.istj
{<I>Doing What Should Be Done<n>

Perhaps no type is more driven by a sense of responsibility and "bottom-line" behavior than Introverted-Sensing-Thinking-Judging types.  In the name of responsibility, these Introverts have acquired social grace, ease with words, and all of the appropriate interpersonal skills demanded at any given moment.  They can be so outgoing under clearly defined circumstances that they are sometimes mistaken for Extraverts.  But make no mistake: as the most private of the sixteen types, these Introverts can don Extraverted clothing when the occasion warrants it without changing their essentially Introverted inner nature.

The ISTJ's highly responsible nature is shaped by the Sensing preference of the information-gathering function.  In other words, ISTJs focus inwardly, concentrating on data that are objective, immediate, concrete, and pragmatic.  Their affinity for the here and now leaves them to assume nothing, to take nothing for granted.  What they see they translate objectively and tangibly (T), which they immediately organize and schedule (J).  Since this comes easily and naturally to them, they expect similar behavior of virtually everyone else.  They are extremely demanding at home and work, even at play, engaging at times in very compulsive behavior.  To some observers, these seem to be your classic Type A personalities-driven, impatient, and obsessive.

Like INTJs, with whom they share three preferences (I,T, and J), they often excel at school and work, rising to senior positions of responsibility as class presidents, school heroes, project managers, and community leaders-all of which may seem out of character for an Introvert.  But for the ISTJs, this is not out of character at all; they are simply doing their duty-"doing what should be done" (though not what comes naturally.  Indeed, should is a key part of the ISTJ's mantra, as it is for all Sensing-Judgers, and in this context the result is that the preferred and more "natural" Introverted behavior is dutifully abandoned for the more difficult Extraverted style.)

While all Thinking females swim upstream in our society, this is particularly true for female ISTJs.  The Responsible, driven nature of this type, while admirable, flies in the face of traditionally "feminine" traits.  Moreover, as traditionalists at heart, ISTJ females are inwardly conflicted about trying to balance the conventional feminine roles-mothering and nurturing-with their objective, organized (TJ) nature.  Male ISTJs, in contrast, are "naturals" in conforming with this type's attributes, so much so that ISTJ is often dubbed "the macho type"-a label with which few women would feel comfortable (but which doesn't necessarily bother those ISTJ women.)

ISTJs have homes that are neat and they carry out their domestic activities with efficiency and dispatch.  They like to eat breakfast at eight, lunch at noon, and dinner at six, no matter what.  Holidays and other family affairs are extremely important, and become the focus of family life, no expense or inconvenience spared.  Family members of other types who fail to fall in step may be subject to considerable grief and guilt.  ISTJs' homes and personal appearances tend to reflect their life preferences in general: traditional and probably somewhat austere.  You can often spot an ISTJ's home from the outside: the yard is sparse-the few bushes and plants are neat and orderly-the house color is rather subdued, bikes and toys are put away, and the entire presentation can only be described as tasteful but reserved.  A place for everything and everything in its place.

For ISTJs, parenting is a lifelong responsibility that is undertaken seriously.  They impose rules and regulations upon their children-and sometimes on their spouses-and expect them to be followed and not questioned.  After all, when the ISTJ was a child, things were done in this way; now that they themselves are in authority, they expect things "should" continue to be done as they were before.  Roles, for the ISTJ parent, are clearly defined: parents are parents, children are children, and each has appropriate responsibilities.  It is not uncommon for an ISTJ to assign family duties for a whole weekend so that no time is wasted.  To the ISTJ, an idle mind is the devil's playground and "honest work" is good for all.  Even relaxation is scheduled and dutifully executed.

These same driving forces define ISTJ children.  Homework is done neatly and on time, and in general they are good students.  Bedrooms are kept orderly.  They show up on time for meals, expecting them to be served on schedule.  Like their ISTJ elders, they live by a series of "shoulds," which they often impose on their parents.  For them, too, the parent-child lines are clearly defined.  They can become stressed when they encounter a family member of a different type who resists their rules and regulations, or when a parent or other authority figure is working on a schedule different from theirs.  Ultimately, they'll give in to the adult, but not without considerable unpleasantness.  Such unpleasantness may be a test to make sure the authority figure is being responsible to his or her role.

In an intimate relationship, an ISTJ's word is as good as gold, and having once declared "I love you," they can be trusted to be true to that sentiment for years to come-though they may not give voice to it often.  The reason is simple: For the ISTJ, actions truly speak louder than words; the continued expression of love comes not in the saying but in the doing-being there day in and day out, providing unfailingly, being a veritable Rock of Gibraltar.  This nonverbal style of affection often gets ISTJs in hot water because it can be perceived as uncaring; they are often described as having "ice for blood."

But ISTJs do care-and show it through their strong sense of responsibility.  (Indeed, they would rather die than be seen as irresponsible.) They are fiercely loyal, both to individuals and institutions, sometimes responding fanatically to the "shoulds" and "oughts" of their commitments.  They make good soldiers, literally and figuratively.  In fact, based on a sample of more than ten thousand of the U.S. military-from enlisted personnel through four-star generals and admirals-their predominant configuration is ISTJ.

Other professions to which ISTJs gravitate are similarly oriented toward achieving practical and tangible results, and include such careers as general surgery, law, and accounting.  These careers have appeal because they frequently involve working alone (I), are very results-oriented (S), require objectivity (T), and generally have prescribed ways of doing things (J).  While they may be successful at any career, ISTJs are less drawn to those that require abstract thinking and interpersonal spontaneity.  Whether as supervisors or subordinates, with their work as with everything else, they like to play by the rules.  They expect those who follow the rules to win, those who don't, to lose.

In their later years certain ISTJs may behave in somewhat bizarre ways.  It is that period of their life when they wish to give in to the more subjective and spontaneous parts of their personalities.  Suddenly the rather rigid parent may become the playful, doting grandparent.  The hard-charging executive tries on new hats-from the painter's beret to the camper's cap.  Overall, the older ISTJ becomes aware that things that used to seem all-important aren't quite as crucial in the bigger scheme of life.

Some famous possible ISTJs include auto-maker Henry Ford (described as a man of few words who gave customers a "choice" of "any color, as long as it's black"); George Washington (whose blueprint for the country comprised immediate practical procedures to be implemented); Johnny Carson (who calls himself an Introvert, sets a style for American male dress, and has maintained a constant program schedule for a quarter century); and Calvin Coolidge (who was austere, simplistic, and noted for his cryptic and terse remarks).}
.isfj
{<I>A High Sense of Duty<N>

ISFJs like to work behind the scenes.  Quick, easygoing, neat, orderly, and given to a higher sense of duty and obedience, they find their source of energy within (Introversion) and their reality in those things they can see, hear, feel, taste, and smell (Sensing).  That energy is focused outwardly in the service of others (Feeling), always in an orderly and timely fashion (Judging).  As a result, ISFJs find meaning in life by serving human needs and making others happy.

One appropriate image of the ISFJ is that of the dependable bulwark who will always be there when needed, waiting silently.  As Judgers, they might complain about being intruded upon, but ultimately their high sense of duty compels them to do what needs to be done, without complaint.

Mates and friends of ISFJs often criticize them for letting others continually take advantage of their goodness, even though these same mates and friends may be guilty of doing so themselves.  Indeed, ISFJs take commitments and obligations very seriously and often do allow others to take advantage of them.  Possibly more than other types, they allow themselves to become doormats of a marriage, family, job, or whatever situation in which they find themselves.  More often than not, this is a result of their high sense of obligation and allegiance, coupled with their strong values and commitment to serve humanity.

Gender issues for ISFJs are complex for the male and almost too simple for the female.  ISFJ characteristics are almost stereotypically female-quiet, reserved, gentle, steady, dependable, caring, dutiful, obedient, neat, and tidy.  In fact, ISFJ females may be quietly critical when females of other types don't behave "like the other girls." For the ISFJ female, her feminine "script" may be so tightly written that if, later in life, she exerts her individuality, the action may both surprise those around her and result in negative reactions from others.

If the ISFJ profile is a female stereotype, it's to be expected that the male ISFJ will face special problems.  The gentle, caring, quiet, and dutiful attributes are the opposite of typical "male" behavior.  As a result, male ISFJs may be pressured to suppress their natural behavior in order to act more typically male.  In such cases, ISFJs may go overboard, becoming supermacho, drinking or smoking to excess, or becoming highly competitive to "prove" themselves.

In relationships, as with most everything else, the ISFJ's strong sense of duty and commitment dominates.  They are typically careful and exact in the words they use, words that represent bonds and contracts to be taken very seriously.  Relationships may develop slowly but surely for an ISFJ and when a declaration comes, it may-at least by the ISFJ-be considered permanent.  ISFJs more than other types, may remain in relationships that long ago went bad, simply because of their sense of duty and obligation.

Their sense of loyalty may make them appear quite serious.  It may take another type individual to mitigate the seriousness of life's demands on an ISFJ.  Some ISFJs are quietly tantalized by the bizarre and extreme.  However, they give in to such longings only on special occasions or vicariously-by way of a movie, perhaps, or a friend's tale of intrigue.  Beyond those exceptions, it is generally "work first, play later"-and then only if the work is completed.  For the ISFJ, there is almost always some work somewhere yet to be completed.

Parenting for an ISFJ is another serious responsibility, one that ISFJs more than other types may recognize as a lifetime commitment.  As a consequence, they often assume a quiet, guardian-like role.  Generally, as parents, they are diligent, protective, and extremely patient with the many facets of the job.  While each of these characteristics is admirable, when maximized in ISFJ parents it often means subjugation of the parents' needs in favor of the childrens'.  Though ISFJs never really feel like saints, that is probably the way most children of ISFJs would describe their parents. 

Because duty, obedience, and responsibility permeate all that the ISFJ does, the entire living style is marked by caring and concern for others, expressed in an orderly, well-regulated way.  Relaxation can come only when all work is completed and, as stated earlier, it rarely is.  ISFJs generally schedule their leisure activities; indeed, such leisure may become part of the ISFJ's repertoire of duties.

It is ISFJs, more that other types, who will complain about all the work, responsibilities, or demands placed upon them, and yet be dismayed and disappointed if someone tries to spare them such agonies.  Cooking a big, festive family meal, for example, or taking care of an aged parent or arranging a class reunion, may all engender a variety of protests or complaints from the ISFJ.  In fact, there is nothing that ISFJs would rather be doing.  Should someone try to rescue them, they would be hurt and consumed with guilt.  

As children, ISFJs are a treat that every parent should be allowed to experience.  Content to play by themselves, they are relatively undemanding, neat, and obedient-in general, model children and hardworking students.  As both child and adult, ISFJs may be given to streaks of stubbornness that seem entirely out of character.  But even that stubbornness will give way if authority, role definition ("I'm the teacher and I want it done this way"), or some other sense of responsibility can be appealed to.  ISFJs respect authority and respond accordingly.

As students, ISFJs prefer teachers and courses that are organized and practical.  They like following outlines and doing homework and assignments that are highly defined.  For them, learning, like most other aspects of life, is best when nobody makes waves and everything happens as it should-according to schedule.

Family events for ISFJs are very meaningful occasions, a chance to gather and observe tradition and ritual, to express in action and deeds the family's importance.  For the ISFJ, the meaningfulness of the event is directly related to the extent he or she contributes to it-by cooking, cleaning, whatever; such efforts are a direct expression of love.  No matter how reserved the behavior, the ISFJ has depths of loyalty that should not be underestimated; to do so is to seriously miss the inner quality and strength unique to this type.

Work, for the ISFJ, is fun, rewarding, satisfying, and ultimately fulfilling.  If it is not, the ISFJ will likely work harder in the hopes that things will improve.  It must have been an ISFJ who said of heaven, "Whatever else is there, it must involve work or it wouldn't be heaven." In general, a happy ISFJ is one who has most of the hours of the day filled in some sort of service to family, friends, or employer.  For ISFJs, work builds character; it brings growth, maturity, satisfaction, and fulfillment.  In fact, parenting, relating, mating, teaching, and managing are all forms of work through which ISFJs express their sense of duty and service.

As an older person, the ISFJ employs tried and true methods in every activity.  Later years may allow some relaxing of the schedule and more extraverted expressions of the self's needs.  Though such expressions are still tempered by a larger sense of social responsibility, this is still a refreshingly liberating opportunity for the ISFJ to pursue his or her own needs with a bit more zeal.  ISFJs may enjoy some risk-taking as they grow older; by some other types' standards, however, they may still appear to be overly cautious.  Retirement, if there is such a thing in ISFJ terms, is yet another thing to be filled with meaningful activity.

Famous likely ISFJs include Bess Truman and Nancy Reagan (whose loyalty to and defense of their respective husbands made them seem the real powers behind the presidential thrones); and "Radar" on <I>M*A*S*H*<N> (who would spend endless hours dutifully waiting at the ham radio for an important message, despite whatever chaos might be going on around him).}
.infj
{<I>An Inspiration to Others<N>

INFJs are gentle, compassionate, and accepting, yet given to streaks of extreme stubbornness.  The INFJs' driving force is their iNtuition (N), which is directed inward (I), generating a never-ending stream of possibilities and ideas.  In fact, the more the INFJ introverts, the more malleable and open-ended life can seem.  But the external world has a way of interfering with this flow of inspirations and creativity because INFJs feel called upon to render service to humanity (F) in a very orderly and demanding way (J).

Consequently, when INFJs are committed to an ideal or cause, the stubbornness surfaces.  These otherwise compliant, reserved individuals become extremely rigid and demanding of themselves and others, when pursuing a goal in the external world.  

INFJs are dreamers whose genius, caring, and concern can be an inspiration to many other people.  Their quietness gives them a low profile and their concern has a way of being intense in most situations in which they find themselves.  In almost any interpersonal activity, from a board meeting to an intimate family gathering, the INFJ's quiet strength is felt by others.  Their hope, aspiration, and caring have limits, however, and those limits can be invoked by the INFJ at any given moment.  Such limits may have no apparent relationship to external events, and may leave others feeling frustrated, confused, possibly even deprived.

INFJs often need an Extraverted type to tap the reservoir of their inner richness.  Otherwise it can be lost, either in the INFJ's introversion or as a consequence of pressure from the typically scheduled life of those who prefer the Judging function in their outer worlds.  When in the presence of more Extraverted types, they are likely to share jokes, ideas, whimsical thought, and many inventive models or theories.  Those close to the INFJ may feel frustrated that so much of what is inside the INFJ is so rarely fully tapped.  The frustration continues as those close to INFJs recognize that while they must respect INFJs' space, doing so diminishes INFJs' contributions to the world.

