Traits of otherness

Non-belonging

Inability to maintain friendships that entail frequent engagements

Not a member of organizations (clubs, political parties, sports teams, associations)

Does not have a social circle

Usually in the minority view

Cannot find help in support groups

Cannot identify with communal solutions to problems

Intense need for independence

Intense need for freedom from the rest

Does not need to convince the others in any personal belief

Does not seek or enjoy approval from the rest

Has profound respect for everything that was achieved individually

Difficulties with group
or communal norms

Difficulty with accepting authority - not necessarily obvious

Internally and consistently rebellious

Aversion to confrontation

Complex relationship with being different: Pseudo-extroverts

Preferring to be alone or needs a lot of down time if with a group

Cannot be a team player

Unsuccessful in establishment or corporations

No inherent respect for rules or regulations (but abides by them)

Disinterest with procedure and group process

Inability to respect any mass movement

Needs privacy to perform best

Abhors noisy places

Abhors crowded places

Free thinking

Does not accept ideas or notion without examining for oneself

Does not believe in “majority rule”

Does not believe in egalitarian doctrine or any doctrine that is not meritorious

Does not believe in any religion - atheist

Develops personal philosophy to guide their life rather than adopting one from the outside

Is naturally eclectic rather than specialized

Is not interested in popular culture

Enjoys questions more than answers

Seeks personal solutions to existential questions

A maverick: observes and operates in ways other than the traditional ones

Intense need for
privacy

Uncomfortable with physical exposure especially in public places like the beach

Do not like attention

Need to conceal oneself

Needs to obscure the current and past experiences of life by creating an “alternative narrative”

Need to control what is being presented to the others

Difficulty to reveal one's true feelings and thoughts even to close people

Need to control others' perceptions

Protective of personal views

Invents personal narratives that are meant to throw the listeners off the trail

Uncomfortable being seen from the back

Observable behaviors
and mannerism

Very polite

Considerate (at times for a fault - i.e. letting everyone pass in lines, gets “stuck” holding doors open)

Uncomfortable and somewhat awkward in groups

Mostly soft spoken

Confrontation averse

Needs a lot of “personal space”

Awkward and uncomfortable in crowded places such as elevator, lines etc

Very confident and often outgoing when “having a role” - a host, a teacher, a lecturer, wearing uniform anything that gives them a sense of being part of the group by some artificial denotation

Cannot be relaxed and themselves in public no matter how common the situation (neighborhood grocery store, coffee shops)

When in “comfortable zone” can be quite charming and funny

See where you fall on
the othernessscale™

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