…because you can simply take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Test and end up with the ENFP personality type result like I did and be called The Campaigner.
I have always loved taking exams or quizzes that tell me about who or how I am. Perhaps this is my narcissistic side showing or maybe just me finding comfort in the idea of knowing that someone can always see through me. This being said, I can say that I am no stranger to the Myers-Briggs personality test, as I have tried it for more than five times already in the past three years.
The first time I tried it was during high school and I got the ESFP personality type (or “The Entertainer”) for my result. I was a petty high school adolescent then and I was still figuring out who I am, so without any thinking, I accepted the result just like that. It never crossed my mind to actually take the time to sit and down do some cross-referencing to assess if it was indeed accurate. My friends agreed with the result, though, and I just wholeheartedly held on to that tiny shred of information I considered as my very identity.
Then came college, which served as my training grounds for the war that is life. The times had not been any kinder, which resulted to changes in my opinions, ideas, way of thinking, coping mechanisms, and even to my whole personality as well. Out of sheer boredom, I tried taking the personality test again and ever since that second try, the result has always been the same.
In all honestly, I have realized as time went by that I hate talking about myself. Whenever I am tasked to write an autobiography about myself, I would never go with the traditional concept of sharing how I was born or whether Harry Potter was the first series I ever finished or how I finished and fake-loved The Twilight Saga just because it was all the rage back in the day. I abhor that. Well, maybe hatred is too strong of a word… This runs more along the lines of discomfort and uncertainty, especially since I am still in the primary stage of the long and continuous process of knowing myself. However, I cannot deny that this personality has contributed much in giving me an idea about my self-concept.
Those with the ENFP personality type are said to be the life of the party in a sense that instead of dwelling only in the excitement, we also want to create meaningful connections with people. Sure, I can be talkative, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I am everyone’s go-to for fun stuff. Mostly, I am a wallflower on the sidelines—jolly only with the people I am comfortable with, and embarrassingly awkward to those I do not know. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’ve learned that having a lot of people can be so intoxicating and suffocating. It just made me feel like I was drowning, so I learned to cut off people whom I cannot connect with.
Curiosity is also a known personality of those with the ENFP personality type, and this is something I have to agree with. I can say that I am curious in a way that I am willing to try out almost anything and everything. I am always drawn to stuff that are different, well, different to me, at least. . I mean, am I the only one who thinks that dancing under the rain can also be fun? I understand that it is human nature for us to be afraid to dive into uncharted seas, but we are missing the point. Our privilege of having free will is put to waste if we only choose to live monotonous lives. I believe that sometimes, as long as we don’t cross the line, feeding our curiosity is a step closer to being self-fulfilled.
ENFPs are said to be observant. I asked my friend if this applies to me as I was a bit hesitant if it does. If observant means that we notice every shift in movement, and she said that I don’t qualify. It varies from time to time. There are moments when I only see the intricacy of things that I miss the bigger picture, there are also times when I don’t look at the small details which is what actually completes the bigger picture I focus on. Sometimes, I do these appropriately, and other times, I do not.
They are also believed to be energetic and enthusiastic. This, I can say, is one of my most defining traits that one can almost always never say my name without the word energetic next to it. Believe me when I say I have never gone inside a club ever, and the current events scare me from doing so more than ever. That aside, I always have a lot of energy. I think I’m like a wildfire, once it has been lit, it will be a challenge to get it to stop.
There’s a reason why I chose Broadcast Communication over Entrepreneurship even when at first glance, the latter seems to be the course with more ‘money-making’ opportunities, and that is because of my love for communicating. ENFPs are believed to be excellent communicators. I don’t want to sound very narcissistic, but I can say I’m not that bad. Although my observation skills are not the best, I can still discern body language and put two and two together.
ENFPs are also said to be popular and friendly. The friendly part, I can agree on, but with popularity? I’m going to pass on that. I’m a total loser. Enough said.
