Are you an ENFP – often considered the world's most “charismatic” personality?
There are 5 major signs that can help you know… but before I get to those, a little bit of background about the ENFP type and about my own ENFP discovery experience.
First, a bit about the 4 letters that make up a person’s Myers-Briggs type:
- The first letter is either an “E” or an “I.” This first position refers to whether you get your energy primarily from the outer world (“Extraversion” – yes, spelled with an “a”) or from your inner world (Introversion).
- The second letter is an “N” or an “S.” The “N”’s refers to iNtuition and “S” to Sensing. These reference how we gather data about our world. Some of us gather data by looking at patterns, themes, and the big picture. Others gather data primarily through sensory input, i.e., our 5 senses: sight, sound, touch, taste and smell.
- The third letter, “T” or “F,” refers to how we make decisions or judgments about the data we’ve gathered, either by evaluating it logically, rationally, and based on a set of standard rules that we stick to (Thinking), or by evaluating it more qualitatively, intuitively, or based on feelings, unique circumstances, or how the decision will impact people (Feeling).
- The fourth and final letter is a “P” or a “J.” “P” is for Perceiving, and means the person prefers the SENSING function (position 2), AKA: gathering information; “J” stands for Judging, which simply means that the person prefers the decision-making function (position 3), AKA: drawing conclusions about the information they've gathered.
Now, keep in mind that ALL of these are simply PREFERENCES and they are totally neutral – there’s no better or worse way to be. And sometimes we can get surprised by our results, which is what happened to me.
Years ago, I attended a Myers Briggs certification course in Florida led by Charles Martin, the author of the foremost Myers Briggs textbook. Halfway through the course, Dr. Martin himself called me to the front of the class and shared that he thought my instrument results (ENTP) were incorrect and that I was an ENFP (watch the video to hear the whole story) instead.
At first I resisted (“are you SURE, Dr. Martin? I mean, I was a MATH minor in college, you know – I love thinking!!”), but eventually I came to realize Dr. Martin had seen me more clearly than I had ever seen myself.
This discovery – and my own blindness to my own true nature – rocked my WORLD, and explained a LOT about the challenges I’d been facing in my business. It was such a powerful revelation that I decided I wanted to focus my gifts on helping OTHERS gain similar insights.
Thus began the mentoring career I continue to this day.
Once I embraced my TRUE nature, instead of pushing it away, I started to really appreciate it.
And now here are the 5 signs YOU’RE an ENFP like me!
#1 – We are often “the life of the party.”
You might be an ENFP if…
- If you find yourself often as the center of attention and LOVE to have a good time
- If people are drawn to you – and you are drawn right back
- If you like events and gatherings and social situations
- If you're loud – though rarely in an aggressive way and more often in a raucous, fun-loving way.
- If you have lots of friends and acquaintances and make new friends wherever you go.
#2 – ENFPs are future-focused lovers of humanity.
We see the world as an abundance of possibilities, and we tend to like ALL of the possibilities… more than we could ever pursue in one lifetime – though we often TRY anyway.
In particular, we love to look at possibilities and ideas and ways in which people can be served, helped, and uplifted.
#3 – We are rebellious.
We prefer to create our own rules. People might say we “color outside the lines” and “think outside the box.”
#4 – We’re messy, distractible and sometimes (oftentimes) indecisive.
We can be disorganized and disheveled. We tend to lose things and are often late to appointments and meetings – probably because we're so busy focusing on all those amazing ideas and possibilities that we want to pursue! This means it can be hard for us to choose – because we see the amazing possibilities in everything (see #1).
#5 – We get bored easily.
We like new people, new places, and new experiences. Which means we can often move from one thing to the next pretty quickly.
So while we LOVE people, we can sometimes lose touch and form superficial relationships, rather than deep ones. This is more likely to happen when we’re stressed, anxious, or worried.
At our best, however, we are loyal and loving friends.
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If this intrigued you or interests you or you see yourself in this description, check out the Monetize Your Magic Playbook. A free guide for how you can align what you do with who you really are especially if you're an ENFP like I am!
Enjoy.
Michelle