I'm starting to think I might be an ENFJ | Page 10 | INFJ Forum

I'm starting to think I might be an ENFJ

Morgan said:
Do you get energized around people?
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Around the right people, absolutely.

Keep in mind that dominant Fe wants to help others and has a clear sense of how it feels things should be. When Fe has to fight to make things right, this can be very exhausting because not only do we not gain the extroverted recharge from others, we are contending with something using one of the most draining functions - Feeling. The more we use Fe to make things right, the more drained we will feel.

However, when I can enjoy the company of people whom I feel compelled to 'help', I can soak in their energy and it recharges me much more than when I am alone, which generally does nothing for me other than let me recuperate from the drain of battling all that is wrong in the world. It doesn't charge me. It just makes me able to accept a recharge when I am with good friends.

Morgan said:
Wich mode is the most comfortable for you?
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That's a very tough question, and has been since I have found MBTI. I'm equally comfortable with both. This tells me that I'm an extrovert, because INFJs are generally not so comfortable with socializing as I am. In fact, I enjoy it when I'm not spending energy to undo the 'wrongs' of the world.

Morgan said:
But INFJ's are also described as activists who are there for the cause and fight for what they think is right. while ENFJ's built there world around people and I think there ability to see the inner needs and desires of others ensure that there own believes and feelings are inferior to the believes and feelings of others. (http://typelogic.com/enfj.html) That is the way I feel it. When I'm in Fe mode I give up my own believes because I begin to believe that others always have a point and I try to live up to there needs and demands. It is only in Ni mode that my own believes are dominant again. Or am I wrong? :))
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You are not wrong. But, keep in mind that the real difference between INFJs and ENFJs is introversion and extroversion, as it is described in each test. The MBTI is not a magic trick. It asks very simple questions about introversion and extroversion preference. These are what make the difference between an ENFJ and an INFJ. There is nothing mystical about it. NFJs are very similar creatures with very similar motivations, approaches, and goals. The only real difference is how they go about these things. When introverted, Ni leads Fe by coming to conclusions that Fe supports by believing what Ni sees. When extroverted Fe leads Ni finds truths to support what Fe believes.

Morgan said:
I think you are INFJ :)
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I think I am very close to an INFJ because of my similar function preference, but I believe I am an ENFJ, and so are you. I don't think an INFJ would be accused of being overbearing as you have. That's more of an ENFJ thing.

Morgan said:
thanks for sharing your struggle, It helps me a lot in understanding myself!
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You are welcome! I am sharing this only to help others who might be doing the same, or those who might know someone who is. I am glad it is appreciated.
 
I'm starting to believe that it is not uncommon for ENFJs to be ambiverted because even thought ENFJs have a dominant Fe, Ni is a great partner to it and once someone begins to use Ni to support Fe, the two work together very well.

I am seeing how I use Ni as a spotlight when I am interested in something due to my Fe. When I feel something is 'off', I will focus on it with my intuition. It's kind of like having x-ray vision whenever I want it, so I've learned to rely on it rather heavily. Why wouldn't someone use this a lot if they had it? But in hindsight, I generally only use it with respect to whatever my Fe is focused on.

My Ni is generally only free to roam when I get too tired to operate Fe any longer - when I'm sleeping, falling asleep, or just woke up. At those moments, I can come to some very interesting insights that seem very unrelated to anything else - but even so, the majority of the time, my Ni insights are related to my Fe points of interest. They're just an angle I would never have considered otherwise.

For example, if someone asked my INFJ friend where they left their keys, she would pretty quickly just pop out an answer that is usually correct. For me to do the same, I first have to develop an emotional investment in the person's dilemma with my Fe (which is usually reflexive), then stop thinking about where I feel the keys might be. Only then does my Ni pop out the answer, though it is usually correct. This is how I know I am Fe > Ni, and not the other way around. My Ni doesn't go first. It is second to my Fe, but I have figured out how to push my Fe aside to allow it to work in many cases, so long as my Fe isn't overwhelming me.

Because of this wonderful gift of secondary Ni, I think it is not uncommon for ENFJs to develop ambiverted personalities by a natural urge to develop it heavily as an advantage that supports our primary function - Fe. And therefore, it is likely that a lot of us who are experiencing this phenomena that I've been writing about for pages and pages of thread are more likely to be well developed ENFJs than the other way around. When Fe supports Ni, it tends to cradle it more, acting as a bolster, and therefore INFJs are less likely to develop into ambiverts, and more likely into people with a strong Ni and a solid sense of who they are and what they want to do - leaving them still introverted but capable, amazingly insightful, wonderfully helpful people that are much more flexible than us ENFJs.
 
