I'm new to Mbti, and I was wondering whether it was common for an infj to not hurt other peoples feelings on the basis of 'it hurts me to hurt someone else' rather than on just the basis of it being morally wrong? Btw love your blog! :D
Yes, you’ve hit one of the hallmarkers of what it means to be an INFJ actually. The difference you are talking about is the difference between Extroverted Feeling (Fe) and Introverted Feeling (Fi). Extroverted Feeling (what INFJs have) is about looking outwards to the emotions around you in order to make feeling judgements. We care more about the feelings in the room than we do about our own personal preferences, hence the ‘it hurts me to hurt someone else’ (and it actually feels that way to us). Introverted Feeling on the other hand, is about those personal beliefs on what is morally right or wrong. You can learn more about these traits by searching ‘Fe’ or ‘Fi’ on my blog.
Our empathy is a gift and a powerful tool, but I think we need to remember to separate ourselves from others sometimes. If someone is really stressed out, you don’t have to be stressed with them if you don’t want to. You don’t have to feel what someone else is feeling, or worry about what they are worrying about, if you don’t want to. You don’t have to let other people’s emotions ruin your inner peace. You get to decide when to be empathetic. It is in your control. It isn’t something that happens to you, but a tool in your disposal. Use it wisely.