INFJs often have, without formal training, skills in group dynamics.  Almost psychically, they are aware of various levels of interaction between and among people.  However, such awareness remains largely their own, and efforts to make these observations known to others can be frustrating to INFJs.

Though they may maneuver themselves to receive affection, INFJs may be quite sparing in dispensing it to others because of their naturally Introverted manner.  For the INFJ, talk is cheap, and the resulting sparsity of their communications can have a negative effect on relationships at work and home.

Gender differences can be seen with the INFJ.  The female INFJ clearly has the advantage.  As a Feeling type, she has the nurturing qualities traditionally associated with femininity.  Often, however, because of her Introversion, the INFJ female does not project those qualities, even though they are very much a part of her nature.  At home as well as at work, she tends to be aloof, so that the sense of her caring and concern is ultimately lost, particularly to those types more demanding of overt affirmations.  A common complaint about an INFJ female is that she is "nice but seems removed." People feel this about her even though they would admit that, in fact, she's always there when needed, quietly dependable, steady.  Female INFJs must work hard to be understood and may find themselves taken for granted because of their own failure to make their needs known.  Consequently, when they do express their needs, it seems out of character and can lead to general disbelief, which, of course, is frustrating to the female INFJ.

Male INFJs have a more problematic situation because the qualities naturally preferred by INFJs are not those traditionally considered to be "male." To counter the image of being weak, male INFJs can become stubborn, often to a degree disproportionate to the situation at hand.  They are capable of taking a seemingly small issue and making it seem as if the entire world-or at least their masculinity-were riding on the outcome.  This behavior unfortunately belies the fact that both male and female INFJs are reservoirs of quiet, intellectual introspective imagination who can inspire insight and growth in men and women alike.  INFJs are often great thinkers whose pondering of the immense can bring great ideas to the forefront.  Typically, they seek to spread their ideas in a quiet, deliberate way-more typically by the pen then by the sword.

At home, INFJs are given the ultimate arena in which to act on both their idealism and their humanitarian concerns.  Their longing for harmony is such a driving force that they sometimes create tension in their relationships by working so determinedly to eliminate it.  They would do better to work out tensions within themselves than to focus on external conflicts, because they often carry very heavy inner burdens.  In some ways, this fosters a sense of martyrdom typically of Feelers generally.  Over the long term, the inner tension that plagues them as a consequence of imperfectly realized aspiration toward total harmony can do little except induce guilt in INFJs and others.  The INFJ goal of harmony is particularly difficult to achieve because the model for it is rarely articulated, though the drive toward it is nonetheless unrelenting.

Parenting to an INFJ means accepting intense responsibility to help young minds and spirits develop on their own.  By example and by direct involvement, the INFJ exerts great energy to see that all children are afforded every intellectual opportunity available.  There is considerable allowance for differences-as long as each individual exerts himself or herself.  The INFJ parent strives to be stimulating, resourceful, and helpful in everything.  A young spirit is considered a terrible thing to waste.  Toward that end, if a child shows interest in any kind of self-development, no matter how different from the preferred activities of the INFJ parent, that interest would still be encouraged.  To the best of their abilities, the INFJ parent will provide whatever is necessary to foster growth.

The home and living style of the INFJ seem relatively neat to outsiders, but just below the surface lie a million books, articles, and projects to be addressed at a later date.  It is more important for the home atmosphere to be congenial, stimulating, and accepting than for it to be precisely neat and tidy.  The home is a reference library for a wide variety of interests and pursuits.  Most everything has some symbolism or meaning and rarely is anything discarded.  The fantasy is that some day, the INFJ will wander through the Pandora's box of goodies and attend to each of the many projects contained therein.  Usually that remains only a fantasy for the INFJ.

As children, INFJs are frequently very complacent.  Except for the stubbornness exhibited around values they prize, their love of harmony, coupled with a general curiosity and hunger for knowledge, make them compliant children and excellent students.  If anything, parents, especially Extraverted ones, may be amazed at how content the INFJ seems, though somewhat concerned about their daydreaming.  But the dreaming typically gives way to good scholarship and the INFJ child finds school, at most levels, quite rewarding.  Clearly, their Introverted-iNtuition prefers theoretical and abstract course work, but their desire to please teachers and parents makes them successful and productive in most subjects.  Learning enriches the mind and the INFJ learns very early on that his of her mind is the gateway to the world.

Family events are opportunities for INFJs to explore and learn, so they are attended with eagerness and satisfaction.  INFJs are especially sensitive to family tension and have a tendency to personalize those tensions, even blaming themselves for problems they did not create.  If family events are sources of tension, INFJs will tend to shun them, even be terrified by them.  If, on the other hand, they are filled with warmth and joy, INFJs can become quite involved, though often in a more passive than active way.

Wherever the INFJ is, there is work, particularly if the work offers some opportunity to grow and learn.  As managers, INFJs are fairly open and very interested in both the people and the product.  Though usually slow to give positive strokes, they are nonetheless inwardly proud of their subordinates' accomplishments and open to their desire for self-improvement. The biggest bane of the INFJ's work is conflict and tense interpersonal relationships.  In general, INFJs are adept at helping others actualize their goals and eager-as both workers and managers-to actualize their own.  They are at their best in situations that encourage personal enhancement.

INFJs can benefit from their mature years if more leisure time and less compulsiveness give them the freedom they need for dreams and inspirations.  To daydream, fantasize, theorize, read, build something, or simply "follow a star" allow the INFJ to bring forth all sorts of inner creations.  Later years can also be pleasant for INFJs who allow themselves to drop the world's many troubles, problems, and issues from their shoulders.  Though this is very hard for them to do, and few succeed completely, it can be sweet relief for a type that, by virtue of their unique combination of preferences, tends to allow many of the world's cares to be heaped upon them.

Famous likely INFJs include: Thomas Jefferson (whose creativity, genius, and idealism helped to forge the Republic, even though his own aristocratic value system was different from that of the Constitution he helped to author) Jimmy Carter (whose Introversion kept him from being understood, and whose iNtuitive-Feeling preference enabled him to be a powerful mediator in bringing Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat to an accord); and Sigmund Freud (whose iNtuitive psychological theories revolutionized the world, and whose strong Feeling preference kept him working to help people his entire life, although others' criticism of his work made him ever more rigidly entrenched in his own beliefs).}
.intj
{<I>Everything Has Room for Improvement<N>

INTJs have an inner world rich with endless possibilities that, when combined with their Thinking-Judging preferences, gives them a drive toward improvement of everything.  Indeed, these are the "better idea" people of the typological world.  Everything-words, plans, designs, ideas, even people-has room for improvement.  In the INTJ's eyes, even the best can be made better.

INTJs have a natural propensity for organization, and as such they often rise to the top of any system in which they find themselves.  They tend to be "big picture" people (iNtuitive) who can see the forest as well as the intricacies of its component parts.  (To an INTJ, there's more to a forest than merely trees.) With their capacity for follow-through (Judging), they have a high completion rate in their many undertakings.  People naturally look to them for a job well done, a word aptly spoken, an opportunity seized.  And they usually rise to such occasions with aplomb.

INTJs are among the most independent of the sixteen types.  Their theme song may be "My Way." As with other NTs, this independence often gives them an aura of arrogance that make in-depth relationships develop slowly.  At both work and play they can often seem aloof and sometimes argumentative.  For INTJs, such behavior is simply the result of their attempt to stimulate the world around them.  They can be stunned, even appear hurt, when others accuse them of being distant and seemingly uncaring, but it is, ironically, the INTJs' caring that has been the source of the provocation.  They may even seem surprised at others' taking offense when their motivation was fostering improvement.  Again, as with other NTs, INTJs learn by arguing, part of their continuing quest to understand the universe.  The problem is that an INTJ's "friendly discussion" may be seen by others as hostile, even obnoxious behavior.

Statistically, there are more male INTJ's than female.  Not surprisingly, the INTJ female's independence, intellectual aloofness, and argumentative style may result in her feeling somewhat out of step with those attributes more traditionally associated with femininity.  For an INTJ female to be true to herself may put her out of step with the mainstream.

As parents, INTJs' relentless pursuit for self-improvement becomes a model for their children as well.  They encourage a child's independence and self-sufficiency, the sooner the better.  What may be seen by others as uncaring or unaffectionate is, to INTJs, the ultimate in caring: teaching their children to stand on their own.  The situation may best be illustrated by the way in which an INTJ parent likely teaches a child to swim.  An INTJ parent may allow the child to dive into deep water that other parents might consider risky-all the while supervising intently-in the name of learning how to swim.  Other types may stick to shallower waters, wanting the child to feel more comfortable in the learning process.  To the INTJ, the issue of comfort or fear is irrelevant.  What's important is learning how to swim.  An old Chinese proverb was probably INTJ-inspired: "Give a man a fish and he eats for a day; teach him to fish, and he eats for a lifetime."

The same model drives all INTJ relationships: any relationship that's good today can be better tomorrow and both parties must be directed to constant self-improvement: learning, growing, confronting, and anything else that leads to mutual self-competency.  As lovers, mates, and companions, INTJs must be ever improving.  When thwarted in the quest, they can become critical and often depressed over the seeming stagnation.

An INTJ's home reflects his or her current conceptual pursuits.  Theoretical and practical books abound.  To a casual visitor, the home may seem neat, but its more private corners reflect a series of half-started projects, collections of mementos, and an assortment of potential challenges: a guitar to be mastered, a file to be organized, a household repair to be made.  Dreams and visions are the INTJ's form of relaxation.  Unfortunately, seemingly ambitious plans may go unfulfilled if the INTJ falls into the trap of being seduced by the intellectual excitement of the plan without ever getting to the actual hands-on accomplishment.  Such a dilemma sets them up for self-criticism, which leads, in turn, to frustration and depression.

INTJ children crave much of the same independence as their parents.  Unless their parents are of the same type, this quest may be the root of an ongoing parent-child dispute.  While sufficiently neat to pass parental muster, their rooms may be laboratories of endless explorations and experiments.  For a parent to invade this territory may be seen as an invasion of privacy and result in a struggle for power.  Often, in high school, INTJs can be "underachievers" who score well on formal tests but are unstimulated by the details of day-to-day classroom learning.  Similarly, family events may be exciting if they are stimulating and challenging, but the final decision on whether to participate must lie with the INTJ child, not with his or her parent.  A lack of understanding this by both parties can cause considerable tension.  Clearly, in this context, such otherwise simple decisions as when to go to bed or whether to attend a family function can become major battlegrounds.

For the INTJ, work is the laboratory in which blueprints become reality-and give way for new blueprints.  Consequently, INTJ managers strive to stimulate and stretch themselves and subordinates.  INTJ subordinates, in turn, strive to stimulate and stretch themselves and their supervisors.  They also want to be given a free hand to experiment, and if too tightly controlled, may become frustrated and resentful.  They frequently master the language of whatever it is in which they find themselves: whether managers or counselors, they know all the correct words and phrases for the situation at hand.

In short, the workplace is one more "system" that can be organized and improved.  As such, all assignments are undertaken with that underlying expectation.  When improvements are not forthcoming, the INTJ may be subject to self-criticism.  Careers particularly appealing to INFJs include those that provide mental challenge (teaching, especially college and research) and inventiveness in both business and science (program analysts and architects).  They can become restless and frustrated in career choices that demand too much detail or a high demand for personal services.

Midlife, as with most other types, finds a moderating of some preferences.  Their iNtuitive searching for the abstract begins to lean toward a desire for immediate Sensing fulfillment.  Similarly, they may also "discover" the emotional and subjective sides of their Feeling nonpreference, which may be at once exciting and frightening.  Later years could easily find INTJs inspiring themselves with more sociability.

Best guesses of famous INTJs include Thomas Edison (who was given to almost daily inventions, upon which he was always improving); Richard Nixon (whose political genius made him a man ahead of his time, but whose grasp for control ultimately undid him); and Katharine Hepburn (whose private nature belies her take-charge, I'll-do-it-my-way style).}
.istp
{<I>Ready to Try Anything Once<N>

ISTPs may best be described as reserved, aloof, and interpersonally cautious, yet ready to try almost anything once.  They focus inward (Introversion) and when that tendency is coupled with their objective decision-making preference (Thinking), it is natural that they should be more inclined to wait and see where conversations may go or what others might do before tipping their own hands.  Their view of the world is very concrete (Sensing) and that in combination with the open-ended way in which they relate to the outside world (Perceiving), can result in their taking a more active, spontaneous role than their apparently detached nature would seem to warrant.  They may, for example, be prone to unexpected bursts of humor, a take-charge attitude, or a sudden drive to fix whatever's broken.  Such displays of involvement often confuse others, keeping them off guard-which is exactly the way the ISTP feels most comfortable.

The motto, "Don't tread on me," could easily be of ISTP origin. It reflects that type in many ways.  It could mean "Don't tread on me because I don't know how I'll react," or "Don't do it because I wouldn't think of doing it to you," or "Don't do it because it is a waste of time and energy."

ISTPs are especially skilled with their hands and often get satisfaction from accomplishments that are both tactile and immediate.  When some<I>thing<N>-as opposed to some<I>one<N>-needs attention, the ISTP's powers of observation (related to both their Sensing and Perceiving preferences) make it possible for them to plunge into the task at hand without feeling it necessary to follow procedures or read directions.  This is how the ISTP prefers to work, and when the result is successful, the ISTP will refer only to sections that are directly relevant, so that no time or energy is wasted-a matter of great consequence to ISTPs.

The ISTPs' area of interest will take precedence over assigned tasks that are perceived as dull, boring, or not practical.  They can become so engrossed with their own projects that other obligations, if not abandoned outright or forgotten, take second place.  In situations that excite them, they work with great accuracy and precision, often to the amazement and envy of others.  They thrive on and prefer "working on the edge," even putting themselves at risk, if that's what it takes to get the job done.

There are dramatic gender differences between male and female ISTPs.  So much of the ISTP's drive and gratification is related to activities traditionally associated with the male.  Contact sports, heavy equipment, auto racing, carpentry, and other adrenaline-driving occupations are exciting and rewarding for the ISTP.  Obviously, ISTP women who have the same tactile skills and satisfactions will be seen as tomboyish if they act on them.

The ISTP female who seeks more traditional channels for her preferences, such as homemaking, business, and accounting, may adhere to a more conventional female model while satisfying her need for immediate, tangible rewards.  Life presents many demands for hands-on professional skills, which are sexually neutral as far as society is concerned.  The ISTP female has many opportunities to fulfill her aspirations in the workplace and feels no less than 100 percent female in doing so.  Problems are far more likely to arise in the social sphere.  Cool, aloof, and socially cautious behavior combined with an interest in manual skills and activities may make people ill at ease with the ISTP girl or woman.  Moreover, if she excels in any such activities, she can be downright threatening to her friends, partners, or colleagues.