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Cognitive Process
Level of Development
(Preference, Skill and Frequency of Use)

extraverted Feeling (Fe) ******************************************* (43.3)
excellent use
introverted Intuiting (Ni) ***************************************** (41.1)
excellent use
introverted Feeling (Fi) ************************************ (36.2)
excellent use
extraverted Intuiting (Ne) ******************************** (33.9)
good use
extraverted Sensing (Se) ***************************** (29.1)
average use
introverted Thinking (Ti) ************************ (24.8)
average use
extraverted Thinking (Te) ********************* (21.7)
limited use
introverted Sensing (Si) ******************* (19.9)
limited use

Summary Analysis of Profile
By focusing on the strongest configuration of cognitive processes, your pattern of responses most closely matches individuals of this type: INFJ

Lead (Dominant) Process
Introverted Intuiting (Ni): Transforming with a meta-perspective. Withdrawing from the world and focusing your mind to receive an insight or realization. Checking if synergy results. Trying out a realization to transform things.

Support (Auxilliary) Process
Extraverted Feeling (Fe): Building trust through giving relationships. Empathically responding to others' needs and take on their needs and values as your own. Checking for respect and trust. Giving and receiving support to grow closer to people.

If these cognitive processes don't fit well then consider these types: ENFJ, or INFP


I'm not sure exactly how this quiz takes Fe > Ni > Se > Ti and comes up with INFJ, but either I'm subconsciously leaning toward an ENFJ result, or now that I'm feeling healthier and less stressed, I'm shifting back to my normal state. I'm assuming this is the case, because my primary and shadow functions have a very clear lean to them, as per the cognitive preference model.
 
Defining Fe

Extroverted Feeling is a bit of a mystery to a lot of writers and theorists it seems. Many writers contradict one another, and there is a great deal of overlap with the definitions of introverted Feeling (Fi).

I'm going to post my sense of Fe here.

Fe is right brained externalized reasoning.

As such, it has a perspective that is unique to the individual, but a focus that is quite specific to those who use it. In other words, the reason F functions are so hard to define is that they are nebulously self defined because they tie into the emotions of the owner, as opposed to the logic and reason of the owner. While logic can build and branch, emotions are not so simple, and each person can change their approach radically based on emotional reactions.

Here are some traits common to Fe...

- Building trust through giving relationships.

- Giving and receiving support to grow closer to people.

- Empathic understanding of others.

- Artistic ability, visual, literary, or musical.

- Abstract reasoning with respect to how things relate, often on an emotional or philosophical level.

Now, here's the issue with the definitions of Fe that you have to watch out for... Because Fe is so nebulous, it is often defined through its tandem effect with Ni or Si. Because Si is so much more common, the definition of Fe is very often SFJ-centric, focusing on cultural norms, social language, expected behaviors, and the like that are in no way indicative of how Fe pairs with Ni. Be careful when reading definitions of Fe for that reason. Ni and Si are drastically dissimilar. When Ni pairs with Fe, these notions of cultural expectations become broader as Ni brings with it an intense amount of pattern recognition.

Fe + Si will likely tell you "Hello" every time they see you, using a culturally established greeting to express the need to "Build trust through giving relationships". Because Si sees the world through these very left brained expectations, Fe + Si uses them as tools to establish and build stronger relationships.

Fe + Ni will likely take one look at you and assess your emotional needs and then offer you what you seem like you need most in that moment, and possibly offer you an outside the box greeting, ranging from a warm moment of eye contact to an ambush of hugs and snuggles or simply a concerned "Are you okay?" Fe + Ni will generally only offer a culturally expected greeting if that is what the person truly needs. Fe + Ni uses sincerity in the moment to "Build trust through giving relationships".

However, the most important thing to understand about Fe is that it is not primarily focused on interpersonal relationships. Most of the literature devoted to the definition of Fe focuses on this topic because it is the most obvious trait with respect to personality, and how personalities interact. But, limiting Fe to this role truly trivializes its power.

Extraverted Feeling is the right brained counterpart to Extraverted Thinking.

While Te sees how things relate on a logical level, Fe sees how things relate on an philosophical level. When Fe is combined with Ni this becomes an abstract philosophical level, creating the sort of genius that is often undefinable, outside the box, and amazingly affective. Many Fe + Ni users are accused of being "Wise beyond their years". While Fe tends to be people and emotion focused, it is much more than that. While Fe represents right brained thinking on a macro scale, Ni represents left brained intuition on an intangible level. Both of these functions defy definition, creating a pair of personality types with minds that seem completely unbound by the realms of possibility, yet having the ability to be highly effective in spite of it. It is no wonder NFJs are such a source of curiosity. The other types keep trying to figure out "how we did that", and we often can't come up with a good answer other than "I dunno, I just did."

