The Choir of the Psyche

Hi.
I'll start this out with a quote:

It soon becomes apparent to any man or woman with developing faculties that their own nature is multiple, and that they cannot easily speak for all parts of themselves at once. We are not a single instinct, impulse or motivation. Always there are lesser motivations under our wing and the process of maturation brings these other facets into view. We are a choir, formed through the joined effort of plural operations, each of which is a part of "I" and holds a right over our identity.

Why then do we only speak in one voice?

Singleness of development, in any type, is due to the gridlock that the primary function holds over the psyche to begin with. In order for the other functions to grow, their voice must be acknowledged and their energy must be integrated into the ego. In doing so, all of the talents and powers of each new function that is integrated, become accessible to the primary function. In this way, the primary function is actually heavily augmented by this new gain --- in creative insight, productive capacity, breadth of perspective and precision of concept.

This is not to imply that there is an "ought" involved in our life purpose due to our nature. I can no more claim that the internally integrated man and the man of singleness-of-mind are better than one another, than I can claim that order is preferable to chaos. However, my own inner plurality would simultaneously admit that alongside this voice is another which very much supports the development of people into higher levels of personal actualization and sees the single-minded as lacking many precious elements of himself, which are also crucial to any pursuits he may wish to achieve.

• I. The process of disassembling the singular hierarchy:
  
  If a person is in a one-sided developmental state, what is happening is the lower functions *are* operating, but without truly manifesting their individual potential. It's the equivalent of working at an office where all workers pass their work to the boss and the boss makes the final call and always speaks for the entire office. The process of a developed hierarchy is more similar to a round-table discussion in its structure:
  
  
  
  If you've ever watched Criminal Minds, the show is a great example of the type of complimentary work done by employing specialized elements (persons) into a whole/team. The more familiar the team is with itself, the more successful they are able to function. The psyche of even a single person is itself a smaller-scale replica of this arrangement, and requires a level of kinship/friendship among processes in order to produce peak performance.
  
  
  • A. The acknowledgement of our Facets:
    Becoming aware of our cognitive functions is a critical first step, which itself takes a lot of work. Vultology isn't the first or only method to do this, but certainly offers another useful tool to the table. The important voices in us may also not be limited to our cognitive functions, as often times other mental operations demand notice. Now, because the structure of the psyche is still very much debated, I will leave open what these possible voices are. I only encourage that there be an acknowledgement of this plurality --- however it may manifest in you personally.
    
    This is not an exercise to find the absolute truth of every human psyche's structure, but to discover yours. Meditate on your impulses, and list out all the various motivations you have. Try to discover the roots underpinning some of those clusters of motivations and see if you can't momentarily exist just as that facet. What first begins as a vague feeling --- rising out of a formerly suppressed or dominated place --- may quickly come to form complete thoughts and beliefs. Write out those beliefs if you can, or give them some avenue of expression.
    
    
  • B. Dialogue
    When you next encounter an important situation, where you feel internally conflicted and are aiming to bottleneck yourself into a singular voice; do the opposite. Fragment your voice. Whether in a journal, in the mirror or on a private online blog, speak out each voice in all of its righteousness. What this means, practically, is talking to yourself by hopping from one mindset to another -- while speaking each person's mindset in its most uncompromised and undiluted voice. Use this to learn where the full range of your ideas lie, and what the true spectrum of your thoughts are.
    
    If you don't fragment your voice this way, each side/opinion in you will remain a muffled background emotion. A person without this fragmentation has their voices in their unconscious, and when a difficult situation presents itself they try their best to estimate their own needs and best course of action using a haphazard methodology of self-reflection. Fragmentation allows for the entire debate to be laid bare before you, and in doing so you also become aware of the true extent of your needs.
    
    A part of you may retaliate saying it disapproves of a course of action because it compromises this or that freedom of yours. Another part of you may counter, saying it desires for so-and-so stability. The specifics will be contingent on the situation.
    
    
  • C. Integration
    Now, without taking away the voice of any of those facets, develop from this dialogue an intelligent compromise -- with the ideal goal being a harmonization that neglects nobody's needs. Perhaps, have a mediator Voice in the discussion as well, and have hir be the entity that holds the compromise in place. But more importantly, use whatever method feels right to you. This outline is just a sketch of what the process may look like.
    
• II. Tactfulness & the Development of Strategies
  
  Once you understand your mental landscape, you can begin coordinating more sophisticated maneuvers. Giving your Fe articulation a personal flare of Ne, while not crossing the bounds of what you remember is unacceptable (Si). Or presenting Ti's information in a way that is socially radical or impactful (directive Fe) and coordinating a community that is ultimately based on a pursuit for clarity (Ti). These sort of maneuvers cannot be done without very on-point collaboration between different functions.
  
  I am in the midst of this artform myself, but there is a whole world here that remains untapped and unexplored; How to use functions together to create compound effects/strategies.
  
  These are the sort of results we collectively yield when we say (of a product or production/artwork/writing):
  "it's polished, but not sterile.... intelligent and sophisticated but passionate... user-friendly but with a depth which veterans appreciate"
  
  You'll need your entire orchestra to produce a masterful symphony; you.
  
  
  

How do you experience your own inner plurality?
Please feel free to share anything you feel comfortable with.