Relating to ISTPs can be both fun and confusing-fun because of their spontaneous, easygoing view of life, confusing because of their mixed communication messages.  Because ISTPs alternate between enthusiasm over things of immediate interest to them and quiet reserve about other things, one can never predict which reaction to expect from them.

ISTPs can often be enigmas, especially to Extraverts and Judgers, who find their unpredictability and apparent social indifference so disturbing that they may try to change them.  Not only will the ISTP resent such impositions, he or she may get an inner thrill or satisfaction in not behaving according to expectations, always remaining somewhat mysterious.

ISTPs' nature is to be quietly observing, collecting data on all things at all times.  They do not think of themselves as watching in order to do something with the information; they are merely scanning the universe because it is part of their nature to want to take in all that is occurring.  The often dramatic outcome, however, is that when an emergency occurs, they can move swiftly to the core of the problem and correct it.  What seems like instinctive action is actually the result of long periods of observation that enabled the ISTP to be aware of all the details of the picture.

ISTP parents do not believe in planning.  They tend to wait and see what each day brings, and then do what is needed at the time.  ISTPs, in their general living and certainly in parenting, know that the best-laid plans go awry.  Given that, the plan is not to have a plan, and expect that things will work out for the best as a result.  Above all, they strive not to get excited, become emotional, or lose their cool, for good reason: It takes extra energy which, if expended, could make them less than ready for whatever will happen next.

ISTP parents are true to type with their low need to impose themselves on their children.  Individualism, space, different levels of interest and development for each person in the family-these are the ISTP's values and much effort goes into living up to them in both word and action.  When a conflict erupts, however, ISTPs may react with loud, explosive demands, which give way to calmer presentation of several alternatives once the ISTP has cooled off.

So strongly does this seemingly hands-off, laissez-faire style characterize the ISTP that the price can be isolation.  ISTPs think each person should be afforded his or her own space (whatever it may be) and should enjoy or use that space according to individual tastes and desires.  This emphasis on individual rights is much more important than neatness, orderliness, or routine-and that makes living with an ISTP quite challenging and varied, to say the least.  But it does mean that those around the ISTP enjoy a high level of personal freedom.  Whatever they need to establish their individuality and define their space, be it tons of papers from a project, piles of material from a hobby, an automobile engine or two, or tubes of paint and stacks of canvas-the ISTP is more than willing to allow them, in return for reciprocal treatment.

When not involved in an enterprise or adventure of the kind that compels all their attention, ISTPs relax.  They do not unwind by engaging in the kind of routine chores that other types may find both relaxing and worthwhile.  As a result, life is one long relaxation to the ISTP, frequently interrupted by various exciting hands-on challenges to repair, understand, improve, or experience whatever comes along.

Judging parents have great difficulty understanding ISTP children.  Their yearning for new adventure and their fascination with the mechanical and sensual often separate them from other members of a family.  By other types' standards, the ISTP child always seems to be heading for trouble-taking things apart to understand and learn about them, plunging in and trying things without first getting approval.  They are often drawn to motorcycles (both to ride and to repair), which can cause concern within the family.

Learning is most enjoyable for the ISTP child when it is relevant and experiential.  The ISTP believes that the only way to learn is by doing. The more abstract and removed from the immediate concerns of everyday life the learning becomes, the more restless and uninterested the ISTP student becomes.  Hands-on projects, experiments, and other practically oriented experiences keep the ISTP involved and the course work palatable.

Family events are a mixed bag for the ISTP.  The ISTP child and adult both may eagerly anticipate a special family event-Christmas, birthday, a reunion-although the activity of preparing for the event (baking a special cake or making and wrapping gifts) often holds more interest than the social demands and pressures of the event itself.  Other types may see that behavior as uncaring or unsupportive or actively antisocial.  This simply isn't true; it's just that the ISTP has little need for the social activities.  When the event is over, the ISTP may encourage a few close friends to linger, and it is there that he or she experiences the "real" party; a good time with a few carefully chosen people.

Work that is routine (such as administration) or too open-ended (such as research) is of little interest to the ISTP.  This kind of work is an energy drain.  The new, the unexplored, and the unexpected, however, are energizing and really not considered by the ISTP to be "work" at all.

The later years of an ISTPs life may involve a new Extraverted focus and more time devoted to the family side of life.  ISTPs may find appealing the chance to turn back to work on some of the activities that have unsuccessfully competed for their attention during the earlier part of life.  Their senior citizenship may involve an acting-out of some idea or dream they have long had in mind but never had the time and energy to realize.  <I>Now<N> is the time, and the ISTP will not only be ready but will greet the opportunity with the same sort of aloofness that has accompanied his or her earlier years.

Some famous likely ISTPs could include Burt Reynolds (who classifies himself as an Introvert and who is most comfortable playing high-risk daredevil, and athletic parts); and Red Adair (the guy who is constantly being whisked off to some risky assignment, such as hanging from a helicopter or capping a burning oil well, yet who shuns publicity and remains very private).}
.isfp
{<I>Sees Much But Shares Little<N>

Though they struggle constantly to maintain visibility, there is in the ISFP a love and sensitivity for others, as well as serenity and appreciation for life.  The combination of Introversion, Sensing, Feeling, and Perceiving puts ISFPs more in touch with both themselves and the world around them than any other type.

ISFPs have a very low need to lead and control others, and yet are driven by a desire to see everything-plants, animals, and people-living harmoniously.  ISFPs are not invaders of any living creature's space but instead want to relate to and encourage all life to fulfill its potential.  As a result of being so much in tune with and respectful of the natural boundaries of life around them, it can become difficult for ISFPs to understand the need of some people to impose limits or structure on others.  Unfortunately, in their desire not to influence, they often forgo expressing themselves and their wishes in favor of blending in with others.  This non-imposing nature and seeming lack of direction is so much a part of ISFPs that they can easily be either overlooked or overpowered by others.  In a sense, they are the most invisible of the sixteen types.

This type, often creative, artsy, and skilled in a variety of practical disciplines where people and nature are served, tends to be shy about offering his or her services-depriving the world of their contributions as a result.  All too often, more aggressive, demanding and less capable types fill the void.

ISFPs may be unconventional in their approach to problem-solving, but not because they value contrariness as such or because they relish developing new ways of doing things.  It happens because they see the clearest way to do something and then simply do it-often to the consternation of others who prefer to follow the prescribed methods.  ISFPs are often oblivious to the "standard" way, indeed even puzzled by why anyone would consider doing something in a way that is obviously cumbersome and impractical.

Feeling (warm and nurturing) and Perceiving (open and flexible) are more traditionally feminine characteristics; Introversion (reflective and reserved) and Sensing (practical and grounded) are more traditionally masculine traits.  Put the four together and you have a type who has little need to lead or influence, who relates to the world with little desire to change or control it, nor even to understand it, but simply to take it all in.  Thus, ISFPs of either gender do not project a strong image, nor are they competitive in nature.  

Male ISFPs are successful and highly regarded in various roles, and if someone is looking for a nurturing male, this type is a natural.  Both female and male ISFPs often sell themselves short.  As a result, most any compliment an ISFP receives can be dismissed as "not really meant" or "just an accident."

Parenting is an opportunity for an ISFP to relate to children, not to control them.  As a result, children who also have strong Perceiving tendencies are probably allowed to wander too much; they may not be given the basic sense of structure that may be helpful later on.  Judging children, by contrast, are often frustrated by the ISFP's lack of direction and guidelines, which may set up the parents to feel like failures.  They are not failures-they simply fail to offer much direction.  Different types find it difficult to understand the ISFP's low need for control or influence.  Clearly it is intended to allow others to grow more freely, although the ISFP's quiet, subtle style may never receive full credit.

Children learn that the ISFP parent is always near, very much in touch with the child's needs, and very supportive and loving of the child's development, but in a quiet and unassuming way.  "Love" is not so much spoken of as displayed-quietly, and in myriad ways.  "Nothin' says lovin' like something from the oven" could be an ISFP motto.  The cookies or dollhouse furniture or handmade sweaters are symbols that say, "I love you." An ISFP's child knows he or she is loved because in these kindly acts and gentle deeds, love is conveyed.

The ISFPs' living style is generally relaxed but active.  Hands-on activities keep these Sensors busy.  Interestingly, this does not always involve "what needs to be done" so much as what they want to be doing.  As Sensing-Perceivers, they usually prefer doing something to doing nothing, but the activity is often spontaneous and scattered rather than goal-oriented.  While this can be a source of fun, the result may be a long list of unfinished activities that can be frustrating, not only to others but to ISFPs themselves.

To relax ISFP-style is to do something "for the fun of it." Such "fun" things might include gardening, painting, needlework, or whittling.  Some ISFP hobbies, such as creating "miniatures," for example, often demand high dexterity.

ISFP children are often curious explorers who seem unhurried about getting anywhere in particular.  Content with their own company, they see the entire world as a place for discovery.  Often unaware of rules, time, and other family demands, they explore the world around them.  Plants, animals, brothers, sisters, and parents are all part of that world.

As Perceivers, ISFP children march to a somewhat different drummer.  They are likely to be playing when they are expected to be at meals, watching TV when everyone else is in the car ready to leave, or rearranging toys when company is about to walk in the door.  They want very much to please but often go about it in such a way that the person to be pleased-parent, teacher, sibling, and so on-becomes impatient, even exasperated.  The message the sensitive ISFP gets from these individuals is: "You never seem to do anything right!"

As Sensors, ISFPs are a very "now" type and so learning needs to be tactile and immediately relevant.  They have little interest in the conceptual and abstract and are most responsive to what is pragmatic: "What does it look like?" "How does it feel?" "What can I do with it?" "How does it work?" Questions like these spark interest in a project; the theoretical side of things is more difficult, less interesting, and often produces very negative responses from ISFPs.  Such responses often lead to negative labels-"slow learners" and "daydreamers," to cite a few.  The labels are inaccurate, but they contribute to the ISFPs' tendency to avoid formal education, especially higher education.

Family events for ISFPs are best when they just "happen." Too much planning, work, and structure can block things from unfolding freely.  Family rituals indeed merit attention, but only once they are in process.  It is not uncommon for an ISFP to be doing something totally unrelated to an event minutes before it is supposed to begin.  Somehow, ISFPs <I>know<n> that all will take care of itself if only they are sensitive to others' needs, in touch with their own feelings, and open to whatever happens.  The occasion will be great-or at least long-remembered.

Bedtime for ISFPs is "when you're tired." If there are projects, people, pets, or other forms of life that need attention, then bedtime may take second place.  Once these other things are tended to, and if one is tired, it is time for sleep-whenever and wherever one happens to be.  Again, others may find such behavior difficult, even "flaky."

For ISFPs, work must be rewarding, and to be rewarding it must be personally gratifying and of use to others.  Money is secondary; the primary concern is that service be rendered, to whomever or whatever requires it.  If a great deal of formal education or abstract theory is necessary for a certain career choice, then ISFPs will likely seek fulfillment elsewhere.  Vocational education, however, is often appealing for ISFPs who desire to work in the area of hands-on, practical trades and skills, including everything from car mechanics and repair to cosmetology, carpentry, and clerical tasks.

When they are enthusiastic about themselves and confident in their abilities, ISFPs find that their four preferences give them a natural edge to excel in a variety of vocations, including psychology, veterinary medicine, botany, and theology.  When they make it to managerial levels, their styles tend to be nondirective.  They create an open and diverse environment, which can be fertile ground for those subordinates capable of developing themselves.

ISFPs seem to carry this easygoing nature into maturity.  Adapting to each day as it comes, with little need to plan, they tend to "wait, see, and hope for a surprise." Retirement allows some special time for the kinds of hobbies that are open-ended and can result in high levels of personal satisfaction related to the process, not necessarily the product.

Two famous likely ISFPs include <I>Peanuts'<N> Charlie Brown (whose Introversion demands that he constantly rehearse what he will say to the little redheaded girl, but prevents him from actually delivering the goods, whose Feeling often raises the question, after he's been beaten badly in baseball, "How could we lose when we were so sincere?" and whose need for action <I>demands<N> that he try to kick a football, fully knowing Lucy will always foil him); and Saint Francis of Assisi (whose quiet, reflective way of relating to animals around him brought scorn and misunderstanding from his colleagues, but whose need to serve inspired an entire new order).}
.infp
{<I>Performing Noble Service to Aid Society<N>

If there is a single word that defines this type, it is <I>idealist<N>.  As Introverted Feelers, they discover their ideals through a subjective interpretation of the world, and put those ideals to use to help others in a variety of ways.  They are often the "Joans (or Johns) of Arc" who seek fulfillment through performing noble service to aid society.

INFPs have their own self-imposed "codes" for life, and while they have little need to share or impose them on others, they can be very strict with themselves about following these regimens. But in general, INFPs tend to be easygoing and congenial.  They would prefer to "fit in" harmoniously rather than to create waves-as long as they can do so without violating their ideals.  Yet when others do trample on INFPs' codes, INFPs can become very demanding and extremely aggressive, often to the surprise of both themselves and others.  This tendency may be best illustrated by the mother who feels her child has been treated unjustly by his or her school.  The normally quiet INFP mother leaves no stone unturned in full pursuit of rectifying the injustice and creating a better environment-not only for her child but for others, who will also benefit from the change. 

Male INFPs can be seen by others, particularly macho traditionalists, as too gentle, even wimpy.  The INFPs' generally passive, live-and-let-live exterior, however admirable, may lack the take-charge quality often associated with maleness-until they feel that their value system is threatened, that is.  Then, the easygoing ways (of male and female INFPs alike) can give way to harsh rigidity.  For staff, friends, and mates who don't understand this characteristic, the INFP can seem, at best, a source of mixed signals-pliant one moment, rigid the next-and, at worst, a deep, complex, even somewhat melancholy person who is hard to understand.  When a male INFP marries an Extravert, society may view his mate as domineering and demanding.  In actuality, for the marriage to succeed, the mate must quickly learn the limits of her mandate to take charge.

These very same qualities in an INFP female are more socially acceptable, even admired.  While the INFP male's quiet stubbornness can make him seem simultaneously unforceful yet rigid, the INFP female may be respected for her inner strength.  Her determination conveys power and make others feel secure.

INFPs resist being labeled and are often driven to do things that shake the way others view them.  This can on occasion lead INFPs to be unpredictable, even outrageous.  A docile INFP we know was invited to a staff costume party where guests were instructed to dress as "who you really are." She came as Madonna, the eccentric eighties rock singer, bedecked in jewelry and silky clothing.  Her colleagues were shocked by her display-but she wasn't.  

