How to distinguish ESFP and ENFP?

[nanook]

spiritual development certainly changes a type's concrete attributes. modulates type. and most likely sensitizes access to non dominant functions. but thats just a detail of the modulation. if you add several entities into a network, the network becomes a transcending entity, so it constitutes a stage that has properties in it self. meta-properties. there are plenty of names for higher stages, some of them include the N word.

 

[zarc]

gtzk!!! you are NOT an esfp!! you may have developed se like i do but..you are an enfp...no mistake for sure.

What s/he said and how it was written seems ESFP to me. NOT is rather strong language. What makes you so certain?

I didn't have bad eyesight before but I think that may be a reason to go with N instead of S.

Your reasoning is atrocious. (lol jk jk But that reason is) My ESTP best friend has glasses and can be slightly blind without them, so does my ESFP sis for reading (though she rarely uses it -.-) K. I'll refer you to this post about Se Doms, see if you find yourself similar.

Maybe I'm about 47 N and 53 S. or something like that. I'm still going around and tasting things that I do not know, like licking the door or other weird areas. Just have to know. And in other cases, I tend to space out a lot, spend time in a different universe.

Fuck the percentages, they're BS and can never be accurately measured - until technology offers us a way of checking it in the brain algorithmically (?). Even then, while our strongest functions remain constant in our awareness we still oscillate between using the others.

+ Se Doms space out too. And can be oblivious. No type is immune except SJs.

JK.

Raise the subject Gtzk. There's nothing to fear except other's perceptions of you and the negative views most have of Sensors... hmm. Do you care what people think?

 

[Lady_X]

i have no negative view of sensors and i don't claim to be able to type anyone...but there's no mistaking that enfp speak...it's going on in my brain i know it when i see it.

 

[zarc]

i have no negative view of sensors and i don't claim to be able to type anyone...but there's no mistaking that enfp speak...it's going on in my brain i know it when i see it.

Never said you had any. Just wanted you to explain your certainty.

Edit: Here is mine, to use your post Gtzk, I hope you don't mind:

OOT:
But after reading all this... Is there a possibility to claim both S(i?) and Ne?
Different days, different manners of being. I mean, how does one know what is truly the underlying of it all?
Argh, I can't get it all to work. Then again, it is late and I should've gone to bed five hours ago but this was all so intriguing. Ah, I can't even remember when I had so much fun. Which of course probably was yesterday but then again, it's not now and since it's not now my memories tend to blend together alot, but only lately. I guess it was all those little mistakes I did for a year in contemplation about which one of the "I"'s was me. (I'm not really sorry but I am going to write "Sorry" just so that my little extra venting-area is lost upon you. And I can't find it in myself to delete it. There might be some value in it. Almost like the dwarfes belief, what is written shall never be destroyed. Words live. Terry Pratchett, just so you know. Gosh, I love his stories, especially the ones with the Wizzzrd. Ahh, lovely. I miss the days when I hadn't yet completed it and was still fully into the story. I like being a few years ahead though, given me a lot and cost me a lot.
Hrrm, I was trying to say sorry for the detour. Even though I don't really mean it.
But then again, I do. In a very weird "please don't hit me with that large black metal thingy just because I might've gone a bit awry in my message" kind of way. )

OOT2: I like my hair.

This reminds me of my beloved ESFP sister, of how she speaks, esp. when excited.

Not a lick of Ne. It's all Se running off tangents of the experiences and possible experiences and how it feels to Fi. We're being shown (so we can Se-e too) all the possibilities which were acted or could've been acted (Se) and we're able to get a sense of how it felt (Fi). There's no interpretive language regarding the meaning or possibility for how s/he might've seen it.

BTW ppl. I'm not saying ESFPs lack depth of meaning or can't see any, do not think so. Or I will thump your consciousness into its next lifetime.

I don't really like Typelogic much but I think this applies too. Taken from ESFP profile:

SPs sometimes think and talk in more of a spider-web approach. Several of my ESFP friends jump from thought to thought in mid-sentence, touching here or there in a manner that's almost incoherent to the listener, but will eventually cover the waterfront by skipping on impulse from one piece of information to another. It's really quite fascinating.

