Moving back onto familiar territory, the ENTP (Familiar because I use all the functions the ENTP does, but in a different order). Because the next two will be ENTP and INTP, I expect(ed) they’ll go faster. But I overestimated my own INTPness. Oops. Sorry.
So, here comes to extraverted cousins of the INTP: the ENTP.
The dominant Ne (extraverted intuition) gives the ENTP a breadth of objective pattern recognition skills. There is no inhibition on the Ne (except maybe the Si, the inferior function, and whatever Si has determined to be an absolute, the Ne using ENTP will not budge on), so the ENTP naturally can easily connect the most farfetched ideas and concepts, seeing patterns, breaking patterns, potentially everywhere. In this aspect, ENTP will seem very similar to the ENFP. Thus it is potentially imperative that the ENTP develops his/her auxiliary function, Ti, in order to cull out what is sound pattern from unsound ones, to discern inconsistencies within thoughts, theories, and even conclusions. This is different from the ENFP, who needs to develop Fi in order to prioritize and champion for the goals ENFP deems worthy. This is how they can differ, and once they each learn to rely more on their auxiliary function to process thoughts accurately, they’ll be able to narrow down their endless amount of brainstorming ability and achieve some level of permanence and consistency in their thoughts.
The ENTP according to Keirsey, is in the NT group, or “Rationals.” Of course, like the INTJ, ENTP can only really be considered to be rational thinker once and if they develop their Ti, which allows them to become more effective in their ability to create systems of logically consistent and objective thought. Until then, it is highly likely, that the ENTP will function more as Devil’s Advocate and trollTM than “rational thinker,” and will have symptoms similar to ADD/ADHD due to Ne-Fe looping, which may seem as class clowning or much more “feely” than the traditional thinkers. For example, many Ne-Fe looping females may have trouble handling interpersonal frictions despite the need and desire to discuss and debate (which can sometimes end in contentious states). There are other problems associated with the looping ENTP (as it is for ENFP, but we’ll get to that below).
According to The Myers & Briggs Foundation, approximately 2-5% of the general U.S. population, with males (3-7%) outnumbering females (2-4%). This is a general trend though, by the way. Generally, for whatever reason, more females test/type as feelers than thinkers, so thinker women will be rarer than thinker men and feeler women. Same for feeler men, although the distribution of men typing as feeler is more evenly matched to that of the thinker men, even if thinker men outweigh the feeler men. There is no real explanation for this at the moment.
Anyway, the developed ENTP will process information in this order Ne>Ti>Fe>Si. Unhealthy ENTP will process information via Ne-Fe loop, or even through Si grip, at which point, ENTP will likely suffer paranoia associated with their health where they feel sick or out of balance within themselves, but it’s seemingly undetectable under medical examination (or have an outright health breakdown), or become stubborn about facts and figures, or processes.
So, we will examine how the healthy ENTP functions, and unhealthy ENTP functions, and what triggers the Si grip in ENTPs, like before.
The ENTP’s dominant function is Ne. Ne, like in ENFPs, is unfiltered and serves no other function except its own. This in theory, allows ENTP great ability to recognize patterns and make instant intuitive leaps on thoughts, systems, and even reality (on a side note, as INTP, my Ne serves the Ti, so I don’t get such width/breadth in the use of Ne as ENTPs/ENFPs do, and sometimes I get jealous of that. Sometimes, I don’t). Anyway, the ENTP can process the tremendous amount of data the ENTP picks up on every minute/second from his/her environment, whether that is through books, environment, or even people. Then the ENTP uses Ti to ask, “is this true? Is this false?” which will help the ENTP cull out what is real from what is unreal, or true from what is false. This will help ENTP help with the reduction of possibilities and competing thoughts/ideas. Then, using Fe, ENTP can test out the perceived “truth,” which will eventually lead to the creation of the ENTP’s ability to establish new “Si,” or in this case, new permanent standard of doing things.
Ne as already covered in the ENFP, is an extensive observation process which is geared toward objective intuitive observation. What does this mean? Ne creates observation in the immediate environment much like Se users, but they’re always aware of what is not being seen, said, heard, and always making random connections, which can lead to great brainstorming abilities. Also, as Ne tends to be removed from concrete reality (Se) and tends to operate with subjective memory/physical state/history, like other NPs, ENTPs are not well aware of the present or good at objective “concrete” observation. You tried to sit ENTP still for like an hour? They die a little (that’s joke, ha ha).
But in reality, ENTPs exist for a reason, and their brainstorming ability, coupled with their auxiliary Ti, can make them truly broad-minded yet systematically consistent, which can potentially create an intellectual who can handle tremendous amount of conflicting data and observation, culling it, and be charismatic enough to establish a new norm in the effected industry/neighborhood/society.
But that’s the healthy ENTP, and sadly, I’ve not met many of those. So why don’t we focus on the unhealthy or the developing ENTPs?
Like I remember saying with ENFPs, ENTP needs a narrowing/introverting function to cull the truly expansive mind they have. When the ENTP skips Ti introspection in favor of Fe, ENTP begins their route towards the unbalanced psyche where dooming inferior Si awaits (This is really dramatic; honestly, it’s not the end of the world to be in a grip, even if it feels like it). Ti, although needing development and preference in the ENTP, is still a very strong and preferable function to dealing with dominant level Ne strength. Fe on the other hand, as a tertiary function, does not have as much of an ability to handle the tremendous amount of data that Ne picks up on a daily, hourly, minute-by-minute basis. Ti with its ability/desire to seek consistency in data can cull out the correct Ne data from faulty Ne data, but without Ti, Ne would be bombarding Fe with simply too much information. Fe is a function that creates interpersonal relationships, meets needs (this is where the NTP desire to solve problems come from, by the way; NTPs want to meet the Fe needs of their community/environment by solving problems, which in turn helps them feel needed), distributes work so that everyone feels included and also contributes based on their talents and comforts, and feel validated by their distribution, and also be recognized/appreciated for them.