Like all iNtuitive-Feelers, the INFP strives for self-identity, self-knowledge, and self-definition.  "Who am I?" is an all-important question.  More so than all other NFs, however, the INFPs find in their preferences further material and inspiration for this never-ending quest.  Their Introversion fosters inward reflection, their iNtuition ensures an endlessly ramifying sense of the possibilities inherent in the self, their Feeling guides them to reflect on how such potential could benefit both themselves and their relations with others, and their Perceiving keeps them open to a constant flow of new data.  It's not unusual for an INFP to get out of bed reflecting (Introversion), "Who am I and where's my life going today?" There may be a number of possible answers (iNtuitive)-"I'm a father," "I'm a mate," "I'm a teacher," and the like-as well as a consideration of how those attributes might be deployed in the service of self and others (Feeling).  Deciding these are all interesting issues to contemplate, the INFP may then, in the search for more information (Perceiving), set off for school or work, there to start the process again.  Even if these questions are not consciously raised, the identity issues are always percolating.  The INFP's reflective, open-ended approach to life produces far more questions than answers.

The INFP's home and work area may be rife with little piles of "to-do's"-reading, ironing, artwork, writing.  These things will always be there.  In fact, they will increase as the INFP's interests and concerns grow throughout life.  It's helpful for INFPs to learn to live with this rather than punish themselves for seeming "failures." In general, home and family relationships are more relaxed than rigid; schedules are always subject to change because of others' immediate needs.  Neatness often takes a backseat to interpersonal warmth and affirmation, except when company is expected, in which case perfection is the name of the game in the desire to serve others.  INFPs prefer to give in to others rather than to argue points that may lead to disharmony.  Still, all of this may fly out the window if an INFP's "codes" are "violated," and then a relaxed home gives way to strict rules and schedules.

The same dynamic applies to parenting.  An INFP parent may focus on a few carefully cultivated values.  If these are respected, the INFP parent is typically easygoing and quick to meet a child's needs.  In general, the INFP parent is positive and affirming and a child will find in that parent a friend in whom they can confide.  If there are parenting weaknesses, they are probably related to INFPs' first preference, Introversion: INFPs may be slow to give overt, positive strokes, not because they don't feel approval, but because they find it difficult to express; and to their last preference, Perceiving, which may cause them to avoid providing the structure and organization that a child may need.

Introversion may also plague INFPs' relationships: they may feel far more love and warmth than they are able to express.  In any relationship involving INFPs, there will be growth, affirmation, and self-fulfillment for both of the parties involved, but sometimes the combination of the Introversion and Feeling preferences causes them to avoid discussing issues that they fear may cause disagreement.  For example, an INFP may, after much inner debate, conclude that some kind of change is necessary, and may then spring this conclusion on an unprepared partner.  Thus, the INFP's decision to quit a job and go to graduate school (or convince the mate to do so) may be presented as a fait accompli, not a subject open for discussion, and the unsuspecting mate may be shocked into a new view of their relationship when a formerly pliant INFP shows new drive, determination, and rigidity, far out of proportion to the issue involved.

This INFP complexity-an easygoing exterior masking a compulsive interior-may make for inner stress.  The result can be a variety of serious health problems: ileitis, colitis, and other stomach or intestinal problems.  They may be particularly prone to such ailments when the needs of others prevent them from being able to relax and enjoy themselves.  INFPs can easily make martyrs of themselves.

As children, INFPs' deceptively easygoing natures may cause others to take them for granted.  INFP children have a high need to please parents-and be stroked for it.  Generally, they are tender and sensitive to the world around them and, like their INFP elders, often give in to others at the expense of their own needs.  If such self-sacrifice is not appreciated or, even worse, is criticized, the INFP child can become sullen, self-critical, often over personalizing each remark.  The potential for martyrdom begins early.  INFP children spend a disproportionate amount of time daydreaming and being preoccupied with inner thoughts.  They are often good students and expend a lot of energy pleasing their teachers.  They tend to do well in high school, and often excel in college.  To please others, they may take courses they do not like-and even succeed in them.  The potential for self-doubt and self-criticism, however, is always close to the surface.  Even when told they have done a "good job," INFPs know the only true judge is themselves, and may punish themselves for work they consider less than perfect.

In general, while INFPs love to learn, grow, excel, and please others, they are always their own worst critics; they often remind themselves that they could have done better.  It is a lifelong struggle between self-approbation and self-depreciation.  In the end, INFPs almost always tend to sell themselves short.

Family events for an INFP are expressions of the essentials of life, and a lot of energy can be directed to celebrating such family rituals as birthdays, anniversaries, or graduations.  Loyalty and service to the family can keep an INFP a "child" at any age and always close-psychologically, if not physically-to parents and family.

The values that shape INFPs' family life and personal growth patterns highlight their career choices: integrity, hard work, idealism, sensitivity, and concern for other people.  INFPs also bring their self-criticism and perfectionism to the workplace, which can sometimes hamper their natural skills.  An INFP may be an excellent musician or a superb teacher, but even if showered with accolades, INFPs may never quite be satisfied.  Their high learning abilities may lead them to careers in which they excel academically but for which they are typologically somewhat miscast.  The daughter of an engineer may pursue that career to please her father-and find it academically very attainable and challenging-although as an NFP, she may find the world of engineering foreign, even hostile, turf.

Those careers that involve human service are the ultimate home of the INFP: psychology, teaching, family medicine, and church work, for example.  In the long haul, what INFPs choose as a career must serve their own idealism.  If it doesn't, they can become restless and stressed and their work can become sloppy and counterproductive.

Retirement tends to be relished by INFPs because the little piles of to-do's they have been amassing for years can be rearranged, pondered, and finally tackled.  They tend not to "slow down" in later life, approaching their post-career hobbies with the same intensity they once reserved for children and careers.  They may approach retirement with a particular joy if it allows them to leave a traditional career or job that imposed the kind of structure and rigidity that INFPs resist.  Still appearing externally relaxed, they tend to continue to be internally driven by a call to serve humanity-in the form of children, grandchildren, organizations, causes, or any other local or world issues.

Abraham Lincoln quite possibly personifies the INFP.  As a young man, seeing slaves loaded into a boat, he took the cause of freedom into his heart, ultimately imposing his crusade on the entire nation.  Isabel Briggs Myers, another INFP, carried on her mission-that people learn how to use their personality differences more constructively and creatively-throughout her entire life.  From age twenty to eighty, she endlessly created, researched, and refined the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.  Carl Rogers, one of the pillars of American modern psychology, saw the need for a therapeutic model that enhanced individual self-development-itself, an INFP cause-and spent his life developing nondirective counseling.}
.intp
{<I>A Love of Problem-solving<N>

If any type personifies the absentminded professor, it would likely be the INTP.  Their inner reflectiveness-Introversion-enables them to explore all the imaginative possibilities their iNtuition preference provides.  Their objectivity (Thinking) demands the analysis of all that information, and their open-ended and flexible attitude (Perceiving) prompts them to be responsive to whatever new data present themselves.

Such a combination of preferences keeps the INTP caught up in the paradoxical goal of always trying to make a coherent whole out of the endlessly proliferating amount of data.  Whether it's an article, drawing, a plan, scheme, thought, or theory, the INTP struggles to fit all its pieces together into a complete picture that keeps expanding with the continual discovery of new pieces.  As a result, all thoughts, ideas, and plans, however final they seem, are subject to last-minute changes when "new data," from either internal or external influences, become available.  This is very exciting to INTPs and very frustrating to others, especially those with a preference for Judging.

To arrive at what seems like perfection, only to have it challenged by a new insight, is at once exciting and challenging to INTPs.  As a result, they are their own greatest critics and pride themselves on being the first to knock down their own theories or correct themselves with a better word or improved idea.  The quest for flawlessness, cleverness, competency, conceptual perfection, and self-mastery is a driving force for INTPs.  When maximized, however, these goals can become tiresome, self-punishing liabilities. 

Any project, from fixing a leaky faucet to writing a business plan to taking a vacation, presents itself as a mental challenge to the INTP, who thinks through every stage of the task at hand, from beginning to end.  Such thinking may well involve computers, drawing boards, resource books, and anything else that will help the INTP focus the project and create a plan open-ended enough to allow for improvements.  Once such a plan has been developed, either on paper or in the INTP's mind, a considerable amount of energy must then go into critiquing and improving the "rough draft." This process, which may go on for hours, days, even weeks, is always more exciting, challenging, and stimulating to the INTP than actually doing whatever needs to be done.  Sometimes, once an INTP thinks a project through, he or she may lose interest in it, for in the mind of the INTP that project has been completed-even if that's the only place it exists.  Indeed, when INTPs are conceptualizing-and they usually are-it can be difficult to interrupt their high power of concentration.

Gender issues are especially pointed for the INTP female.  While all of the internal conceptualizing, however misunderstood, may be tolerated in a male, society is less likely to tolerate the same characteristics in a female.  The absentminded professor is another image more conventionally male than female.  This creates at least three special problems for the INTP female: First, women historically have not been looked upon as the architects of much beyond their own homes and families.  The constant desire to make life conform to a theoretical model, while true to the INTP preference, flies in the face of traditional female roles.  Second, conceptual originality is similarly not a traditional female trait.  Some INTPs, asked the time of day, would be tempted to expound on the philosophical meaning of time; this eccentricity in a man may be looked upon as the result of over intelligence, in a woman it may result in her being labeled "dizzy" or even "dumb." Finally, the Thinking preference of INTPs directly counters most females' scripting to be subjective, soft, and caring.  Even worse, when an INTP female's feeling side does surface, it often does so with intensity, an outpouring that can be frightening to both herself and others.

In relating to an INTP, male or female, expect an intellectual challenge.  Words spoken and thoughts shared with an INTP will be construed as an invitation to expand, clarify, argue, and rethink.  Though less immediately reactive than their ENTP relatives, they are sure to be thinking about and rehearsing a response that will cause all involved to reevaluate the issue at hand.  Such discipline and rigor brings growth and new direction to a relationship.  But social deftness and poise are generally secondary to an INTP's intellectual pursuits.  As a result, when INTPs are absorbed in thinking and questioning, they can often appear hard to reach, at best, or even downright rude, to those of a different type.

Parenting for the INTP is seen as an opportunity to help young minds develop and grow.  Very patient and accepting of differences in children, INTP parents want their children to grow up enjoying, expressing, living through independent thought.  Clearly preferring a child to develop "mind over body," INTP parents have an amazing tolerance of and support for each child's pursuit of his or her own course.  If anything, they may be too nondirective of their children's development.  It is an INTP model to open new possibilities for the child by <I>suggesting<N>-not demanding and rarely imposing-alternatives to whatever thought or action the child may be pursuing; if the alternative is not adopted, the typical INTP response is simply-"At least I tried." But sometimes children, even when they seem rebellious or uninterested, welcome parent's pushing and imposing new ideas.  Those who do are out of luck if they have INTP parents, for "pushing" and "imposing" are two words foreign to INTPs.

It is a live-and-let-live life-style for most INTPs.  Study, follow one's inspirations, master the situation, then move on to some new "problem." At times, their love of problem-solving may overshadow their other inclinations.  So, for example, while not particularly mechanically inclined, they may find the challenge of repairing a broken appliance totally consuming, and be willing to expend great bursts of energy to master the situation.  Having mastered it, they will instantly move on to something else.  They are the quintessential Jacks (or Janes) of all trades and masters of none.

As children, INTPs can be viewed variously as socially shy or terribly argumentative, with little in between.  In school they may be seen as unfocused, pursuing too many things unrelated to the curriculum.  Worse yet, they are seen as raising the wrong questions at the wrong times, although this may be more a reflection of a teacher's rigidness than a student's disorganization.  Still, the INTP's behavior can be seen as disruptive, particularly in females.  The result, inevitably, is that INTPs must work harder than most to tolerate and survive grade school.  When they are successful, they will likely thrive in college.  The inquisitiveness encouraged in higher education is the INTP's dream come true.  For INTPs, whatever the subject, the joy is in learning.

Family events for INTPs are generally fun because they are opportunities to explore what makes such events and people tick.  While an INTP may be remiss in remembering anniversaries and belated in honoring them, such events are considered important and the forgetfulness is inadvertent.  At the very least, family occasions offer material for thought about the meaning of family and its place in the sequence of life.  As an INTP grows and matures, even bedtime may seem a stepping-off place for exploration, because it opens the door to dreams, which provide more opportunities for understanding and growth.

Work that does not involve intellect and the opportunity for mastery soon becomes drudgery for INTPs.  In fact, if a job doesn't afford the INTP such challenges, he or she will be better off seeking new employment.  Otherwise, on-the-job listlessness will result, over the long term, in stress, accident proneness, and overall poor performance.

Senior years for INTPs ought to afford time to theorize and dream with much less accountability.  During some of that time INTPs may experience more Extraversion and subjectivity (Feeling), which may be simultaneously scary and quite exciting.  As that phase passes, the INTP will settle into a senior citizenship of developing new thoughts and ideas to present to younger generations.

Famous likely INTPs include Linus of <I>Peanuts<N> comics fame (who brings rationality to the contemplation of the theological implications of absolutely everything in the world and intimidates everyone with the universal questions he ceaselessly raises); C. G. Jung (whose revolutionary and complex theories of personality were comprehended by few, although his intent was simply to raise questions for all to explore); and Albert Einstein (an intellectual Goliath who devoted his entire life to exploration and questioning, and yet was known to show up at a dinner party having forgotten to wear pants).}
.estp
{<I>The Ultimate Realist<N>

The classic ESTP slogan may be "When all else fails, read the directions." This heavily action-oriented type, more than any other types, lives for the moment.  If reading the directions delays "the moment," it may therefore be a waste of time. 

The ESTP is the ultimate realist with the lowest tolerance for unrelated theory.  The ESTP's focus is directed toward people and things (Extraversion), and information gathering is grounded in what's real according to the five senses (Sensing).  The information then is assessed objectively and analytically (Thinking) at the same time that the ESTP remains spontaneous, flexible, and open to any new alternative (Perceiving).  These four preferences combine for quick, exact, tactile, objective, externally expressed responses to any situation.

The ESTP believes that time spent making plans and getting ready may mean missing what is going on right now.  So, for example, going to school makes sense only as long as what's taught is relevant and immediately usable.  But the ESTP would rather plunge into the "real world" and deal with real (as opposed to textbook) problems using one's innate talents instead of what one learns in books.