The reason that Fe is so often applied to a social context is simple. As a right brained extroverted function, it is empathic, and therefore often seeks to focus on people. That doesn't mean it is a people focused function. It is a philosophical function that has a natural tendency to gravitate toward people, just as Te has a natural tendency to gravitate toward the sciences. Neither case is a rule, and it is very important to remember this. ENFJs are much more likely to focus on others with this function, while INFJs have a healthy ability to take this function in a number of fantastic different directions.

So, the end result is that those with Ni (amazing pattern recognition and truth seeking) combined with Fe (incredible abstract philosophical and emotional intelligence) are truly beautiful souls.
 
Which functions are right brained, and which are left brained?

Can you give a few examples of authors who don't define Fe properly, or at least those you had in mind while writing this post?
 
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Syzygy said:
Which functions are right brained, and which are left brained?

Can you give a few examples of authors who don't define Fe properly, or at least those you had in mind while writing this post?
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Lenore Thomson. Gads this chick doesn't get it. I think she's based her entire volume of work on Si + Fe.

Right Brained
Ne
Se
Fi
Fe

Left Brained
Ni
Si
Ti
Te
 
So, you also disagree with her that Fe is a left brained function? What do you think about her other type descriptions?

You've said that Jung thought Ni and Fe couldn't support each other. Where did he say that?
 
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Syzygy said:
So, you also disagree with her that Fe is a left brained function? What do you think about her other type descriptions?
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Yes, I disagree that Fe is left brained and Ti is right brained. Both of these functions defy the descriptions of the respective hemispheres, unless you try to force them in as Thomson does. The problem with her perspective is that she views Ti from an STP point of view, unable to separate Ti from the influence of right brained Se, and she views Fe from an SFJ point of view, unable to separate Fe from the influence of left brained Si.

Syzygy said:
You've said that Jung thought Ni and Fe couldn't support each other. Where did he say that?
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I would have to dig that up. I'm not sure where I read it. It stuck out in my mind because of the relevance to me being an NFJ.
 
Syzygy said:
What are the type books/authors that you recommend?
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I like a lot of the things I've read from http://www.bestfittype.com/
I'm also a fan of this website http://www.personalitypage.com/ENFJ.html

There is a lot of good work on the subject being done in colleges recently. Purdue did some good studies that you might be able to track down online.

I know a lot of people don't care much for Kiersey, but I've gleaned a lot out of his work. I'd have to say the same for Beebe. Even though I find some of the theories a little too cut and dried, there is a lot between the lines.

And then of course, there is the best way to learn - get to know people of various types. You'll learn more from watching people than any book, essay, or website will ever be able to tell you. Once you've met a few people of a given type, you'll begin to see the patterns - where the cognitive functions are manifesting, and where the individual shines through.
 
Syzygy said:
What are some of the theories you find a little too cut and dried?
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I don't think that cognitive functions are so compartmentalized, nor do I think that the lesser functions are inherently bad (aka shadow functions) for an individual. Cognitive functions are nebulous things, as with anything in the highly adaptive human mind, and Beebe doesn't really account for this. One function is one function and that's the extent of it. However, Beebe really opened a great train of thought, and those theories are responsible for some real headway into how people develop and use cognitive functions, as well as how the functions interact interpersonally.
 
By compartmentalized, do you mean ignoring the influence functions can have on each other?

I also don't really understand what you mean by "one function is one function and that's the extent of it". Could you explain a bit more about that?
 
Syzygy said:
By compartmentalized, do you mean ignoring the influence functions can have on each other?
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Yes.

Syzygy said:
I also don't really understand what you mean by "one function is one function and that's the extent of it". Could you explain a bit more about that?
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Beebe has a clear sense that there is no overlap and certainly no adaptability within any of the functions. The theories seem to be very much black and white. But, there is a lot of good stuff in them, and if you take them at face value and add the understanding that all of the function parts form a dynamic nebulous whole we call cognition then they're quite valid.
 
I'm also wondering why this whole Ni and Fe thing is speculated as being impossible...also if an introvert or extrovert has a polarized I/E does that mean that their second function is not well developed? that's what I understood..also I have this problem, when I break down my type without cognitive functions in play I-preference to wards introversion N-towards intuition F-towards feeling and J-towards judging it all seems to work..but when I look at cognitive functions makes me wonder about other types..even types that I would not relate too..for example..ENFP has Ne+Fi..I have a very strong Ne and a solid Fi..or INFP, solid Fi and Ne, INTP, solid Ti and Ne etc etc..which really contributes to a great confusion..really the only thing I can be sure of according tot he cognitive functions is that I'm not an S type even though even that might get questioned.
 
So, in your opinion, how do the functions overlap and adapt, and how do the theories you've seen fail to address this?
 
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