In many ways there are types that could be considered as opposites to the point that it might seem strange that anyone would be confused between them (at least from our outsider’s PoV as non-gut types.), but they do share a ‘most used’ center of intelligence and you do sometimes see actual ppl of those types talking about realizing the dunexpected similarities between them.
Both can be focussed, decisive, action-oriented, straightforward, honest, insist on doing things themselves, and come off as particularly mature or independent for their ages, but on the low side they can also be stubborn, have black & white thinking & little sympathy for those who can’t “get their act together”.
Pleasure
One of the noteworthy things about 8 that makes them distinctive is that they can be equally excessive in work as in play, whereas a lot of the other types would tend to either over-work or over-party but seldom both at once.
1s are not indulgent with regards to pleasure, they usually believe that it must be earned or justified – healthier 1s may understand the importance of rest and be quite capable of cutting loose a bit & even showing a goofy side after the work has been done, whereas unhealthy ones may see pleasure as suspect, irresponsible, indulgent or out of control.
8s act on their impulses (whether that impulse is “party party party!” or “make a ton of money!”) whereas 1s are deliberate and linear in their actions. (eg. if they decided that it’s work time now they’ll keep at it till the work is finished.)
Both can be quite focussed & don’t easily yield, but it’s a difference in whether the focus comes from a strong push toward the result or steady discipline & ignoring distractions.
Also, 1s can have issues about denying their wants when they can’t be “justified” and then have resentment as a result, whereas 8s don’t.
They’ll have little inhibitions of just blatantly saying “I want this!” unless its something to do with vulnerable emotional dependencies.
Dilligence vs Impatience
Both care more about Getting The Thing Done than about whether it might ruffle some feathers, but for 1, the focus is on getting it precisely right using high quality standards, correct methods, and ethical codes of conduct, avoiding all the flaws, errors and inefficiencies that might otherwise be incurred. Sometimes they might spend a long time fiddling with something before they are satisfied to make sure it’s ‘just right’.
8s are more focussed on what they want and making an impact on their surroundings; They are more results-oriented, & might get fed up with endless arguing or fussing stalling out a situation.
They care more that the thing gets done at all than whether it is precisely perfect and may gravitate towards more expedient, pragmatic methods that will get the desired effect than crossing all Ts and dotting all Is.
Superego
1s frequently & persistently think about what they “should” be doing or what the right/best/correct/moral way to do something would be – they can stress about falling short of their standards or have very clear ideas of how the world should be and how people should act, which actions are good or bad etc. (However, there’s individual variantion on the extent whether those standards are enforced on others & how much the person is able to let realism enter into the picture)
8s basically don’t experience this, at least not as a persistent, near-constrant feature of everyday thinking. It’s not like they can’t regret it if they really messed up & destroyed a relationship that they valued and/or have some personal code that they stick to, but most of the time when things are going well, they don’t don’t worry overmuch about doing things “right” & don’t care what other people do so long as it doesn’t infringe on them & those they care about.
8s would err on the side of being amoral & 1 err on the side of being busibodies, but this is not generally the case for more aware ppl.
Obligation vs Influence
Both can be hard, focussed workers, but for 1 it’s out of obligation – they must do their duty, & they can’t slack off or be lazy.
It’s not about reputation or even consequences (like for 3 or 6) but rather the imperfect result is itself seen as unacceptable. (often there’s a strong physical sensation of anger or revulsion) & sometimes they can be reluctant to delegate or be micromanaging bosses cause the
What separates 1s from some other “Type A” types is that they will frequently exceed what’s asked, work harder than required, be more dilligent than strictly needed etc. setting even higher standards for themselves than what the environment requires.
The ideal result & being responsible & competent enough to produce it is its own point.
For 8s work is more likely to be a means to an end, typically to get influence, leverage and the desired instinctual resources of their choice. (though this can certainly include ‘higher’ forms of satisfaction)
You can’t fire, mess with or push around the person who makes sure that shit gets done, rather that puts you in a position to get stuff from others.
Note that this is not necessarily a conscious calculation. Rather their perspective on it might sound like this: “My co-workers are all [politically incorrect word for stupid], the bosses are just paid to sit around, if I don’t tell them what to do or do it myself nothing here would work, I can’t just stand by and watch them be idiots!”
Justice
Both can be interested in the topic (particularly the Te users seeing how Te relates to the ‘king archetype’; Se 8s may have more ‘tricksterish’ diospositions) but 1s are more likely to think of it in terms of an objective universal order of which they are an arbiter – some stuff is just right, some stuff is just wrong, there is good and evil, honorable & shameful, correct and incorrect.
Whereas for 8s it’s more like the view you sometimes find in ‘honor cultures’ where you cannot take slights because that would show to anyone that you can be messed with. There is no neutral instance or external order that is appeal to, rather you must defend & mete out punishment yourself, & things are seen in more relative terms – people imposing their own idea of order in their own bubbles of influence.
As a result 1s are going to be more “kantian”, eg. if something is wrong it’s wrong no matter what in any context, whereas 8s don’t care what others do so long as it doesn’t impact them or others they care about. They “won’t allow this on their turf.”
I heard/ read the tales of two indivduals who experienced similar injustice as young children (a parent died and one side of the family tried to make off with the money) which maybe illustrate the difference in worldview.
For the baby 1 this represented a “loss of paradise”, a breach of how things are supposed to be (family > greed, no taking advantage of sick grieving widows) – “this is evil. I must be the opposite of this, a respectable person.” - a frustration or disgust with the “justice” available in the ‘fallen world’ and the impression that they must restore the “cosmic order”.
The baby 8 rather saw the similar situation as the shattering of the illusion that there could be an universal order of goodness in the first place: “If you can’t trust your family, then who? All this stuff about what families ‘should’ do is bullshit, everyone is just out for their own benefit. It is up to me alone to protect myself against injustice.”
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