The ESTP would always rather be doing something than nothing.  And the consequences of action can always be postponed to another day.  Act now, pay later.  Such tendencies in their personalities earn them very negative reputations from other types: they are "fidgets" and "hyperactive," for example.  Certainly the ESTP can seem exceedingly restless.

As outgoing realists with objectivity and flexibility, ESTPs demand a return on every investment of energy they make.  If something doesn't seem worth their while, they move on to the next thing.  Rarely, if ever, does one find the ESTP finishing a book that doesn't appeal; while some other types may wade trough a dull book just to finish what they've started, or because they think it will be intellectually "good for them," the ESTP views this as a silly waste of time.  Similarly, it may be a waste of time to clean a room simply because it should be done.  Better to wait until one needs to find some specific lost item.  Then, cleaning the room has a purpose and the task makes sense.

Entertaining and gregarious, with a short attention span, the ESTP can often be found on center stage.  The ESTP's quick repartee, with a special knack for practical jokes, makes them fun to be with.  People are easily drawn and engaged by an ESTP.  Their capacity to tackle and complete tough jobs, their fearlessness in trying anything at least once, and their keen sense of competition, make ESTPs doers, problem-solvers, and people upon whom one can count when an exciting challenge lies ahead.  Not that the job will be done according to the rules.  That's part of the pride and cleverness of the ESTP.  If the job becomes routine, the ESTP will lose interest and become bored, causing him or her to want to move on or change setting.

One ongoing dilemma for this type is that they are often oblivious to established norms and procedures.  As a result, they can be in continual trouble with those in authority.  Some other types are specifically anti-authority and enjoy testing its legitimacy-not the ESTP.  This type is simply oblivious to authority.  Looking at a job or problem, he or she begins to see a way to complete or solve the dilemma and leaps right in, not having checked first as to whether there are established procedures for doing something.  As a result, what may have been intended as a good deed by the ESTP may be seen as something completely different by others, who may end up dubbing the ESTP a "troublemaker" or similar term.  The well-meaning ESTP ends up not a hero but a failure.  Fortunately for them, ESTPs are not given to much self-punishment and simply move on to other endeavors.

ESTP females tend to be out of step with the mainstream.  As a type, they are often given to athletics, especially competitive, hands-on, contact sports.  If an ESTP female, true to her preferences, is a natural at these, she may be deemed a tomboy.  Moreover, the hard-charging fix-it-or-forget-it model of the ESTP is not one readily associated with women in our society.

In a relationship as in most other things, the ESTP demands center stage.  While deeply committed in a serious relationship, the expression of commitment may vary from day to day according to changing situations.

ESTP parents often have very realistic expectations of their children and mates.  It isn't necessary for the ESTP's children to excel, or even go to college, but they simply must do something constructive and practical with their lives.  More specifically, ESTP parents want their children to find something that will make them happy.

The ESTP life-style has a certain restlessness to it.  There is always too much going on, with still more to do, never enough time.  That, in itself, brings much excitement to the ESTP.  Almost any event can be the excuse for a party: an athletic event, the end of summer, a baptism, a new job, a good grade, whatever.  An ESTP can become quite involved in preparing and participating in such events.  Sometimes all this flurry is only flurry, especially when ESTPs are disorganized, doing things in spurts and accomplishing very little.  Then their lack of orderliness can be extremely frustrating to those around them.  Their need for center stage can, at times, make them appear very abrasive to other types, as can their impatience with theory or even with long explanations.

As children, ESTPs are woefully misunderstood.  These are the children we call "hyperactive" or "slow learners." There is often a war between high-strung ESTP children and parents of a different type who think it necessary to "quiet" these apparent troublemakers.  Actually, ESTP children are very creative and resourceful, often in the face of repeated attempts to get them to conform to more standard ways of behaving.  With guidance instead of control, ESTPs do very well.  They love family events but often do unexpected things.  It's common for an ESTP-child or adult-to plan some special event and then forget to show up at the appointed hour.  They find this perfectly natural behavior, but it can be very frustrating to others.

Work that is flexible, varied, and open to creativity can be challenging to an ESTP.  Routine and predictability are considered a drag and lead to stress and low productivity.  ESTPs want to learn as they go; they'll read the instruction manual only when absolutely necessary (and then only the parts of the manual that are relevant to the moment).  They prefer to trust themselves and to rely on common sense to accomplish whatever is at hand.  They are adept at entrepreneurial activities, and there are many ESTP small-business owners.  Sports, auto racing and repair, maintenance or operation of special equipment, and anything else that changes from day to day or moment to moment and is unpredictable has special career appeal.

As ESTPs age, they still require new mountains to climb.  Though the mountains needn't be quite as high, they are still needed.  A bit more reflective time is needed, too, although the preference continues to be for challenges that test common-sense skills and abilities.  Without these challenges, retirement would be nothing but drudgery for an ESTP.

Famous likely ESTPs include General George Patton (who clamored for the limelight and always did the opposite of what was expected, usually at high risk); Lee Iacocca (who loved the thrill and challenge of taking on Congress, solved Chrysler's many problems one day at a time, and by his own words would never have taken the job if he had examined it first); Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon (who loves the spotlight and does whatever is necessary on the field, no matter how unexpected or how risky); and <I>Peanuts'<N> Peppermint Patty (she often sleeps through class, finding the daily lessons boring, yet is always ready to play ball with Charlie Brown).}
.esfp
{<I>You Only Go Around Once in Life<N>

Of all the sixteen types, ESFPs are most in touch with the here and now and live primarily for the moment.  As with ESTPs, their slogan could easily be "Act now, pay later." As Extraverted-Sensors, their only certainty is the here and now.  They personify the bird-in-the-hand-is-worth-two-in-the-bush philosophy.  When the bird is in hand, they have all they need; when there is no bird, their energies are focused on getting one.  While their Introverted counterparts might reflect a bit before acting, ESFPs' are driven by their Extraversion to act first to achieve the immediate tangible. 

ESFPs may be the inspiration for Madison Avenue pitchmen: they exemplify such slogans as "You only go around once in life..." and "If I only have one life to live, let me live it as a blonde."

Their focus on the immediate leaves them with a low tolerance for procedures, routines, and anything else that stands in the way of immediate gratification.  The combination of Extraversion, Sensing, and Feeling drives ESFPs to make each moment a successful interpersonal experience.  They are very accepting of others and believe people should "Live and let live." So strong is their need for harmony that they constantly tend to accentuate the positive, denying and repressing anything that is less than positive, often employing diversionary tactics to circumvent a conflict.  If an argument erupts, ESFPs may quickly start a conversation about something pleasant, hoping that the combatants will join in and forget their differences.

Although Extraverted-Sensors are the ultimate realists, with a firm grasp of the outer world, they tend to lose their way very quickly in the nether regions of their inner world of abstraction.  They tend to experience it as an ominous place in whose coil they become quickly enmeshed.  Like their ESTP first cousins, given half a second to speculate, they can proceed to the worst possible conclusion.  A mate or guest who is late for dinner is presumed, after a moment's reflection, to be killed en route; when the guest then shows up and offers a perfectly plausible excuse, it will be viewed with distrust and suspicion.  The imagination of the ESFP tends to run wild if given half a chance.

All of this gives ESFPs an uncanny skill for making life a three-ring circus, juggling many activities and people, and, for the most part, enjoying the hustle and bustle, and the spotlight that is on them.  Unfortunately, they have low tolerance for those times when the circus lights are down or the curtain is closed.  Their need for action can earn them negative labels like "flighty," "hyperactive," or even "egotistical," which may appear to be accurate even when they are not.  In the presence of an ESFP, one often feels positive, enthused, and excited, albeit somewhat tired and out of breath from trying to keep pace and follow each new dynamic as it surfaces.

Gender has a lot to do with how ESFPs are viewed by others.  Female ESTPs, unfortunately, are often cast as "dizzy blondes" (whatever their hair color), while male ESFPs are viewed, at best, as "spacy" and, at worst, as wimps.  Both males and females constantly bemoan the fact that "no one takes me seriously."

The characteristics usually linked with ESFPs are considered more traditionally female than male, such as "works well with children" and "enjoys serving others" as well as "conflict-avoidant" and "fuzzy-headed." As a result, when a male ESFP demonstrates some or all of these traits, his masculinity may be suspect.  Because of their tendency to be somewhat abrupt and quick-spoken, ESFPs can be seen at first blush as harsh-although in the long run, they are caring and sensitive-so an ESFP male sometimes must work harder at giving in to his natural "soft" side without feeling his masculinity is threatened.

In general, both male and female ESFPs are often misperceived.  The spontaneity and immediacy of their nature (Perceiving) and their firm grounding in "what is" (Sensing) as opposed to "what can be" may make the ESFP appear lacking in depth, direction, and purpose.  But this is not the case.  It's just that their depth, direction, and purpose are always interpreted in light of the demands of the existing moment.  "I don't need a long-range plan if I make the most of what I'm doing right now," they are likely to say.  It is precisely such sentiments that cause them to be perceived as shallow.

Like all Extraverted-Perceivers, ESFPs make more starts than finishes, and it is therefore vital that they somehow develop a system of benchmarks against which their accomplishments and progress can be measured.  This will act as a check on the ESFP's tendency to live only for the excitement of the moment, with no real long-term satisfaction, or sense of self-worth.

ESFP parents bring their three-ring circus into their homes as well as their jobs.  Multidirected, they can pack into a single evening for their children everything from Little League to dance class, a church meeting, and a home-cooked dinner.  While this can be very exciting for all involved, it also results in a feeling of overextension and scatteredness that can ultimately cause guilt and self-flagellation over all the things left undone.  (One of those things left "undone" can, unfortunately, be paying attention to a mate.) Even when they themselves are not overextended, ESFP parents can make their children feel that way, especially children of a different type.  In fact, ESFPs can seem like competition to their children.  After all, as believers in "living for the moment," they'd much prefer to be one of "the kids" and get involved in an activity than to sit on the sidelines as spectators with all the other parents.  All of this makes ESFP parents very popular with the neighborhood kids (and their parents) but may lead an ESFP's child to conclude that "Dad doesn't care about me personally, he's always off with my friends.  There's never time for just me." For the child, there are times when the circus needs to stop.  But even children who find life with ESFP parents tiring will enjoy their warm, supportive, easygoing ways.

One possible drawback to being so easygoing is that it can frustrate the family with not enough restraints, direction, and general discipline, to say nothing of "thinking about the future" -any or all of which may be important to family members of different types.  Judging children, for example, while appreciating their parents' fun-loving nature, may go to bed frustrated, hungering for a plan, a schedule, an overall pattern for their lives.

The thrill-a-minute intensity ESFPs bring to parenting also characterizes their intimate relationships.  They are good at translating the excitement of falling in love, or the intensity of commitments, into each day's experiences.  Today's passion, for example, may be tomorrow's home-cooked meal, and the next day's "special surprise." All of which, while exciting, may be misunderstood by a mate of a different type. An Introverted mate may wonder why the relationship needs constant external affirmation; the Judging mate may long for less upheaval and more stability.

As with everything else, relaxation for an ESFP involves "doing." Remember: to spend too much time alone or reflecting can lead an Extraverted-Sensing-Perceiver to leap to all sorts of bad conclusions.  So, "doing anything" beats "doing nothing." "Relaxation" can include a great many demanding activities that other types might not find so relaxing.  But for the ESFP, such activities provide not only fun and relaxation but the chance to do more of the many things they've "always wanted to do." Going to the beach for a relaxing weekend may result in a variety of activities that may include exploring all the interesting shops on the boardwalk or gathering a multitude of shells and making them into gifts for friends.

An ESFP child must often struggle to be understood.  The ESFP child sees himself as entertainer, dancer, garbage collector, car washer, train engineer, the identities changing daily.  As a result, these children can often be seen as hyperactive, constantly needing strokes and affirmation.  The plus side is that they are very capable of self-entertainment-though their activities may not necessarily meet with parental approval.

The need to be "doing" also applies to learning.  When learning is fun and social and a chance to entertain or be entertained, the ESFP excels.  When it begins to become more abstract and theoretical, the ESFP starts to withdraw and ultimately loses interest.  While Sensing-Perceiving types tend not to do well in college (which requires considerably more facility for the abstract and the conceptual than earlier education) and often drop out before graduation, ESFPs do well once they learn that college can be a four-year party at parents' expense.  They may not excel academically, but they manage to perform well enough to stay in school, making the most of campus social life.

At bedtime, ESFPs, like other Extraverted children, would rather fall asleep at the top of the stairs than miss any excitement that may be going on downstairs.  And if any of the activities can serve as an opportunity to be in the spotlight for one more moment, the ESFP child is ready, willing, and able.  Therefore, family rules, bedtime rituals, study hours, and all other regimens will be stretched to the limit-as will be the patience of the parents.

ESFPs generally make family events exciting and entertaining, though they generally are "happenings" rather than carefully planned rituals.  The lack of planning can cause family members of different types (particularly Judgers) to become highly stressed as the event approaches, although they may greatly enjoy the outcome.  ESFPs can work wonders at the last minute, pulling together a successful party in mere minutes, often to the consternation of those watching on the sidelines.

Career choices for ESFPs often include service to humanity such as teaching, especially elementary school, or working in the arts or theater.  They love athletics and anything else that provides relatively instant gratification and allows for self-expression, concern for others, and a challenge to accomplish, improve, and grow.  Conversely, careers requiring adherence to rigid routine or other kinds of constraints will not only have low appeal for ESFPs but, in the long haul, will be very frustrating.  They are challenged by things that are different, fun, and require some special effort to accomplish.

In later life, the hunger for the unknown and the unexpected does not end.  This may best be illustrated through a woman we know who when her husband died, met with a minister the night before his funeral.  When asked by the clergyman whether there was anything special she wanted included in the service, she thought briefly, looked up, and replied, "Surprise me."

Famous likely ESFPs include people who are viewed as flighty by all but those who know them well.  The character played by Gracie Allen-flighty to everyone but George Burns, who viewed her as the backbone of their team-could easily be an ESFP.  So could Edith Bunker, seen by the audience as flaky, called "dingbat" by husband Archie, who nonetheless recognized that she was his Rock of Gibraltar.  Both of these women viewed the world in very concrete, literal-minded terms, which made for much of the comedy of their roles.  They were usually to be found in the midst of a variety of activities, juggling several people's problems and doing so in caring ways, accepting of others' perceived eccentricities.}
.enfp
{<I>Giving Life an Extra Squeeze<N>

ENFPs are generally described as dynamic, enthusiastic, highly skilled with people, affirming, and gregarious.  The combined preferences of Extraversion, iNtuition, Feeling, and Perceiving give them an exceptional capacity for dealing with a variety of people, events, or challenges-often simultaneously.