It IS fascinating. I've got two ESPs for observation purposes.

ESFPs love to talk to people about people. Some of the most colorful storytellers are ESFPs. Their down-to-earth, often homespun wit reflects a mischievous benevolence.

Almost every ESFP loves to talk. Some can be identified by the twenty minute conversation required to ask or answer a simple factual question.

Gtzk, seem like you?

I have the perfect ENFP in mind to use in comparison but I need permission first. So, be back, perhaps not.

 

[Serendipity]

Your reasoning is atrocious. (lol jk jk But that reason is) My ESTP best friend has glasses and can be slightly blind without them, so does my ESFP sis for reading (though she rarely uses it -.-) K. I'll refer you to this post about Se Doms, see if you find yourself similar.

Oh, I missed it was you who wrote "atrocious" xD. I see peoples faces, about 2-3 meters in front of me. I dislike having things in my face. Like glasses. That's what I mean with the reasoning. I can't see those small facial expressions no more. And tones generally doesn't work in China, since they have a language based on tones. Something I do not get about it is that; Why o' Why haven't they simplified it like they did to characters?


Both a yes and a no. I do tend to get caught up in ideas.
Before, I saw from more than one perspective but now I've rendered it down to that all those perspectives, was me getting into the role, playing it out and feeling it. Thereafter I kind of just go on what I've known to be true.

Fuck the percentages, they're BS and can never be accurately measured - until technology offers us a way of checking it in the brain algorithmically (?). Even then, while our strongest functions remain constant in our awareness we still oscillate between using the others.

+ Se Doms space out too. And can be oblivious. No type is immune except SJs.
[/QOUTE]

Agreed.

[QOUTE]
Raise the subject Gtzk. There's nothing to fear except other's perceptions of you and the negative views most have of Sensors... hmm. Do you care what people think?

Yes... and no.
Before, I was plenty more careful about how I was seen. If I was seen as evil or bad or anything that didn't really cope with me, I did almost anything to redeem myself.

Right, here and now Today; I've been less aware of how people react to me.
That's something I have been battling with for a long time. Respecting myself and NOT letting others make me feel down, just because I am not what I am expected. Not to yield in an area where I feel something else is correct.

Something I am very sure about is my ability to emphasize. But I guess that might go sideways.


I.. I.. don't know how to know. I feel scared and.. blown away.

Can I not just take both?

xD

Suit your way, might be good to see both sides equally. But when it comes to EFSP, I don't feel it the same way. It's not like. Just pure joy over reading something that fits so scarily well ENFP.

Perhaps I am just trying to be ENFP for some reason. Like a shell. Now my head hurts and I can't think... at all, just like punding and some sort of doomsday device attacked and screwed me over with a hard blunt object.

 

[Laurie]

Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just thought it was funny to become an ENFP because you were into drugs. Just trying to be harmless here.

(What I meant was.. I have been a druggie, I am not a druggie. Except exceptionally high on life, nowadays. xD)
What? Where? *laughed anyway...

Ok. Gotcha. I won't raise the subject again.

 

[Serendipity]

Sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just thought it was funny to become an ENFP because you were into drugs. Just trying to be harmless here.

After 155+ trips in less then a year. I have No idea what kind of brain damage I might have endangered myself to.

Oh, you are harmless. I just wanted to know what was funny.

 

[Lady_X]

After 155+ trips in less then a year. I have No idea what kind of brain damage I might have endangered myself to.

Oh, you are harmless. I just wanted to know what was funny.

i know what ya mean but don't think you switched types because of it...you may just not filter as much or something...you don't seem to filter at all...i don't much either on here...it's more fun that way.

 

[Serendipity]

I hate filtering when I'm not requested by party-members to do so.
Just let whatever flow.

 

[Laurie]

I wonder how I ended up with my ENFP brain damage.

 

[Serendipity]

I wonder how I ended up with my ENFP brain damage.

Lol! xD

Actually, I'm thinking heavily on ESFP. After reading much and thinking a lot.
I've been known to fool myself before.
Even some memories aren't legit; even though I based logical reasoning on them.

