The ENFJ Helpline is now open.
Feel free to ask me anything and everything relating to the ENFJ personality type.
Here are a few tidbits to consider about ENFJs that may answer your question:
ENFJ
The Crusader, The Teacher, The Mentor, The Protector, The Visionary
Dominant Function: Extroverted Feeling allows a person to adjust their behavior to the needs of others. Is it the ability to relate and the desire to connect with others with warmth and consideration. It draws others out and responds to expressed or unexpressed needs.
Secondary Function: Introverted Intuition allows a person to have a sense about the future. It is the ability to grasp and get a sense of a pattern or plan. Information that is usually hard to understand and dissect is easily processed through Introverted Intuition.
Tertiary Function: Extraverted Sensing allows a person to process life through their experiences. It is the ability to be keen to what is seen, smelled, touched, heard and tasted. It is energized by experience and it is able to live "in the moment."
Inferior Function: Introverted Thinking allows a person to categorize and analyze data. It is the ability to identify inconsistencies, know how things work and problem-solve.
- Rated by psychologists among 2 types least likely to have trouble in school.
- In national sample "Leisure Activities," overrepresented in "Appreciating art," "Writing," "Listening to music," and "Reading"
- Underrepresented in "Watching TV 3 or more hours per day."
- Academic subjects preferred: art, English, music.
- Among 3 highest types in national sample liking work environments with "Variety of tasks," "Teamwork," and "People from a variety of backgrounds."
- Include in 3 most desirable characteristics "Independence and achievement."
- Most important feature of an ideal job: "Use of my special abilities."
- In national sample, were among those most satisfied with their work, where they work, but likely to leave job.
- In national sample, greatest work environment satisfiers are "People I work with," "Opportunities to use talents," "Opportunity to learn," "Job security," "Amount of responsibility," and "Opportunity for societal contribution."
- Greatest dissatisfiers were "Promotions" and "Salary."
- Highest ranks on coping resources used were social and cognitive (ranked 3rd on both among the 16 types); ranked 3rd in total resources of the 16 types.
- In national sample, highest in coping with stress by "Exercising."
- In national sample, ranked highest in "Belief in a higher spiritual power."
[*] Good verbal communication skills
[*] Very perceptive about people's thoughts and motives
[*] Motivational, inspirational; bring out the best in others
[*] Warmly affectionate and affirming
[*] Fun to be with - lively sense of humor, dramatic, energetic, optimistic
[*] Good money skills
[*] Able to "move on" after a love relationship has failed (although they blame themselves)
[*] Loyal and committed - they want lifelong relationships
[*] Strive for "win-win" situations
[*] Driven to meet other's needs
Most ENFJs will exhibit the following weaknesses with regards to relationships issues:
[*] Tendency to be smothering and over-protective
[*] Tendency to be controling and/or manipulative
[*] Don't pay enough attention to their own needs
[*] Tend to be critical of opinions and attitudes which don't match their own
[*] Sometimes unaware of social appropriateness or protocol
[*] Extremely sensitive to conflict, with a tendency to sweep things under the rug as an avoidance tactic
[*] Tendency to blame themselves when things go wrong, and not give themselves credit when things go right
[*] Their sharply defined value systems make them unbending in some areas
[*] They may be so attuned to what is socially accepted or expected that they're unable to assess whether something is "right" or "wrong" outside of what their social circle expects.
ENFJs are idealist organizers, driven to implement their vision of what is best for humanity. They often act as catalysts for human growth because of their ability to see potential in other people and their charisma in persuading others to their ideas. Talkative and expressive, ENFJs are adept communicators and are motivated to understand and please other people. They enjoy talking about relationships and sharing their insights about people, their emotions, and their motivations. ENFJs like to be liked and are very sensitive to feedback, both positive and negative; they take criticism quite personally. They expect the best not just from themselves, but from others as well, and tend to idealize relationships. ENFJs often play host or hostess, energetically engaging everyone in the group and making sure that a good time is had by all. They are very responsive to the emotional state of others; while their empathy is often an asset, engaging with others can also become overwhelming for the ENFJ. More than other Extroverted types, they need time alone, away from the demands of serving and caring for others.
Popular hobbies for the ENFJ include organizing social events, reading, the arts, museums, storytelling, listening to music, writing, playing games, and gourmet cooking.
At work, the ENFJ is motivated to organize others to implement positive social change. ENFJs are often found in leadership roles; they enjoy being able to use their creativity to develop innovative initiatives with a humanitarian goal, and they want to have the organizational resources to put their ideas into action. They are enthusiastic problem-solvers, especially when they can put their strong intuition about people to good use. They strive for cooperation and work best in a harmonious environment where they can encourage the growth of others. The ideal work environment for an ENFJ is forward-thinking and people-centered, with a clear humanitarian mission and an emphasis on constructive action. The ideal job for an ENFJ allows them to develop and implement ideas that improve the circumstances and well-being of other people.
In leadership posiitons, ENFJs are enthusiastic, supportive, and action-oriented. They are strong leaders with clear ideas about how to improve organizations to better serve the needs of people. Although they are confident in their mission and goals, they are also concerned with cooperation, and are dedicated in pursuing the support of the people involved. They want others on board, in action and in spirit. ENFJs often take on a mentorship role; they want to help their colleagues develop as workers and as people. Although ENFJs are natural leaders, they can become discouraged in environments with ongoing conflict. They have a strong need to be liked and can become drained and ineffective in positions where they are not able to elicit support for their ideas and values.
Popular careers for an ENFJ include:
- journalist/writer
- politician
- interior designer
- psychologist
- career counselor
- teacher
- dean of students
- social worker
- librarian
- copywriter
- magazine editor
- public relations specialist
- community service director
- nonprofit organization director
- public health educator
- human resources recruiter
- customer relations manager
- corporate trainer
- entertainer
- craft artist
- graphic artist
- minister
- chiropractor
- nutritionist
- speech pathologist
- event planner
- travel agent
Good matches for an ENFJ include other Intuitive Feeling types (ENFJ, INFJ, ENFP, INFP). Intuitive Feelers paired together have one of the highest couple satisfaction rates of all possible combinations. ENFJs also have high satisfaction rates when paired with ESFJ and ISFJ partners.
As parents, ENFJs take an active and enthusiastic role in guiding the development of their children, setting forth clear ideas of right and wrong in a warm and supportive way. ENFJ parents are clear in their expectations and consistent in reinforcement. Because ENFJ parents have such a clear idea of proper behavior, they can take their children’s misbehavior personally, feeling that they have failed as parents; children who perceive this can take on feelings of guilt at not meeting their parent’s expectations.
Famous ENFJs include Oprah Winfrey, Abraham Lincoln, Pope John Paul II, Margaret Mead, Ronald Reagan, King David of Israel, Ralph Nader, Dick Van Dyke, Abraham Maslow, Dr. Phil McGraw, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Interesting facts about the ENFJ:
- On personality trait scales, scored as Active, Pleasant, Sociable, Demanding, Impatient, Appreciative, and Compromising
- Most likely of all types to cope with stress by exercising
- Most likely of all types to believe in a higher spiritual power
- Ranked by psychologists as among least likely to have trouble in school
- Personal values include Friendships, Education & Learning, Creativity, and Community Service
- Among types highest in job satisfaction, but also among most likely to report plans to leave their jobs
- Commonly found in careers in religion, teaching, and the arts
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