ENFPs prefer to perceive the world through its possibilities (N) and translate these possibilities inter- and intrapersonally (F).  All this takes place in lively interaction with the outside world (E), and their Perceiving attitude (P) keeps them open to a never-ending flow of alternatives in any situation.

The ENFP has a high need to be affirming of others-and to be affirmed.  This drives them in such a way that they may appear overly positive, even insincere, in praise of other people's simplest deeds.  Craving such affirmations, ENFPs will overexert themselves-physically and psychologically-to please.  They may also expend extra energy giving strokes to everyone and trying, at times desperately, to get strokes in return.  It is not uncommon for ENFPs to work themselves into exhaustion while following an inspiration or seeking an approving response from someone important to them.

This ability to see the potential in people and be positive about them gives ENFPs a decided edge in interpersonal dynamics, especially when combined with their almost psychic awareness of what's going on with people around them.  Sometimes in their Extraverted enthusiasm, however, they may share some of these iNtuitive insights and be so accurate as to intimidate rather than help the people involved.  These unsolicited but freely offered insights can often win them disapproval rather than approval, although that may only make the ENFP try harder the next time around.

Because of their enthusiasm for life, it is easy for ENFPs to rally support around a number of exciting ideas or causes.  Unfortunately, somewhat like their first cousin, the ENTP, ENFPs make more starts than finishes.  So while a crowd may be attracted by an ENFP's charisma, it may soon grow frustrated by the lack of organization and follow-through.

Gender differences can be significant for males because the qualities most associated with ENFPs are more traditionally attributed to females: sociability, spontaneity, and concern for other people.  As a result, when an ENFP male "plays" into those natural preferences of his personality, he can find himself outside the male "establishment." Ironically, this may set him up to overcompensate and behave in ways atypical for ENFPs-to be, for example, competitive or overly argumentative.  Seeking group approval, he may get involved with contact sports or other "tough" activities, though he would really prefer to be elsewhere.  ENFP males, somewhat more than other F males, may also fall into the trap of physical seduction as a way of establishing their masculinity.  Indeed, both male and female ENFPs can be intellectually and physically seductive.

By virtue of their enthusiasm and generally accepting nature, ENFPs are highly resistant to categorizing and "putting people in boxes," and they are equally resistant to being put in boxes themselves, since they enjoy their own multifaceted personalities.  With a little bit of effort they can "get into another person's moccasins" and identify with that individual's thoughts and feelings so readily that they run the risk of virtually losing their own identity.  This beautiful quality of effortlessly taking on both the characteristics and the problems of another type is seen by others as very supportive and accepting.  However, it can become a problem to the degree that it leaves ENFPs adrift, wondering who they are and what they should be doing.  Obviously, this tendency has a restlessness to it, as well as an unfinished quality that haunts ENFPs lifelong.

In a relationship, ENFPs are rarely complacent.  While highly committed, they can never give up thinking that either "This relationship could be better if I worked harder" or "There's a better relationship, still out there waiting for me." Such ambiguity and tension can be disconcerting for mates who are of a different type, particularly Judgers and most especially Sensing-Thinking-Judgers.

Parenting is fun for the ENFP and with the ENFP.  The home, while often not the world's neatest, is a playground for fun, creative explorations.  "The more the merrier" is the theme and each person and his or her differences must be affirmed.  Expression, affirmation, and growth happen all the time.  All life is a party and so even family chores must be converted to play in order to be worth accomplishing.  If there is a family or individual job to do, they must either put it off (if it is boring) or involve others (so it becomes fun).  The ENFP home is a gathering place for the neighborhood and friends.  If the children are not ENFPs, they may not only misunderstand such a social whirl, they may also be confused or affronted by their parents' "immature," childlike behavior.

The basic theme of the ENFP's life is self-expression.  The 1960s emphasis on self-awareness and group dynamics, the conversation pits where talk of peace and love and "flower power" took place, epitomize the values of the ENFP.  The more that people can be themselves-and be affirmed for being themselves-the more growing they will do and the more they will contribute to the good of society.  ENFPs believe that and will give their energies to help others achieve their goals.  It's possible, however, for their enthusiasm to lead them in so many directions simultaneously that they can squander their best intentions, leading to frustration and self-punishment.

Obviously, relaxation-even in play-does not come easily to ENFPs.  In fact, they almost have to "work at it." ENFPs go in fits and starts, and so when they become excited, they lose all sense of time, physical needs, and anything else.  They follow their enthusiasm until totally fatigued, then collapse.  As a result, relaxation, unless as part of a creative adventure, may take a backseat, sometimes even at the expense of the ENFP's physical well-being.

As children, ENFPs are a delight and yet often thoroughly exhausting and exasperating to parents.  Everything around is material for daydreaming about who they are and who they might be.  So, an upright vacuum cleaner becomes a radio microphone and the ENFP is a disc jockey.  Tomorrow, a tree house will be built, and the ENFP is an architect, artist, painter, or interior decorator.  Still another day, he or she may be program director for a large playground, responsible for many activities.  All of this, while exciting for the ENFP, may be something of a merry-go-round for the parent, as the ENFP solicits parental approval and help in implementing each of these activities.  While desperately wanting such approval, ENFP children, in their enthusiasm, can sometimes do things in direct conflict with the affirmation they're seeking: talking incessantly instead of listening, for example, or losing something they were entrusted not to lose, messing up their rooms in the name of straightening, or coming home later than promised.

In their quest to be liked, ENFP children are hypersensitive to the criticism of others, especially playmates.  With a tendency to personalize everything, they are easily crushed by a harsh remark, so that their trademark phrase could be: "Everyone is so mean to me!"

ENFPs approach learning as they do everything else: it is a creative adventure that, if done well, will bring affirmation.  They may be the ultimate apple-polishers.  They want to be liked and they want to like the teacher, their classmates, the school, the administration, and everything else.  As Extraverted-iNtuitive-Feelers, they generally do well academically and are people-pleasers.  Interestingly, more than other types, they may suffer test phobias, because even those who do very well in class and know the material feel boxed in by fact-oriented exams that have only one "right" answer.  On the other hand, they do well on essay tests, which give them the opportunity to integrate their knowledge into a bigger picture.

Family events for ENFPs are parties.  If they are not, the ENFP will make them so.  The Irish wake was probably designed by an ENFP who preferred to celebrate a life rather than mourn a death.  One of the beauties of ENFPs is their ability to take an ordinary family event and, with almost no planning, using only the people and materials at hand, convert the occasion into a virtual work of art, an expression of affection or family affirmation that will be long remembered.

In this and many other ways, ENFPs are great improvisers.  In the pursuit of pleasing others, their capabilities can be boundless.  They may, for example, reach into the refrigerator and pull out whatever is at hand, and transform it into an impressive, spontaneous dinner, served with artistic flair.  While this is clearly admirable, they still have a tendency to be hypercritical of their own performance.  So after the dishes are done, they may decide that the dinner would have been better had they only, say, planned a day earlier, or remembered to defrost the brownies.  Such "what-if" speculation can haunt ENFPs, turning otherwise successful occasions into opportunities for needless self-criticism.

For the ENFP, work, too, must be play or it is probably not worth doing.  Worthwhile tasks are those that affirm and enlarge the self and involve more fun than drudgery.  Like other EP's, ENFPs have a great deal of difficulty settling on just one career, for three reasons: They truly believe they can do most anything they want; the search for ever new fields to master is always more fun than remaining in a career already conquered; and they usually can do almost anything they set their minds to.  Unfortunately, their career choices, like so many other things, may result from trying to please others.  To please parents, for example, ENFPs may find themselves in careers involving the kinds of skills that, over the long haul, may become frustrating or stressful for them.  They generally find more satisfaction and greater rewards in careers that involve human services, such as family medicine, psychology, teaching, and theology, than in such fields as engineering or accounting.  As managers, they are far more advocates and mentors than "bosses," believing that their role is to help everyone achieve their individual goals.  

In later years, the ENFP may cultivate the more objective, grounded (Sensing) side of life.  In combination with the opportunity to take more time for quiet reflection (Introversion), these preferences may give greater stability to the ENFP's life of enthusiastic work and play.  Good growth will allow this settling process to take place in a way that the ENFP will find welcoming.

Famous likely ENFPs include Will Rogers (who "never met a man I didn't like" and whose entire performance each night consisted of appearing onstage and responding to the audience), Tevye, the main character in <I>Fiddler on the Roof <N>(whose life was one of hope and possibilities in the face of austere oppression and unsettling change), and Charlie Brown's dog, Snoopy (whose imaginative imitations range from vultures through snakes to little kids; whose leadership style among his bird friends consists of setting a good example; and whose great ENFP lines include "I think I'm allergic to mornings" and "I'm going to get organized-tomorrow").}
.entp
{<I>One Exciting Challenge After Another<N>

ENTPs are highly inventive types whose enthusiasms lead them into a variety of activities, vocational and avocational.  Their inventiveness is attributed to their rich iNtuition (N), which gives them a world of endless possibilities, which, when combined with their objective decision-making facility (T) and directed outwardly (E), converts everything to ideas and schemes.

Like most Extraverted-Perceivers, they are more excited about pursuing a new idea than about following through on an existing one, which can be a cause for frustration and anxiety-both for themselves and for those around them.  To the ENTP, all the world is a chessboard whose pieces must be moved in such a way-by the ENTP-that all the players will get the best and the most out of life.  Constantly bombarding themselves and others with ideas, ENTPs burst with an excitement that, at best, leads to tackling one exciting challenge after another and, at worst, to an endless series of delayed or unfulfilled dreams.

The ENTP is a "big picture" person who finds it challenging to see how many ways there are for fitting the various pieces of the whole together.  In fact, it is their ability to see the big picture that enables them to generate so many creative alternatives for just about any system-whether that "system" is a family, a vacation, a record collection, or a major corporation.  They know that any system, no matter how successful, can always be made better or more effective.  Such perceptions can at times make them seem almost psychic about future developments in a variety of disciplines.  Clearly, these qualities make them well suited for a variety of entrepreneurial adventures.

ENTPs are high rollers and risk-takers with their own resources and others'.  Like other Extraverted-Perceivers, when they win big, they win big, and when they lose, they lose their shirts.  As a result, life for an ENTP (and for those around them) can be a roller-coaster event with great highs, thrills, scares, occasional stops-and lots of unexpected jerks and turns.

All thinking-type women swim upstream in society, and this can be easily problematic for ENTP women.  When the ENTP's objectivity presents itself in an enthusiastic, witty, competitive, argumentative woman, she is not likely to endear herself to most men.  The ENTP female frequently has to struggle with traditional female "scripts" that call for a given behavior at a given time.  It is the nature of all ENTPs to test the limits of any system or person, especially traditional ones.

Most iNtuitive-Thinkers learn by discussing and challenging, and this is especially true for ENTPs.  They get pleasure and intellectual stimulation from arguing both sides of a subject, or from doing something unusual or unexpected just to get a reaction.  ENTP women can be fun to be around, but their competitive, testing nature can be intimidating and tiring.  Interestingly enough, all these same qualities can be seen as positive in ENTP males, although they, too, can become tiring, particularly to those of a different type.

In relationships with an ENTP, one can expect to be challenged-usually by whatever comes along that is new, different, or on the cutting edge.  Just coping with an ENTP can be stimulating, a fact attested to by ENTPs themselves ("I find myself very interesting-but tiring").

The ENTP sees the parenting relationship as one more opportunity for the growth and development of everyone involved.  The ENTP's house may be crowded with the latest books, gadgets, fads, or all of the above.  Children will be introduced to all of these things, which are used to challenge them-something far more important than neatness, schedule, and order.  The ENTP's parenting model is "Stretch thyself," and successful parenting involves whatever helps the child to achieve this goal.  Most ENTP parents generate more ideas and possibilities per day than their children will ever be able to complete. This in itself can be tiring and, to a child of a different type, very frustrating.  It was probably an NT parent, most particularly an ENTP parent, who first said, "A mind is a terrible thing to waste." Helping the child to realize and expand the self is the ENTP's most basic principle of child-rearing.  This quest may be made at the expense of hugs, kisses, and expressions of affection, although for the ENTP the process itself is the ultimate expression of love.

This focus on challenge, extremes, pursuit of ideas, and independent thinking characterizes all aspects of the ENTP's living style.  The result can be a variety of kinds of instability.  There may be big financial swings, as well as a lot of physical disarray and disorganization.  When intellectual sparring and "doing your own thing" take precedence over completing yesterday's tasks-cleaning the house, the office, the yard, or whatever-the result can sometimes be chaos.  Generally, the ENTP's home is an open haven to all, especially to those who are interested in whatever current scheme is unfolding and those who, like the ENTP, thrive on the intellectual stimulation of one-upmanship-whether they are one-upping or being one-upped.

Being allowed to dream up and pursue possibilities without any follow-through or accountability is the ultimate form of relaxation for the ENTP.  It is also probably the greatest source of ENTP creativity.  To give free rein to the imagination, instead of getting bogged down in the sticky details or dull routines that may be part and parcel of the idea, allows ENTPs' creativity to flourish.  They find not only stimulation and growth in the process, but relaxation too.  Stress comes from being tied down by too many details.

Like their adult counterparts, ENTP children are often whirlwinds.  Lots of friends, laughter, projects, and ideas fill their waking hours.  Each new day is a new opportunity to design systems, challenge friends, and scheme.  A single request by a parent-"to take out the garbage," for example-can lead an ENTP child to spend hours if not days designing some sort of invention that will get the garbage from the kitchen to the backyard without human intervention.  The design might demand calling friends, experimenting, or any number of other possibilities-all of which will be more exciting than actually completing the chore.

This is exactly the way an ENTP approaches learning.  It is a group exchange of ideas, arguments, challenges, and projects.  ENTPs would much rather learn by "getting involved" than by being lectured to.  In true entrepreneurial spirit, if their involvement results in something that can be used, shared, and marketed (a new garbage-removal system), so much the better.  Teaching that encourages such exchanges and opportunities is exciting to an ENTP.  That which is routine, redundant, rigid, or overly detailed is boring.  Assignments may be completed late (or early) and may be done sloppily.  If dull or unchallenging in their original form, the ENTP student may change or reconstruct assignments in the name of "learning."  This typically ENTP behavior may be frustrating to students and teachers of different types and may result in a no-win situation-for the teacher, because he or she loses the ENTP's respect and attention, and for the ENTP student, who may do poorly in school.

