People Watching

[NaeturVindur]

This activity strikes me as something that is classically INFJ-like. Watching people, figuring out what makes them tick, ammusing ourselves by making all sorts of assumptions about people we've never met, and basically never getting involved. So, how good is my generalization? How many of y'all do it?

And maybe the more significant questions: where's the line between people-watching and creeping on people and then stalking? and what do you do when you find yourself invovled?

Going to college and spending exuberant amounts of time on campus, in my people watching I would notice certain people over and over again. I would naturally get a little intrigued and simply remember some details about how they act and what they do. however, I (almost) always draw the line at going out of my way to discover something about someone (the almost here for times where I react with "I know you from somewhere other than people watching, how do I know you" and then I persue that line of thought). This has led to a few times me actually meeting someone for the first time, and already knowing some tidbits about them, and, as they had already piqued my curiosity, there are probably a few things I want to ask ("for the love of all things good and silly what is you sexual oritentation???"). Then I find myself in a dilema of how to proceed, and how to ask my questions without coming across as some sort of stalker or rudely curious (or incredibly flirtatious with someone I'm not actually interested in). anyone else have experiences like this, or am I just crazy/actually a creeper?

 

[jyrffw54]

Kekekekekeke

I am very guilty of all of the above. This is something my favorite istj and I like to do during our lunch break...except she likes to call it being creepy lol.

 

[JGirl]

i think the difference between people watching and creeping on them is the intent of the person doing the watching. however, if you intentionally follow someone around to watch them, then yeah that's creeping maybe even a slight stalking lol

i am a voyeur by my own admission. Not that i'm preoccupied with watching people have sex or anything lol - voyeurism is deep curiosity about all aspects of human behavior. at least to me it is.

to be honest i see others as totally different creatures than myself. i watch them as an outsider would. i always have and probably always will.
i find them (us) amazing and terrifying.

 

[Sriracha]

I love people watching. I think anyone who sits in an airport for any length of time is guilty of observing people. lol I love observing how people walk.

 

[sevenx]

I am almost the complete opposite...I pay NO attention to people in the room and hardly look at anyone I don't know.

 

[the]

Kekekekekeke

I am very guilty of all of the above. This is something my favorite istj and I like to do during our lunch break...except she likes to call it being creepy lol.

I also call it being creepy.

 

[Tin Man]

I don't watch people but I do sometimes...well I wouldn't call it stalking...but yeah, I guess it's stalking. I follow people, observe their daily routine and the choices they make. It's interesting if slightly creepy.

 

[MindYourHead]

I love people watching. I think anyone who sits in an airport for any length of time is guilty of observing people. lol I love observing how people walk.

Same here.
I then wonder what others think when they observe me.

 

[Sriracha]

Same here.
I then wonder what others think when they observe me.

Then shake what cho mama gave you!

 

[linger]

i think the difference between people watching and creeping on them is the intent of the person doing the watching. however, if you intentionally follow someone around to watch them, then yeah that's creeping maybe even a slight stalking lol

i am a voyeur by my own admission. Not that i'm preoccupied with watching people have sex or anything lol - voyeurism is deep curiosity about all aspects of human behavior. at least to me it is.

to be honest i see others as totally different creatures than myself. i watch them as an outsider would. i always have and probably always will.
i find them (us) amazing and terrifying.

This )

 

[Lemonworld]

When I used to take my grandparents shopping, I'd sit with my grandpa and we'd eat ice-cream and people watch. He would observe so little many idiosyncrasies about people, all of it hilarious and bizarre. Makes me miss my grandpa. Those were pretty good times.

I'm not as observant as he was. I always have my head in a book wherever I go, and miss a lot of the finer details. It's still fun, though. You can easily spend an entire afternoon just people watching, if you have the right company.

 

[Jana]

I do this Public transportation is good place. It is funy how much elements one can pick up by glances. I wonder how much of my impressions are true. Sometimes I get strong feeling of feeling sorry for someone. There are some people who look so troubled or sad. On the other hand, sometimes shows up someone really beautiful.

 

[Blackmountainside]

i am very drawn to looking at certain people. it’s the way some people carry their emotions and thoughts. like finding hidden treasure. (usuallly, i have no desire to learn names, occupation, how clever they are -- that sort of thing). just drawn to the feeling. and sometimes they see you at the same time. and it’s as if both have been ‘caught’ ---- exposed, but you keep staring anyway, and you don’t care.

such a nice feeling.

 

[Solongo]

I think this is a natural trait that many mature INFJs posess. The reason i say mature is because younger INFJs can have a tendency to brood within themselves and get lost within their own psychology. But once you mature a little and are not so wrapped up in your own thoughts; you realize you can use the introspective analysis on other people. Also the N function does not go away and is always there making INFJs sensitive to other people's behaviors and overall psychology. In some ways thats why INFJs can make the best of counselors. We can dig deep, very deep. How you use it is obviously up to you but i am always psychologically profiling everyone around me and everyone i meet. I used to feel uncomfortable having knowledge about others in this way because it does feel rather intimate. However I started to own it and now i just use it like any tool.