“I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. ‘Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death.”
Leonardo da Vinci – ENTP
The ENTPs
are the idea people of the world; they are in love with possibilities and strategizing for the future. They combine their dominant Extraverted Intuition (Ne) with Introverted Thinking (Ti) to see numerous potential outcomes and sort them out logically in their minds. They are masters at coming up with innovative, enterprising plans of action. ENTPs make charming conversationalists, quick thinkers, and excellent debaters.
What Does ENTP Stand For?
E = Extroversion. ENTPs focus on the outer world of experiences, people, and events before focusing inwards.
N = iNtuition. ENTPs focus more on the abstract or potential of something than the concrete or existing reality.
T = Thinking. ENTPs focus on the impersonal aspects of a decision (pros and cons, logic, cause and effect) before looking at the personal impact and emotional dynamics.
P = Perceiving. ENTPs enjoy having an open-ended, spontaneous approach to life rather than having everything planned out and structured.
ENTP Motivations and Weaknesses:
- Driving Force: To explore possibilities and ideas in the outside world. To transform and change things to achieve their maximum potential.
- Backup Strength: An intricate understanding of how things work together. An ability to grasp the logical connections or inconsistencies in any situation or argument.
- Weaknesses: Can lose track of details by focusing so much on ideas and new possibilities. May forget to tend to bodily needs because they are so lost in thoughts and analysis.
- Stressors: Mundane, nitty-gritty detail work, too much alone time, limits on brainstorming, emotional turbulence, dealing with irrational people, passive-aggressiveness, too many rules and guidelines.
ENTP Personality Traits:
While everyone varies based on their background and Enneagram type, ENTPs often have the following characteristics:
- They are innovative and full of ideas
- They enjoy exploring new opportunities and possibilities
- They can generate dozens of ideas quickly
- They enjoy analyzing things from a detached, logical perspective
- They aren’t afraid to try new things
- They look for accuracy over efficiency
- They enjoy surprises and exploring changes and alternate perspectives
- They are good at reading people
ENTP Careers:
ENTPs thrive in careers that are fast-paced, varied, and creative. Being in an energetic environment with an innovative team makes them come alive! They enjoy coming up with creative solutions to problems, improvising, and generating new and innovative ideas and possibilities. More than anything, they don’t want a job that confines them to a rigid routine and a repetitive set of tasks. They want to be able to be spontaneous and react to new information and ideas on the spot, coming up with creative strategies and brainstorming novel approaches. It’s also important for them to be able to increase their professional and personal impact and interact with a wide variety of ambitious, creative people.
Career Suggestions: Entrepreneur, Inventor, Journalist, Producer, Radio/TV Talk Show Host, Internet marketer, Director, Strategic Planner, Politician, Detective, an Investment broker.
Famous ENTPs:
Leonardo da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, Richard Feynman, Niccolo Machiavelli, David Hume, Steve Wozniak, Bertrand Russell, Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, Sacha Baron Cohen, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Robert Downey Jr., Stephen Fry, David Hyde Pierce, Amy Poehler, Gillian Anderson, Adam Savage, Hugh Grant, Matthew Inman, Diablo Cody, Matthew Perry.
Your Important ENTP Links:
ENTP Personality Profile – An In-Depth Look at the Trailblazer
12 Amazing Fictional ENTP Characters
10 Things You Should Never Say to an ENTP
The Top 7 Gift Ideas for ENTPs
10 Surprising Truths About ENTPs
Why You Should Defy Your Personality Type
Why Each Myers-Briggs® Personality Type Feels Trapped
The Middle-Aged Versions of Every Myers-Briggs® Personality Type
Your Myers-Briggs® Personality Type and Your Generation