Like most other things, family rituals and events are seen as opportunities to exchange ideas.  ENTPs never like to miss such opportunities.  Though not always given to appropriate behaviors, the ENTP is always an active participant in all such family moments.  Sometimes late, sometimes underprepared, they will still be there and will more than likely engage whoever is present so that the time spent together will be fun, maybe competitive, and certainly memorable.

Work that allows the ENTP to be challenged and stimulated will be highly attractive.  Work that binds an ENTP to standard operating procedures will be ultimately frustrating and, quite possibly, stress-inducing.  Computer science, financial investment counseling, college teaching, and other theoretical pursuits are highly attractive to ENTPs.

Later life might bring to ENTPs the opportunity to slow down some and not only "smell the daisies," but bring to fruition some long-shelved projects and hobbies.  Pausing for introspection, appreciating what their senses are telling them, and respecting some of the more tender and emotional moments of life, will all have special appeal at this time.

Famous likely ENTPs include Ralph Kramden of <I>The Honeymooners<N> (who regularly came home with some new scheme to make them rich or their lives easier), <I>The Odd Couple's<N> Oscar Madison (whose chaotic life-style undermined his obvious talent), and W.C. Durant, founder of General Motors (whose restless inventiveness and entrepreneurial skills turned a single car-company into a conglomerate).}
.estj
{<I>Life's Administrators<N>

ESTJs perceive the world "as it is" (Sensing) and translate those perceptions objectively (Thinking); as Extraverted-Judgers, they have a driving need to impose their judgments on the world around them with structure, schedule, and order.  They are life's administrators.

It is as natural and inborn for ESTJs to manage (although not necessarily to lead) as it is for fish to swim.  Grounded, organized, exacting, socially deft, gregarious, academically capable, and always appropriate, ESTJs are seen by others as dependable, practical, and able to get the job done-whatever the job may be.  It is easy for the ESTJs to end up in the top positions of any organization.  Their inherent administrative skills make the family, the work force, the neighborhood, the church, or any other group appropriate arenas for them to administer and manage.  ESTJs' need for control prompts them always to say yes when asked to assume positions of responsibility.

Often given to a raucous sense of humor, the ESTJ is a partygoer and party-doer who is always ready with a quick joke, a ready exchange, or an unsolicited opinion on almost anything.  Whether or not one likes an ESTJ, one usually knows where the ESTJ stands on virtually any subject.  Among ESTJs there are some sharp differences between genders, because of all the sixteen types this is the most conventionally masculine.  Each of its four components-Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging-falls on the tougher, more objective side of the line between the preference alternatives.

As a result, ESTJ males tend to be very "macho," and their humor often the most sexist and racist of all sixteen types.  ESTJ outgoingness, assertiveness, practicality, firm-mindedness, and decisiveness tend to make them good protectors and providers-roles more generally associated with the male of the species.

The ESTJ female, though satisfied with her own femininity, may be torn between inner promptings that say, "Be tough, assertive, firm-minded, and decisive," and the traditional feminine model, which says, "Be soft, passive, gentle-hearted, and adaptive." The ensuing struggle is more dramatic for the ESTJ female than for any other type.  While all Thinking-type females swim upstream in our society, in no type is that more apparent and prevalent than in the ESTJ.

In relating, as in all else, ESTJs are comfortable taking charge.  Decisive and opinionated, they are easy to get along with as long as they are listened to and allowed to control.  Generally, ESTJs and ISTJs would prefer to surround themselves, both at home and at work, with yes-people, though they would deny it.  

ESTJ parents have sharply defined roles, and each family member (mate and children) is expected to respond according to the ESTJ's definitions.  A "father" is the provider and final judge, for example, a "mother" keeps home and does wifely duties, and "children" obey and respond to the authority of their parents.  (ESTJs may allow a "father" or "mother" to be a "friend" as well, but only at scheduled, defined intervals.) When family members respond to ESTJ expectations, things tend to go smoothly for all concerned.  The problems come when a mate or child of another type has more resistance to the ESTJ's control (ENTJs or ISTPs, for example), or is more driven to self-determination (particularly NPs).

Home, family, parenting, and children are among the central and motivating commitments of the ESTJ's life.  When all else fails, appeals to an ESTJ's parental duty and responsibility will bring the parent around to considering, if not going along with, whatever program is being offered.  Our hunch: More encyclopedias, home-learning kits, how-to-raise-better-kids books, and other "family programs" have been sold to ESTJs by appealing to "parental responsibility" than to any other type.

The ESTJ's living style, like most other things, is controlled and organized.  Family is one more thing to manage.  Hard work, tight schedules, and solid merit-based rewards are hallmarks of the ESTJ life.  Fun, relaxation, and free time are scheduled and doled out (to self and others) according to how well one has adhered to standard operating procedures and other regulations.  Good work brings good rewards; hard work is its own relaxation.  Certain male activities-such as golf, beer-drinking, and poker-are scheduled for relaxation, as are certain female activities-gardening, tennis, or shopping, for example.

As children, ESTJs are usually socially active, take-charge types.  Such behavior is much more welcomed in boys than girls, but ESTJ girls display it just as readily as the boys.  As a result, ESTJ girls grow accustomed to hearing "Little girls don't behave that way." (Ironically, this is most likely heard from an ESTJ male parent.) Such statements may have considerable impact on their future feminine development.  In general, ESTJ children play hard, give orders to all (parents included), and want two main things: that their parents be parents and act accordingly; and that structure, schedule, and definition be imposed upon them by someone.  They may protest such imposition, but in the long run an ESTJ appreciates-indeed, relies on-the security that such authority brings.  ESTJ children are both responsible and testing-responsible to parents and friends who take command, but sure to keep testing that authority in order to reassure themselves that it can be relied upon.  This may best be illustrated at bedtime, as the ESTJ child resists and protests going to bed, yet appreciates immensely a parent who enforces bedtime rituals.

Things are no different in the classroom.  A teacher's job is to teach, be organized, be a good role model, dress appropriately, be decisive, and follow a lesson plan.  ESTJ students will respond and prove to be rather scholarly students, albeit somewhat mouthy and argumentative.  Courses that are the most structured, with practical, tangible results, will appeal most to ESTJ students.  Their academic prowess continues up the academic ladder, although they tend to have less patience with the more abstract theories at the college level.  They are frustrated by iNtuitive-Perceiving professors (who dominate at the college level), whose lectures don't follow stated outlines and whose material isn't limited to the factual and concrete.

Family events and rituals are the symbols of an ESTJ's cultural heritage, whatever that culture may be, and therefore must be honored with the strictest adherence and most loyal obedience.  ESTJ children and adults alike look forward to the birthdays, holy days, and annual family reunions.  Though, again, ESTJs may protest, sometimes vehemently, about attending such events, it would never occur to them not to be present.  They might even be surprised to hear that another type was "hurt" by their protesting.

Two slogans that describe ESTJs' philosophy in the workplace are "don't fix what ain't broken" and "Anything worth doing is worth doing well." Both statements drive ESTJs.  Fiercely loyal and extremely compulsive, they move up the administrative ladder in any organization.  They spend money well and are naturals at marketing and at selling their own effectiveness.  They are superb at developing sound management policies and committed to their own models as the best ways of doing something.  They are quick to venture into many areas, take charge of those areas, more often than not prove successful, and develop a following of subordinates who come to trust the ESTJ's take-charge nature.

ESTJs are very conscious of the chain of command.  For them, work is a series of goals, to be reached by following rules and regulations issued by the upper ranks of an organization's hierarchy.  The system, and its regulation, are good, self-protecting, and self-perpetuating.  By following them and working hard, ESTJs believe the system will, in turn, serve them.  ESTJs give loyalty to the office and to the organization as a whole, though not necessarily to specific individuals therein.

Hard work carries ESTJs to the end of life.  Rewards, degrees, gold watches, and certificates are given in due season.  Retirement is one more thing to be scheduled and planned.  Except for an occasional respite, ESTJs' later years are still scheduled and regimented, though sometimes less so than before.

Famous likely ESTJs include Harry S Truman ("Give 'em hell" Harry knew where the buck stopped and never shirked responsibility); <I>Peanuts'<N> Lucy van Pelt (who has an answer to most any problem brought to her psychiatric booth-and never fails to collect her fee immediately); Archie Bunker (who abrasively protests all his wife Edith's sensible suggestions, but ultimately gives in and plays his responsible parental role); and Joan Rivers (whose quick, macho wit and steamroller style are often caustic and abrasive).}
.esfj
{<I>Hosts and Hostesses of the World<N>

The Extraverted-Sensing-Feeling-Judgers' four preferences equip them to be gracious and effective in dealing with others.  They use their subjective Feeling decisions to bring harmony and goodwill to almost any situation in which they find themselves, at the same time imposing order and structure on any situation-gently, yet firmly.  They are exceptionally in tune with specific individual needs and especially sensitive to the nuances that make for happy and wholesome lives.

As a type, ESFJs probably personify "motherhood." Their gentle, caring nature, in its Extraverted way, takes them beyond their own needs to serve the world around them.  As a result, they are the hosts and hostesses of the world.  ESFJ males, who have less need to be "in charge" than to be concerned with others' needs, may as a result be torn between expressing the more conventionally masculine parts of their personalities and giving in to opposing tendencies.  The male's Sensing-Judging temperament, sometimes described as "stabilizer-traditionalist," demands macho, objectively cool, yet aggressive behavior, while the Extraverted-Feeling preferences demands a warm or more caring and gentler role.

If the ESFJ male is something of a fish out of water, the ESFJ female, in contrast, often represents the epitome of femininity.  She always wears the right clothes, says the right words, and behaves the right way.  ESFJ girls are perfect children who never get dirty, and even as adults, never seem to get mussed.  There's something about an ESFJ-especially the female-that just reeks of appropriateness in all aspects of life.

Don't think that ESFJs have found perfection, however.  As EJs, for example, they are given to quick, abrasive comments whenever their routines are interrupted.  As SFs, however, they are critical of their own EJ behavior and compensate for their abrasiveness with extra sweetness.  To paraphrase Isabel Briggs Myers, they have many "shoulds" and "should nots," and they express them freely.  They may especially overlook facts when they find a situation disagreeable or a criticism hurtful.  As a result, they may sweep problems under the rug rather than seek solutions.

The ESFJ's home is the center of his or her universe: it is the focus of family life, the place for entertainment, the bastion against the harshness of the outside world, the ultimate womb for all family members.  The ESFJ's home is generally neat and orderly, however much activity takes place there.  It isn't advisable to tell an ESFJ to relax as long as there are unmade beds or messy kitchens.  Relaxation for the ESFJ comes both from doing such chores and from knowing that they are done.  (as an EJ, they may complain about the mess and about how much work must be done, but they nevertheless are happiest in serving others in this way.) Like all Js, ESFJs schedule their relaxation, whether it be reading a book or being with friends.

As a rule, home can be a place of fun, happiness, and affirmation for the ESFJ.  These things must take place on schedule, however, and in an "appropriate" manner.  Parties, for example, are great, but only when sufficiently planned; "spontaneous fun" is a contradiction in terms.  "Appropriateness" extends to dress, decor, and behavior.  ESFJs mete out assignments to family members and expect them to be done correctly and in timely fashion.  They readily impose behavioral "shoulds" on other family members, and when disappointed in their expectations of others they become either hurt or upset.

This need for appropriateness also drives ESFJs' parenting style.  The child of an ESFJ parent probably feels loved and generally satisfied, albeit somewhat restricted by the "shoulds" and "oughts," coupled with the constant need to put work (homework, housework, etc.) before play.  ESFJs are generally very patient with children, although even patience can be subject to other demands and responsibilities.  An ESFJ parent is likely to be looked upon as being somewhat strict, but still very loving and caring.

The same, in fact, may be said of ESFJs in relationships.  They are very loyal, almost to a fault, often sacrificing their own needs in favor of the mates'.  This, combined with their drive for harmony, often puts their personal welfare low on the list of priorities and can result in their feeling more like hired help than lovers or mates.  The paradox is that while it is difficult for them to acknowledge their own needs, they may resent those who take them for granted.

ESFJ children bring the same graciousness, caring, and punctuality to their young lives.  They tend to be neat and easy to be around.  At school, ESFJs like teachers who stick to a lesson plan and generally "follow the rules." They respond well in such situations with good work habits and punctually completed assignments.  In one study, ESFJs were rated by teachers and school psychologists as the ideal type to have in the classroom.  Many of the qualities desired by teachers come naturally to ESFJs: they are helpful, cooperative, and eager to please.

They are like that at home too.  But difficulties may arise with ESFJs, as with all Js, if some of the demands placed on them conflict with strong inner needs.  Bedtime, for example, can be difficult for the gregarious Extraverted child, whose social needs may conflict with the night's hour and parents' demands.  Still, ESFJ children think "parents should be parents" and appreciate rules and regulations imposed by those in authority.  Like their SJ adult counterparts, they may protest such authority, at the same time respecting and expecting it.  Role clarity is important.

ESFJs' careers often lean toward those that serve humanity: nursing, public school teaching, clergy, and psychology.  Sales and other public service-oriented jobs also have particular appeal.  More impersonal tasks (related to computers, for example, or bookkeeping) and jobs that demand theory and speculation (such as college teaching, consulting, and especially investment brokering) can be particularly stressful to an ESFJ.

In their later years, ESFJs may mellow somewhat, but they still are guided by the same values that shaped their earlier years.  After a life devoted to meeting the needs of those around them, they may turn their attention to more abstract, universal concerns.  Even in retirement, however, they tend to be driven by "shoulds" (and, perhaps, a few "shouldn'ts"), though the "shoulds" may be a more leisurely kind, with perhaps less emphasis on service ideals-for example, learning a language, tending to neglected hobbies, or meeting some self-directed needs.  In general, home, children, and grandchildren play central roles; they prefer to have family nearby and accessible, and may also enjoy the occasional unexpected visitor.  For them, the ultimate symbol of security may be the continually replenished woodpile for the fireplace around which the family gathers.

Some famous ESFJs could include Dwight Eisenhower (although he was never seen as a brilliant military strategist, he could do no wrong.  Life magazine called him "the most popular man in the world" in the 1950s; indeed, his highly successful campaign theme was "I Like Ike"); and Felix Unger of <I>The Odd Couple<N> (who rages at his sloppy roommate but is constantly there to take care of him).}
.enfj
{<I>Smooth-talking Persuader<N>

The ENFJ may best be described as a smooth-talking persuader.  The ENFJ's combination of preferences makes this type a natural when it comes to motivating people-even motivating them to do something they may not initially have wanted to do.