I don't always feel I have a stuck personality, at least I did not in younger days. Now I try to because ... It felt cool and it gives less thoughts about what is correct or not. And I am less evil. But I don't find myself as sexually interactive as I did before. I guess there's a lot of changes in the air.



Something unknown to me is that... in the "ENFPs - Question of.."

How can I identify without Ne. If I'm not Ne, that is.

 

[Serendipity]

This would be the funniest thing ever, if it turns out that no one seems to be able to classify.
Just.... lovely. xD

And ironic.

 

[Chloe]

That one is easy.
Place them togather in one room. Then send an INTJ in 15 minutes after that and the one that is more intrigued by INTJ in the end is ENFP.

LOL. Not.

Maybe : place INTP and them in room, I would be intrigued, but with INTJ... hm, don't think so

 

[Wonkavision]

I haven't had the time to read the whole thread, so I don't know if this has already been posted, but here goes.....


According to "When does an ESFP look like an ENFP?" ( link: ESFP - ENFP )...

These two types can often look very much like each other.

What would make the difference?
I’ve found many who had identified with ENFP for a long time, yet decided ESFP was a better fit.

Same Interaction Style. ESFPs and ENFPs seek involvement of themselves and others and tend to have the natural facilitative attitude of the Get-Things-Going™ style. When I did the Interaction Styles research, I noticed all four types (ESFJ, ESFP, ENTP, and ENFP) with that style tend to easily fall into facilitative roles, not just those with NF preferences. Both tend to use informing language, but ESFPs will have a little more of a drive to immediate tangible action. ENFPs are more willing to talk about things for a while when talking is moving things along. Both want an upbeat mood and love to make others happy.

Different Temperaments. Differentiating Artisan versus Idealist is key. Often those with ESFP preferences will talk a lot about helping people so they relate to much in the ENFP (Idealist) descriptions. For the ENFP, there are always new potentials to be explored. For the ESFP there are always new possibilities for action and ESFPs don’t want to miss opportunities.

---Roles. Very often the first clue in recognizing the ESFP pattern is pragmatism. Pragmatic means having autonomy and calling the shots on your own actions. It means taking a utilitarian approach to things rather than seeking consensus or adherence to norms—taking independent action.

---Language. It helps to listen for the abstract language of the ENFP, which is about meaning and purpose, using metaphors that many people can relate to while keeping their own unique meanings. ESFP language tends to reference tangibles with specific details when relevant.

---Interest in Motive. Both types are interested in why people do things. The ESFP tunes in to what is in it for the other person, whereas the ENFP is interested in their deeper motives.

Different Cognitive Dynamics. ENFPs lead with Ne—Interpreting meanings. ESFPs lead with Se—Experiencing and Noticing subtle changes. Both “read” the room. ESFPs notice physical clues to people’s feelings, picking up the actual physical energy. ENFPs may not even notice the physical cues and energy, but will just “know” the meaning of what is or has been going on. Both types will describe the experience as getting a feeling of what is going on. You have to probe a little to get identify which process is being engaged.

I also find Please Understand Me II, by David Kiersey extremely helpful when it comes to distinguishing temperaments.

 

[ergophobe]

Think you can also distinguish them whenever the ENFP is spacing out. As I understand it ESFP's live in the moment and react to the world around them. ENFPs might live in the moment, but the world they're responding to is potentially not visible to innocent bystanders... Clues often included a bewildered look in the eyes when abruptly transported back to Earth by the armgrabbing of a friend who's been desperately trying to ask you the same question trice and failed to miss the typically glazed look in the eyes of the ENFP which is pretty much synonymous to your phone's answering machine going: 'I am currently not home, or otherwise engaged.'
(how's that for stream of conciousness )

Hilarious! So true, Amargith. My mom is an ESFP. She is also the most socially savvy person I know. Everyone, regardless of age and gender just adores her. She is very environment focused, is very observant and has a great sense of humor, generally centered on the use sarcasm or slapstick. I am completely oblivious, often spaced out and have to be reminded of dates/seasons regularly. I have been known to call my dad and wish him happy birthday two months in advance. Seriously.