Now, we proceed to the weaknesses that ENFPs are known to have. The first one is that we have poor practical skills? Let me tell you a story, and you be the judge. There was this book I really loved, it’s “Specimen Days” by Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Cunningham. I only found it at Booksale in Davao City and got it for only P45. For the reason that I want to share my love for the book and find some people to talk about it, I lent it to a workmate for another company I used to work for. I never got the book back even when I resigned. Fast forward to when I finally moved to Manila, I was just doing some window shopping at SM when my feet led me to Booksale. Guess what I found? It was another copy of the same novel! I was about to head to work then, add the fact that I only had P50 (yep, I was that broke) and the book was for P35. I bought the book, walked to work and borrowed money from a friend and ended the day with a smile enough to last me for a week. Was that practical? I’m not so sure. My judgment can be pretty clouded when it comes to books. Also, as I am writing this, I am torn about spending my extra money between this pair of shoes I don’t really need, some books from the Manila International Book Fair and this cool movie I was planning to watch with a friend. (Note: I ended up buying the shoes and watching the movie)
Another weakness ENFPs have is their short attention span. To be honest, I don’t think that this still has something with the personality type. I think everyone can be easily distracted regardless of whether they are an INTJ or an ESTP. The way that the news feed on Facebook and Twitter works promotes just that, and I’m a fan of both.
ENFPs also tend to overthink things, so they say. I do this sometimes, maybe. I can be pretty emotional too, and I get stressed easily (right now, I am internally crying over having to write three pages about my self-concept), and some say that I have terrible coping mechanisms.
Anyway, I can only say that although the Myers-Briggs personality test helps in profiling our character, we cannot let these kinds of personality tests define us alone. Sure, I do have more energy to spare than most people, but I cannot be denied my moments of tiredness and weariness. Truth be told, I still get the nights when I just want to spread my arms on the bed or cover myself with a blanket and hibernate forever. As social as I am, I still have moments when I isolate myself for fear that if I talk to someone, I’d just curse people to death. Whatever and however I am defined by these tests doesn’t play a bigger role than me knowing what exactly triggers my bad mood, my anxieties and all that. Bottom line is that it is in our human nature to be dynamic, for we are our contradictions of ourselves, and that is the beauty to it.
So, in conclusion, would I say that I agree with this result? Maybe I do in some parts, but not everything applies. I can definitely say I’m better than my high school self, that I can agree, but with reservations.
I have always loved taking exams or quizzes that tell me about who or how I am. Perhaps this is my narcissistic side showing or maybe just me finding comfort in the idea of knowing that someone can always see through me. This being said, I can say that I am no stranger to the Myers-Briggs personality test, as I have tried it for more than five times already in the past three years.
The first time I tried it was during high school and I got the ESFP personality type (or “The Entertainer”) for my result. I was a petty high school adolescent then and I was still figuring out who I am, so without any thinking, I accepted the result just like that. It never crossed my mind to actually take the time to sit and down do some cross-referencing to assess if it was indeed accurate. My friends agreed with the result, though, and I just wholeheartedly held on to that tiny shred of information I considered as my very identity.
Then came college, which served as my training grounds for the war that is life. The times had not been any kinder, which resulted to changes in my opinions, ideas, way of thinking, coping mechanisms, and even to my whole personality as well. Out of sheer boredom, I tried taking the personality test again and ever since that second try, the result has always been the same.
In all honestly, I have realized as time went by that I hate talking about myself. Whenever I am tasked to write an autobiography about myself, I would never go with the traditional concept of sharing how I was born or whether Harry Potter was the first series I ever finished or how I finished and fake-loved The Twilight Saga just because it was all the rage back in the day. I abhor that. Well, maybe hatred is too strong of a word… This runs more along the lines of discomfort and uncertainty, especially since I am still in the primary stage of the long and continuous process of knowing myself. However, I cannot deny that this personality has contributed much in giving me an idea about my self-concept.
Those with the ENFP personality type are said to be the life of the party in a sense that instead of dwelling only in the excitement, we also want to create meaningful connections with people. Sure, I can be talkative, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I am everyone’s go-to for fun stuff. Mostly, I am a wallflower on the sidelines—jolly only with the people I am comfortable with, and embarrassingly awkward to those I do not know. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’ve learned that having a lot of people can be so intoxicating and suffocating. It just made me feel like I was drowning, so I learned to cut off people whom I cannot connect with.
