\\ I'm an ENFP Personality! //

A while back, I discovered the 16 Personalities site, where you can take a free online test to identify your personality type. I came across the link to the site on my Facebook feed, and thought it would be another one of those rubbish 'Which Friends Character Are You?' things, but it turns out the research is based on an actual psychological theory by Carl Jung. The test, called the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test (or MBTI for short), takes about ten minutes, and consists of simple questions such as 'You find it easy to introduce yourself to other people, agree or disagree?' You don't have to sign up or register, and the whole thing takes about ten minutes. When you're done, you'll be amazed how accurate the results are.


You will be identified as one of sixteen personality types, hence the site name, and there will be reams of information waiting for you upon completion about what it means. I, for instance, am an ENFP personality type - Extraverted, Intuitive, Feeling and Perceptive. Referred to as "The Campaigner" personality type, this means I have hippy-esque traits, and largely, I go against the grain. What amazed me most was, when my family members took the test, they all got different personality types. My dad, interestingly, is a "Sentinel," the type that values tradition, order, and loyalty over all things.

THE ENFP PERSONALITY TYPE
According to the data, my strengths include:

  1. Curiosity. "ENFPs want to go out and experience things, and don't hesitate to step out of their comfort zones to do so. ENFPs are imaginative and open-minded, seeing all things as part of a big, mysterious puzzle called life." (Example: my experience with NCS, where I tried every possible activity and loved it.)
  2. Observational skills. "ENFPs believe that there are no irrelevant actions, that every shift in sentiment, every move and every idea is part of something bigger. To satisfy their curiosity, ENFPs try to notice all of these things, and to never miss a moment." (Example: I try to read people a lot, especially those that are close to me. Sometimes I'm wrong, but it shows that I am always trying to understand things.)
  3. Energy and enthusiasm. "As they observe, forming new connections and ideas, ENFPs won't hold their tongues – they're excited about their findings, and share them with anyone who'll listen. This infectious enthusiasm has the dual benefit of giving ENFPs a chance to make more social connections, and of giving them a new source of information and experience." (Example: This blog post!)
  4. Excellent communication skills. "It's a good thing that ENFPs have such strong people skills, or they'd never express these ideas. ENFPs enjoy both small talk and deep, meaningful conversations, which are just two sides of the same coin for them, and are adept at steering conversations towards their desired subjects in ways that feel completely natural and unforced." (I could talk for hours with someone I care about. Sometimes I don't care about the topic, it's enough to just be spending time with a person.)
  5. You know how to relax. "People with this personality type know that sometimes, nothing is as important as simply having fun and experiencing life's joys. Wild bursts of enthusiastic energy can surprise even their closest friends." (I love to relax, I pretty much do nothing else. Whereas my sister is really preppy, studious, organised and just generally together, I leave things until the last minute and usually suffer as a result.)
  6. Friendly. "All this adaptability and spontaneity comes together to form a person who is approachable, interesting and exciting, with a cooperative and altruistic spirit and friendly, empathetic disposition."

I mean, those traits are like a blogger personified - how can I argue with them? It's evident that this research is founded on something good! Ordinarily, I wouldn't call myself an energetic person, but I am enthusiastic when it comes to things I really want to happen. As for my weaknesses...
  1. Poor practical skills. "When it comes to conceiving ideas and starting projects, especially involving other people, ENFPs have exceptional talent. Unfortunately their skill with upkeep and follow-through on those projects struggles. Without more hands-on people to help push things along, ENFPs' ideas are likely to remain just that – ideas. (Example: I hated practical subjects at school, and I've always enjoyed more literary pursuits, where my ideas can be put onto paper, and not constructed into some type of physical thing like a wooden stereo.)
  2. Find it difficult to focus. "ENFPs are natural explorers of interpersonal connections and philosophy, but this backfires when what needs to be done is that report sitting right in front of them. It's hard for ENFPs to maintain interest." (If it doesn't interest me, I won't pay attention. I'd rather be in my own head.)
  3. Overthinking. "ENFPs look for underlying motives in even the simplest things. It's not uncommon for ENFPs to lose a bit of sleep asking themselves why someone did what they did, what it might mean, and what to do about it." (See point 2 of Strengths.)
  4. Get stressed easily. "ENFPs are very sensitive, and care deeply about others' feelings. A consequence of their popularity is that others often look to them for guidance and help, which takes time, and it's easy to see why ENFPs sometimes get overwhelmed, especially when they can't say yes to every request." (I experienced this at college. The times when I got most emotional were when I had to let someone down or say no to them.)
  5. Highly emotional. "ENFPs view emotion as a core part of their identity. It can come out strongly enough to cause problems for this personality type; particularly when under stress, criticism or conflict, ENFPs can experience emotional bursts that are counter-productive at best." 
  6. Independent to a fault. "ENFPs loathe being micromanaged and restrained by heavy-handed rules – they want to be seen as highly independent masters of their own fates, even possessors of an altruistic wisdom that goes beyond draconian law. The challenge for ENFPs is that they live in a world of checks and balances, a pill they are not happy to swallow."
Well, you only have to read my political posts to see the last two points are true. Someday, it turns out, these traits might help or hinder me in my career (and the same goes for you). Some companies are already using the test, or a similar version, to see what kind of employee you would be. According to the research, my traits mean I am more likely to pursue a career as a Musician, Journalist, Marketing Consultant, Advertising Director, Teacher of Music or Drama, or Photographer. Most of which I have considered in the past, and some of which I am currently pursuing. Kind of amazing.

One day, it could even help people resolve differences. Apparently, my personality type makes up around 7-8% of the population, and that's a lot of people to bring around to your way of thinking. Knowing each others' strengths and weaknesses means you can empathise and compromise, and that's what I believe is most valuable about this information. So take the test, you might even learn something about yourself! More and more people know which personality type they are! For example, YouTuber Hannah Witton is a fellow ENFP!


Information from 16personalities.com. Inspired by this article on elephantjournal.com.

Comments

Popular Posts

There's More!

I have a glitch on my blog at the moment that's deleting all the posts from my main page, but there's plenty more available in the Archive, search bar or 'Older Posts' buttons.

MB x