Mom is incredibly quick-witted and very focused on details making her a great story teller. I'm much more tentative in large social gatherings, don't like being the center of attention as much.

She is far more likely to call a spade a spade while I get caught up in the nuances.

People flock to her and constantly call her for advice. She's also very even-tempered and highly unlikely to have an existential crisis. She is very creative and quite accomplished as a chef and artist. She pays close attention to trends in fashion and is the reason why I have this strange inexplicable love for bags and shoes. We agree to disagree on animal prints - that's where I draw the line. Needless to say, she will always be more fashion forward than me. I'm more likely to embrace my hippie side and buy cloth bags and tie and die shirts (okay maybe just the cloth bags) but have been trained by her to go ooohhh at the smell of new leather. It's deeply ingrained

My mom loves to learn new things and has a variety of interests but they're all quite practical. She doesn't enjoy grand theories but loves doing things with her hands. She masters technology quite easily - learning quickly how to text/im etc when introduced to these.

Elaur - so cool that you have an ESFP sister.

I think ESFPs are the bomb (no bias here at all)!

 

[Risen]

We act the same, so its hard.
ESFP's can be flaky and unobservant and miss things, which make us look very un S-like. (I'm not sure why we are this way, I used to think I was an N for this reason.)
ENFP's can be the same way.
We both may appear to be boundlessly happy and silly all the time. But there is a very fundamental difference in our thinking. Since you can't read minds, its hard to tell.

Usually I can tell because ESFP's will talk about facts and details in their stories, and use no imagination
ENFP's are more likely to trail off into "wouldn't it have been funny if I said this" or "I wonder what would happen if," or "I can picture so-and-so doing this." and its actually not facts at all, really, its theory, (even if its not always theory in the intellectual sense.) Also, I think ENFP's may be more likely to be caught in the act of exaggerrating something that happened or change it around a bit, or miss important details in general.

Its definitely not in the actions, anyway, its all in the conversation.

I wish I could think of a good example but I can't right now. I'm at a loss for example.

This was a very helpful description.

 

[InfiniteIntrigue]

ESFPs are spontaneous and fun.
ENFPs are creative and fun.

And yes, either type can embody all of these traits.
I think my ESFP friends prefers to put on a show
and have as much fun as she can.
My ENFP friend tends to think about possibilities
and how to make the world a brighter place.
She tends to cool down faster than my ESFP friend.

 

[chatoyer]

My sister is an ESFP and I'm an ENFP. We do seem similar but we are actually a lot different. She wants to be the center of attention, I just want to be with people. I love causing people to have fun but I don't have to be the center. I will spend a lot more time analyzing things. I questioned if I was ESFP. Oftentimes ENFP want to be like an ESFP and can try to misdiagonose themselves or they have tried to suppress their N part (I did that for a while)

I'm with this analysis. I think the thing that stands out to me as a difference is the NF self-consciousness vs the SP lack of inhibition. Keirsey talks about how SPs just lose themselves in the moment, that's why they're such great performers, whether it be as an artist or an athlete, or a business wheeler-dealer. They are wonderfully charming and un-self-aware whereas an NF is often consumed with how they are being perceived, that's why they are so good at adapting to different kinds of people, whereas an SP will think more, "this is how I am, take it or leave it".

 

[Charmed Justice]

ESFPs seem more bubbly and bouncy. To me, they're much more physical and outgoing. The ones I know are more aware of what's going on in their social groups and around them. Ne keeps me in my head unless someone or something pulls me out. The ones I know also seem less interested in getting lost in intellectual pursuits. I can't get enough information, and my ESFP friends can rarely get enough activity. ESFP are more typically concerned with experiencing the world and ENFPs are more typically concerned with improving the world.

 

[Nigel Tufnel]

ESFP are more typically concerned with experiencing the world and ENFPs are more typically concerned with improving the world.

Good point.

In my experience, ENFPs are more likely to be social workers than salespeople, ESFPs the other way around. ESFPs want the interaction, ENFPs want the interaction to serve a greater purpose.