Curiosity is also a known personality of those with the ENFP personality type, and this is something I have to agree with. I can say that I am curious in a way that I am willing to try out almost anything and everything. I am always drawn to stuff that are different, well, different to me, at least. . I mean, am I the only one who thinks that dancing under the rain can also be fun? I understand that it is human nature for us to be afraid to dive into uncharted seas, but we are missing the point. Our privilege of having free will is put to waste if we only choose to live monotonous lives. I believe that sometimes, as long as we don’t cross the line, feeding our curiosity is a step closer to being self-fulfilled.
ENFPs are said to be observant. I asked my friend if this applies to me as I was a bit hesitant if it does. If observant means that we notice every shift in movement, and she said that I don’t qualify. It varies from time to time. There are moments when I only see the intricacy of things that I miss the bigger picture, there are also times when I don’t look at the small details which is what actually completes the bigger picture I focus on. Sometimes, I do these appropriately, and other times, I do not.
They are also believed to be energetic and enthusiastic. This, I can say, is one of my most defining traits that one can almost always never say my name without the word energetic next to it. Believe me when I say I have never gone inside a club ever, and the current events scare me from doing so more than ever. That aside, I always have a lot of energy. I think I’m like a wildfire, once it has been lit, it will be a challenge to get it to stop.
There’s a reason why I chose Broadcast Communication over Entrepreneurship even when at first glance, the latter seems to be the course with more ‘money-making’ opportunities, and that is because of my love for communicating. ENFPs are believed to be excellent communicators. I don’t want to sound very narcissistic, but I can say I’m not that bad. Although my observation skills are not the best, I can still discern body language and put two and two together.
ENFPs are also said to be popular and friendly. The friendly part, I can agree on, but with popularity? I’m going to pass on that. I’m a total loser. Enough said.
Now, we proceed to the weaknesses that ENFPs are known to have. The first one is that we have poor practical skills? Let me tell you a story, and you be the judge. There was this book I really loved, it’s “Specimen Days” by Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Cunningham. I only found it at Booksale in Davao City and got it for only P45. For the reason that I want to share my love for the book and find some people to talk about it, I lent it to a workmate for another company I used to work for. I never got the book back even when I resigned. Fast forward to when I finally moved to Manila, I was just doing some window shopping at SM when my feet led me to Booksale. Guess what I found? It was another copy of the same novel! I was about to head to work then, add the fact that I only had P50 (yep, I was that broke) and the book was for P35. I bought the book, walked to work and borrowed money from a friend and ended the day with a smile enough to last me for a week. Was that practical? I’m not so sure. My judgment can be pretty clouded when it comes to books. Also, as I am writing this, I am torn about spending my extra money between this pair of shoes I don’t really need, some books from the Manila International Book Fair and this cool movie I was planning to watch with a friend. (Note: I ended up buying the shoes and watching the movie)
Another weakness ENFPs have is their short attention span. To be honest, I don’t think that this still has something with the personality type. I think everyone can be easily distracted regardless of whether they are an INTJ or an ESTP. The way that the news feed on Facebook and Twitter works promotes just that, and I’m a fan of both.
ENFPs also tend to overthink things, so they say. I do this sometimes, maybe. I can be pretty emotional too, and I get stressed easily (right now, I am internally crying over having to write three pages about my self-concept), and some say that I have terrible coping mechanisms.
Anyway, I can only say that although the Myers-Briggs personality test helps in profiling our character, we cannot let these kinds of personality tests define us alone. Sure, I do have more energy to spare than most people, but I cannot be denied my moments of tiredness and weariness. Truth be told, I still get the nights when I just want to spread my arms on the bed or cover myself with a blanket and hibernate forever. As social as I am, I still have moments when I isolate myself for fear that if I talk to someone, I’d just curse people to death. Whatever and however I am defined by these tests doesn’t play a bigger role than me knowing what exactly triggers my bad mood, my anxieties and all that. Bottom line is that it is in our human nature to be dynamic, for we are our contradictions of ourselves, and that is the beauty to it.
So, in conclusion, would I say that I agree with this result? Maybe I do in some parts, but not everything applies. I can definitely say I’m better than my high school self, that I can agree, but with reservations.
[JUST DUMPING OLD STUFF]
[Update as of Jan. 2020, INFP na raw ako]
[Update as of Jan. 2020, INFP na raw ako]