The ENFP in the Workplace

General Overview

Unfortunately, ENFPs are likely to float through the early part of their career. This isn’t a hard and fast rule of course, but ENFPs are usually interested in so many things that the idea of settling down and focusing on climbing the career ladder can feel too stifling and even foolish to this type. ENFPs use extraverted intuition as their dominant function, and it’s this function that drives their need for novelty and exploration. Because of it, ENFPs often find themselves in dead end jobs, or a series of them, that they can leave at a moment’s notice to follow the next interesting thing that comes along.

However, as ENFPs mature and start to focus, they can bring a lot to the workplace. They’re innovative, creative and often artistic, and they bring this open and curious nature to their career and their workplace as well. Which is why they’re often drawn to the types of companies that are focused on creative or artistic endeavors, most ENFPs would suffocate if they were trapped in corporate or other highly structured environments. ENFPs are also very good at understanding the emotions and the motivations of others because of their auxiliary function, introverted feeling. This makes them warm and supportive people to be around, and their workmates will sense that and be drawn to trust and confide in them.

Company and society

ENFPs are innovative people who avoid doing things just because they’ve always been done that way, or because everyone else is doing them. This type prefers to find their own way in everything, their own path, and this will be reflected in their career choices as well. Because of it, ENFPs usually avoid traditional workplaces and people. They have a deep distrust and dislike of rules and schedules that make these kinds of workplaces stifling for them both creatively and personally. They’re a much better fit for more modern workplaces, where they’re encouraged to use their creative minds and nurtured in their quest to find new ways and new ideas and fit them into their lives and their work. And their natural adaptability means that ENFPs have no problems changing workplaces or even career directions. In fact, they’re often a little too quick to do so, and need to learn patience and how to work for something over the long term if they want career success and satisfaction.

Abuse in the workplace

ENFPs can sometimes be a little naive. These warm, emotional idealists prefer to think the best about people and about the world around them. And this can lead to them missing obvious signs of danger, or just not seeing when someone is manipulating or using them. But when they do notice, and they will eventually, it will cause them a great deal of pain and uncertainty. ENFPs have big hearts and tend to assume that everyone else is the same, and being taught otherwise by less scrupulous people can be devastating for them. ENFPs will quickly and easily walk away at this point, they’re extremely unlikely to stay once they understand the situation. But the scars left by the betrayal will linger a long time for this type.

ENFPs are unlikely to be abusive to workmates, or to stand by while others are abused. This type uses introverted feeling as their auxiliary function, which often gives them a shocking amount of empathy for the pain and troubles of others. It’s hard to want to hurt someone else when it hurts you as well, and this warm hearted type usually avoids situations that hold even the potential of hurting someone. They’re also very likely to be protective of others who are being hurt or bullied by the people around them, and will offer all of the support and assistance they can.

Workplace Strengths

ENFPs are warm people, with innate people skills that make them very popular in the workplace. Other people will flock around them, drawn by their natural warmth and enthusiastic response to overtures of friendship and this can make for a very friendly and pleasant workplace. People instinctively trust ENFPs, and this can be a great benefit in their relationships with their workmates and with their clients as well. ENFPs can use their natural understanding of other people and their advanced communication skills to understand their clients’ needs and wants, to connect with them, and that’s the most essential step to ensuring client happiness and satisfaction. And any workplace that recognizes and uses this ENFP skill will enjoy great success because of it.

Workplace Weaknesses

An ENFPs biggest weakness comes from what is also their greatest strength. ENFPs love novelty and value autonomy and independence above everything else. And this doesn’t match well with most workplaces. ENFPs are likely to quit jobs without much notice, and chafe if their boss tries to implement too many rules and schedules. This often leads to them spending a lot of time in jobs that are low paid and low skilled, jobs they feel absolutely no attachment or loyalty to and can leave at a moment’s notice. And this tendency often results in them having very little impact on the company or on their workmates, they just don’t have the time or the impulse to engage on these levels. When this occurs it’s a real shame because ENFPs have a lot to give in these areas.

Final Thoughts

ENFPs are dominated by the need for novelty, the need to explore and see everything they can, and this can also dominate their working life if they let it. It often leads to the ENFP changing workplaces so quickly that others don’t get to see all the benefits and warmth the ENFP can bring, and this is a loss for both the ENFP and for their potential workmates.

References

1. Storm, Susan. “What Type of Feeler Are You? The Difference Between Extraverted and Introverted Feeling“. Aug 24, 2015. (Retrieved Apr 2018).
2. “ENFP – The Discoverer“.
3. “The ENFP Career Path“.
4. “The ENFP as an Entrepreneur“.
5. “Best Jobs For Your Personality“.