E with a lot of I?

[psyche]

Hi, I debated a while back whether I was E or I, and decided that I'm E (with the help of some people here). I identify as E because I often gain insights from talking and tend to think and talk simultaneously (thought not always, but most of the time), and I am a teacher and speaker and my forte is speaking to and leading fairly large groups. I feel alive in front of groups and very much enjoy my work, and am successful at it.

However, leading groups drains me very, very much. My work is intense, intellectually and often emotionally due to the subject matter, and I am an extraverted feeler so I am highly tuned in to ensuring that the group is attended to as well as possible. And as a J I want to do a good job. So I put effort into my work. Nevertheless, the level of drain I feel after a single talk, or after an afternoon of teaching is profound, even when I'm teaching a class I've given so many times I can do it in my sleep. I sometimes need a full day or several days to recover. The same is true for being around a lot of people in a highly social setting. For instance, if I'm at a conference where I am a presenter, after a day of interacting with lots of people and giving an hour-long talk, I may need three full days to feel like my batteries are recharged.

Does my experience of being drained by groups of people mean that I may not be an extravert? Or could I just be an introverted extravert? The MBTI scores I get usually put me right on the line, but sometimes I've scored low/moderate E as well as low/moderate I. I identify much more with the description for ENFJ than for INFJ, too.

Thanks!

 

[skylights]

my best friend is an ENFJ and also gets worn out when very actively with people for an extended period of time. so much that she will nap and/or sleep 12+ hours after draining events. she is a Fe-dom, though, no doubt.

i myself am not a particularly "extraverted" extravert either. i think it has more to do with the way i think than my social energy, which really has nothing to do with the MBTI. imo, if your cognitive patterns work such that you focus on the outside world more than on your inner landscape - or if you have the tendency to "begin" thoughts by referencing the outside world, gaining insights from interaction with the exterior world, like you said - then you are an extravert.

essentially i think your last sentence - "I identify much more with the description for ENFJ than for INFJ" - says everything. if you identify more with extraverted Feeling and less with introverted iNtuition, then you are ENFJ.

 

[psyche]

Thanks, skylights.

What you say makes sense. The area I get tripped up in is where my energy or attention is directed. As an Enneagram 4, I am very focused on my internal emotional and psychological landscape. And, I don't actually understand what is meant by energy being directed outward. I am very tuned into the experience of others, but often when I'm walking alone I'm lost in my thoughts and don't notice much around me at all....the E/I distinction has always been a little confusing for me.