However, those in Ne-Fe loop rush in with all of their Ne ideas, which to the innocent bystander, will seem erratic, too off-the-wall, or even inconsistent/hypocritical. This is where the stereotype of famous NP types contradicting themselves in their first sentence come from. Had the ENTP taken the time alone to process his/her thoughts through Ti to detect inconsistencies and consistencies and establish a basic internal logical framework to work off of, it would naturally be more polished, consistent, and easier to “spread” or communicate to a third party. But when in Ne-Fe mode, ENTP sees the need to implement new ideas everywhere, and suggests lots and lots of things to people, only to see nothing getting done, and people being irritated from ENTP constantly bombarding them with Ne.
Furthermore, this looping behavior makes it nearly impossible for the ENTP to get anything done, because they do not care about establishing an internal structure, opposing ideas and patterns can essentially cause self-sabotaging behavior in the ENTP, and hinder the ENTP’s desire to establish a new social norm (inferior/aspirational Si). You may see this a lot in the ENTP/ENFP types, where they have a million different ideas they want to manifest, but a lot of them are in conflict with each other, some of them are not quite possible at the moment, and some will seem possible to carry out, yet they won’t (as INTP, when I listen to ENTPs talk about their plans, it is always very interesting, but I can’t help but wonder how they plan to manifest as I see too many loopholes/incompleteness within them). ENTP certainly have the energy to manifest their ideas, but this very energy can burn them out if they don’t take the time to build their introverted thinking function.
Instead of being recognized for their insight and brilliant brainstorming capabilities, they’re likely to be ignored, be known as being annoying, or even shunned; tertiary Fe can make the user appear like trolls (and they often don’t mind being one, which only exacerbates the issue at hand), all, while the weight of attacks ENTP faces begin to pile on the ENTP. This eventually leads to…
Very similar to the ENFP; ENTP will physically crash, become reclusive, engage in repetitive behaviors, and become stubborn in certain areas. They will appear like very unhealthy ISFJs almost; unable to handle criticisms by anyone (even if valid, which ENTP would normally be okay with as Fe is lower in the ENTP’s function stack). They also will have trouble handling conflicts (even if they’re not the instigators), and will hide themselves away from the very people and adventure in thoughts they so crave. They will also find themselves having trouble coming up with new ideas which seemed like a well at one point.
When Si grip hits, a lot of ENTPs will initially show signs of hypochondria, and some of them will actually deal with a lot of physical problems. Due to Si being their inferior function, they’re usually not at all aware of their internal states, or maintain habits that can maintain one’s health (Si and Fe usually takes care of those). As a result, these things can unfortunately catch up with them, making them realize the importance of balancing the Ne and Si. The normally spunky ENTP will look almost depressed (and I mean… to some extent, they are); refuse to get out of their repetitive behavior pattern, and will think about the “good ‘ol days” despite not actually remembering as much. Unlike the SJ types whose Si is much stronger and preferred, the ENTP’s version of Si is highly likely to be off since they don’t stay in touch too often with them. ENTP’s Si is like… a muggle imagining the good ‘ol days at Hogwarts; it didn’t happen, it is riddled with false impressions, and contrast sharply to that of say, SJs, who would be more like the wizards that did go to Hogwarts; in the sense that the SJs actually do remember more accurately and knew exactly how it was in the good ‘ol days compared with the ENTP.
It doesn’t change the fact that they’ll still believe what their Si shows to be true, however. They will eventually need to get out though, as being in a grip is simply unproductive and draining way of life. Eventually, ENTP’s Ne will start firing again, and ENTP will get to leave the dreaded Si state. But when ENTP is in Si grip, a good way to get out of it, is to meet their Fe needs (connect with people, be reassured that they’re not jackasses, take care of their basic needs) But also, to engage in Ti. Si Grip in ENTP will tire them out pretty quickly, and they will find that they don’t have much energy to stay in such state. ENTP should take care of Fe needs for themselves; exercise, eat well, establish some basic schedule to optimize their bodily states (which I understand, is very difficult for someone with inferior Si, but even a simple sleep schedule/eating schedule/exercise schedule is generally enough to fulfill that Si need in ENTPs). As the ENTP meets the inferior Si needs, he/she will find that the Ne begins to come alive for them again. They’ll start becoming inspired, have more ideas, have a desire to learn; however, to prevent falling back into this cycle of Ne-Fe loops and Si grips, it is paramount that the ENTP learns not to overextend the Fe process, but let it assist Ti, which must be accessed consciously to weed out inconsistent ideas. It may seem a bit depressing at first for the ENTP to do this, but it is vital if ENTP is to gain some control over themselves and innovate.
Ti will help ENTP’s exhausted psyche relax. Which if you’re a Ti using individual, you’ll think, “What?” But Ti will take off the tremendous load of heavy weight that Ne can put on the much weaker and less preferred Fe and Si, and help bring ENTP calmness, clear-mindedness, and eventually have ENTP brainstorming and creating new systems of thoughts that will meet needs and be established as new norm.
It is kind of interesting that… so many NPs actually feel so powerless, uncontrolled, and feel ridiculed by society, yet they are the very people that society needs to continue development and prevent stagnation (and therefore instability). NPs often complain about feeling useless, unproductive, and under-respected, yet there’s so much untapped potential in them, that if they don’t do the work themselves and bring themselves out to meet the challenge, they’d not only be doing themselves disservice, they’d be doing society a disservice.
What a predicament. Finally… INTP next. Thank you.
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