicate with other types, and show them the sort of respect they most appreciate receiving. And the authors find some wonderful real-life examples in illustrating the preferences, and how they express themselves in people (I'm particularly fond of the illustration of Sensing and iNtuition).

What is unfortunate about this book is that the tone can become a bit heavy-handed, and a little too intellectually fluffy at the same time. Admonitions litter the 200 or so pages quite frequently, warning people that "personality type can be used to gain power unethically, so don't do it!" I think, in some ways, this diminishes some of the power of this book in assisting you to understand Jung's theory.

However, I think this book serves as a wonderful iNtuitive guide to understanding the whole of personality typing, in ways that most other books can't. Sometimes paradox and conflicting information can help you to understand theory far better than the a completely coherent presentation can. I don't recommend this book for Sensing types looking to learn more, but for an iNtuitive, especially an NTP or NFP, this is probably one of the best out there!

~~INTP author~~

Rating:
Summary: Spotty book on type--both brilliant and confusing
Review: Instead of just telling you that the MBTI exists and providing unsubstantiated examples, this book explains the theories behind type classification, giving you the background necessary to make justifications about the role it should play in your life. Rather than encouraging the use of type theory to put people in categories, "I'm Not Crazy..." provides the opporunity for you to broaden your understanding of the motivations behind the thoughts and actions of those that are close to you.