Their focus and direction is toward other people (Extraversion), and they are highly skilled in understanding others' needs and motivations (Feeling).  These tendencies, along with their gift for imagination and inspiration (iNtuition), are expressed in an organized, effective way that allows them to make their imaginative ventures become reality.  Hence, the ENFJ is a highly credible leader who attracts many followers.

The ENFJ has the capacity to size up a situation iNtuitively and, in a very caring and concerned way, say just the right thing.  This is part of why people are drawn to ENFJs, and why ENFJs are such natural leaders.  They are seldom at a loss to iNtuit just what the group needs or how to help it reach its goal.

Because of these group-leadership abilities, ENFJs, more than other Feeling types, often rise to the top of a cross section of organizations.  They are, indeed, natural and often well-liked leaders.  The ENFJ sees the entire world as filled with people whose endless needs and concerns are waiting to be funneled into organizations and institutions that can serve those human needs.  ENFJs have a zeal for imposing "what's good for humanity" upon humanity-and, fortunately, more often than not, humanity is better off as a result.

Paradoxically, one of their biggest difficulties derives from one of their greatest strengths.  While very accomplished at working with other people and groups, ENFJs can become depressed, wounded, even bitter, if their ideas meet with resistance.  They take conflict or rejection very personally, and often carry a grudge against the individuals or groups involved.  Disagreements tend to escalate into win-lose issues and become personalized, with loyalties sharply marked, even when the other side had only intended to raise some valid questions.  Such behavior by ENFJs in influential positions has divided families, organizations, and systems.

The female ENFJ has an advantage because many of the nurturing, caring qualities associated with this type are considered feminine.  However, when an ENFJ female assumes leadership beyond the family and moves, quite naturally, to larger systems, she may have trouble.  The system, and especially its male members, may resent her.  Suddenly all those qualities for which she was rewarded at home, in college, or in other organizational ranks, now become the basis for scorn because she has "overstepped her bounds" as a woman.  She is not doing anything differently from what she has done successfully in the past; the end result, however, can be conflict.

ENFJs are such effective leaders that the male is often seen as a "man among men" and seductively appealing to women.  Both men and women look to the male ENFJ for leadership and decisiveness in a supportive climate-and rarely are they disappointed.  This notwithstanding, all ENFJs, including males, are often criticized as insincere or superficial because of their smooth and glib way with words.  ENFJs may respond to such criticism with incredulity, often followed by depression and self-doubt, because their sincerity and concern are their driving force and motivation.

Relating to an ENFJ is usually fairly easy.  As a rule, an ENFJ wants a happy and affirming relationship because that is how everyone works best.  Highly articulate, with excellent social skills and a quick sense of humor, ENFJs are often the life of the party.  If it is a party of two, the ENFJ will still work just as hard at making the occasion a lively and memorable one.  Unfortunately, as with most Extraverts, if an ENFJ works too hard at it, all the other person is likely to remember is how much talking the ENFJ did and how little listening.

Parenting, for the ENFJ, is a responsibility and a pleasure.  There are young lives just waiting to be molded by the ENFJ's value system.  Unlike most other types, especially Perceivers, ENFJs don't wait for a child to develop.  Instead, right and wrong, good and bad, and other models are imposed in a very warm, supportive, and clearly defined environment.  A child will know where an ENFJ parent stands on most things, and how he or she is expected to behave.  When behavior is appropriate, affirmation abounds.  Negative behavior, however, often makes an ENFJ parent feel like a failure, which in turn can give the child who picks up on these feelings a sense of guilt about failing to please mother or father.

When harmony prevails, the living style of the ENFJ is lively and fun.  But there must be order before relaxation, and fun must be balanced by a good measure of work.  Peaceful and joyful living are certainly a goal-and an expectation.  However, achieving that goal generally requires either following the ENFJ's good intentions or letting the ENFJ show you "the error of your ways" and redirect you toward "real joy"-whatever the ENFJ deems that to be.

As a general rule, people are central and important to ENFJs.  This means that if people's needs end up in conflict with rules and schedules, the ENFJ will generally put people first-though not without a sense of martyrdom or possibly guilt.  

ENFJ children's verbal skills develop early and stay with them.  They are often advised to become public speakers, preachers, or announcers "when you grow up." ENFJ children are pleasers, wanting strokes from adults.  They are also hero-worshipers, often imitating those they idolize, whether it be a parent, sibling, teacher, or anyone else who has had a dramatic influence on them.  Since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, it is not surprising that ENFJ children are often teachers' pets and parents' favorites.

Learning, for ENFJs, is also imitation.  They seek to learn by emulating their heroes, and how <I>they<n> learn.  In fact, somewhat like ENFPs, so strong is their desire to please and be stroked that ENFJs can end up in careers far removed from their natural abilities if they can think that will endear them to the heroes they are emulating.

Family events are fun for an ENFJ.  Almost without being asked, the ENFJ child or adult will assume a responsibility for making events entertaining, harmonious, and enriching for all.  The ENFJ is usually tuned in to the family event, ready to provide games, entertainment, wit, wisdom, or whatever else may be needed.  Generally, family members appreciate this dimension of the ENFJ, and, of course, the ENFJ then feels affirmed and fulfilled.

Clearly, any opportunity to be with others, to entertain, serve, involve others and be involved, is far more rewarding than sleep or any other solitary activity.  In fact, too much time alone can make an ENFJ pensive, moody, self-punitive, and depressed.  More than other types the ENFJ needs to move among and be engaged by people.  Even a negative stroke from another person is better than being ignored.

ENFJs are drawn to careers that serve others with minimal potential for interpersonal conflict.  Work that involves too many specific details, an abundance of paperwork, or too much time alone will be boring if not stressful to ENFJs.  They are especially drawn to religious organizations, academia, and psychological services and approach these careers with enthusiasm and commitment.  They are natural teachers and preachers, although they can become frustrated with the accompanying administrative demands, ending up somewhat disillusioned.  

Senior citizenship may bring some Introversion and objectivity to the ENFJ, and with reflection may come the insight that the world is not going to be saved by anything the ENFJ can do, that life is going to continue-and probably quite well-without the ENFJ.  Unless there is some respite from service to others, the ENFJ can suffer burnout.  If that is avoided, the natural growth cycle can afford the ENFJ the chance to stop, "smell the daisies"-and quit trying to save the entire world.  As a result, retirement, though perhaps still characterized by the service ethos, can also allow more focus on personal needs and a more relaxed, less compulsive way of life.

Famous likely ENFJs include Ronald Reagan (who is socially gregarious-ENFJs are naturally "great communicators"-and whose emotional stance on issues translates into rigid, not very negotiable positions); Jerry Falwell (who believes all would be well if people followed his moral preachings, and whose visions have indeed garnered a great following); and Martin Luther King, Jr. (whose highly idealistic dreams and charismatic leadership created a fiercely loyal following).}
.entj
{<I>Life's Natural Leaders<N>

<I>Hearty<N>, <I>argumentative,<N> and <I>robust<N> are three words that accurately describe ENTJs.  Their unique preferences combine to give them very high need for control and unusual leadership abilities.

Their focus and energy are directed outwardly (Extraversion) toward a world of endless possibilities and meanings (iNtuition), which are translated objectively into systems and products (Thinking) in a very timely and orderly fashion (Judging).

Like their cousins, the ENTPs, the entire world seems a chessboard to ENTJs, with pieces in need of being moved-by them-for the greater good.  Life is a system of forces to be understood, mastered, harnessed, altered, or defeated, as appropriate, from day to day.

For the ENTJ, all life unfolds through confrontation, arguing, and engaging with one another in the name of learning.  The ENTJ starts with the basic assumption that he or she is right and must be proven wrong.  This proving process will be beneficial only to the extent that there are others who have the gumption or audacity required to mount an effective challenge.  When the engagement is over, if the ENTJ was right, everyone will be better for having gone through the process.  If the ENTJ is wrong, then there will be profound admiration and respect for whoever was strong enough to prevail, as well as gratitude and respect for the new lesson learned.

In some ways, life for the ENTJ is a variation of the children's game King (or Queen) of the Mountain.  The goal for others is to try to push the ENTJ down from the mountaintop.  So long as they are unable to do so, they must remain "beneath" the ENTJ.  The process of being challenged is as important to the ENTJ as the outcome.

As a type, ENTJs have low regard for people who refuse to engage them or are intimidated by them, and high regard for those who stand up to them and challenge them intellectually, emotionally, or any other way.  The problem of intimidation is intensified by the ENTJs' arrogance, which is often so much a part of them that they are unaware of its existence.  Those around them are usually keenly aware of it.

ENTJs are often impatient, more so than most other types.  Their impatience may show itself in the form of a quick temper, inappropriate complaints over relatively small matters, and an urgency to move on to bigger and better things.  Their strong egos can trick them into thinking they can do or handle anything, including details and intense interpersonal matters, but details and interpersonal skills are simply not the ENTJ's strong suits.

When an ENTJ "fails" at such matters, the resulting stress, frustration, and feelings of incompetence can result in self-flagellation and criticism, often totally out of proportion to the issue at hand.  Indeed, when it comes to criticism of self or others, ENTJs are usually in a class by themselves.  Sharp-tongued, harsh, seemingly unforgiving, ENTJs can be devastating to those they criticize-including themselves.

ENTJs are especially gifted with language.  Clarity of thought and speech make them excellent communicators.  It also sharpens the precision of their critical abilities.

Clearly, gender issues are especially significant for ENTJ females.  As a type, their arrogant, confrontational manner and need for control can appear to be quite "unwomanly" to others.  Efforts by parents and others to mold them into more traditional female images are usually met with rebellion.  Other women usually resent the arrogance of ENTJ females and can feel "talked down to." As a result, an ENTJ female may unwittingly find herself to be a loner, something particularly difficult for Extraverts. 

Of course, the problem intensifies for the ENTJ females when dealing with men, even male ENTJs.  Their demanding, objective, competent, and independent nature is not particularly endearing to most men.  These qualities may obscure the fact that ENTJ females can be quite nurturing and caring.  For them, femininity is not defined by traditional roles.  It is reflected in the total involvement and commitment they bring to each moment of life.

Though the qualities of ENTJs may be more acceptable in males, they, too, may find people shunning them, often avoiding confrontations in order to escape their arrogance.  As with their female counterparts, ENTJ males may be plagued by staff, family, and personal relationships in turmoil, leaving them with more time alone that their Extraversion can deal with.

To their frequent surprise, ENTJs are often told they appear angry, even when it is just their enthusiasm for a point that has gotten them so worked up.  Such encounters can be frustrating for the ENTJ-as well as for those around them-and they may find themselves in the rather ironic position of having angrily to defend their nonanger.  The sense of futility that results may make the ENTJ try even harder or, as is often the case with female ENTJs, may make them give up and move on to some other project.  In either case, the result can be debilitating to all involved.

The ENTJ's home is the arena for all sorts of pursuits.  Relationships there tend to be open, honest, and stimulating.  While to others ENTJs may seem somewhat abrasive, those who know them well understand that, as with other EJs, their bark is usually worse than their bite.  To an ENTJ, relationships grow and develop over time.

As parents, ENTJs see children as fun because they are young minds to be encouraged, enlightened, and stimulated.  As they grow, the children, too, become eligible to be drawn into hearty discourse about a variety of subjects.  And they become candidates for the molding and shaping that ENTJs like to do for those they care about or have responsibilities for.

The ENTJ style of living is fairly compulsive and family members must know their responsibilities within the system.  When rebellion is encountered, the ENTJ may enjoy the exchange, even admire at some level the boldness of whoever is rebelling, but still use maximal powers of persuasion to quell the revolt and ensure that all family members continue to march to the beat of the ENTJ drummer.  If the rebel manages to win, that person also wins the ENTJ's respect.  Each day, at work or at home, the ENTJ may win some and lose some, but there are few, if any, draws.

Relaxation does not come easily to most ENTJs and when it does, it is only because it has been scheduled.  Even then it is viewed as one more assignment to master, and ENTJs attack such challenges with zeal and compulsiveness.

ENTJ children are rather direct with both their peers and adults.  Though they are often bossy and argumentative, they make friends easily, are quick-witted and gregarious, and have strong needs, like other Extraverts, to include others and be included by others in everything they do, from working to studying to partying.  In the eyes of peers, ENTJ children can be simultaneously respected for their capabilities and resented for the obnoxious, overpowering conviction that accompanies their ideas.  Competitive in most anything they do, ENTJ children start early to criticize their own shortcomings.   They rarely rest on their laurels.  Even the best, they believe, can be better.  That, indeed, is how the ENTJ approaches everything.

Teachers, of course, may not always understand these attributes, and the result is often some very hostile moments and power struggles that the student is likely to lose.  If there is no face-saving way out, the ENTJ can be resistant to subsequent learning experiences.  While a good, challenging, competitive engagement that involves an exchange of ideas is enjoyable for ENTJs, the one-sided teacher-student power struggle can be damaging and alienating.

Family events are fun for the ENTJ.  They are yet another chance to plan, organize, and show off.  It is a time for intellectual exchange and robust encounter.  ENTJs look forward to such events with great enthusiasm.

With their natural leadership and systems-planning abilities, ENTJs often rise to upper levels of management fairly quickly.  They may alienate some people along the way, but that's all part of the price one pays to express ability and prove competency.  Moreover, if one achieves one's goals and has caused learning and growth for self and others, then the alienation was not in vain.  Approaching these interpersonal dilemmas objectively, they find it surprising that anyone would be hurt, disappointed, or intimidated by their aggressiveness.  In their objectivity, they don't understand why anyone would personalize an argument or competition that was, to their mind, well intentioned, meant only to result in the growth and betterment of all concerned.

Older age for the ENTJ is still a time for conceptual and intellectual expansion.  Good development will bring more respect for reflection, with less need to control everything, less compulsive behavior.  However, the later years must still include some form of mental challenge, the more competitive, the better.  For the ENTJ, the rewards of maturity are the opportunities to read, argue, organize, or theorize-in other words, to continue on his or her lifelong path, but with less accountability.  Retirement, if it ever comes, will see a continuation of these activities in some form or another.

Famous likely ENTJs include Douglas MacArthur (whose Extraversion kept him clamoring for the limelight, who viewed himself as a strategist of a high military system with no patience for detail, and whose objectivity always kept a sharp distinction between his mission and the people involved); Eleanor Roosevelt (whose social gregariousness kept her in headlines, whose intuition made her a futurist always looking at the big picture, and who loved managing complex systems); and Frank Lloyd Wright (who implemented his iNtuitive-Thinking architectural visions with buildings and systems, whose Judging nature produced guidelines for other architects to follow, and whose Extraversions brought those systems to the public's view).} 
