Key Takeaways
- ENTPs are outgoing, imaginative, and love generating ideas, but often struggle with following through on their plans.
- People with an ENTP personality type enjoy debates and discussions to explore ideas and learn from others, but this can sometimes lead to conflicts if others perceive them as combative.
- They tend to thrive in careers that allow creativity and freedom, such as law or business, but struggle with routines and boredom.
The ENTP personality type is one of the 16 different personality types identified by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). ENTP stands for Extraverted, iNtuitive, Thinking, and Perceiving. People with this personality type are outgoing, imaginative, logical, and adaptable in their approach to life.
People with the ENTP personality type are often described as innovative, clever, and expressive. ENTPs are also known for being idea-oriented, which is why this personality type has been described as “the innovator,” “the visionary,” and “the debater.”
Illustration by JR Bee, Verywell
Key ENTP Characteristics
There are a few clues you can look for to determine if you or someone you know might be an ENTP:
- Extraverted: ENTPs enjoy being around other people. They love to have conversations and debates focused on their interests and passions.
- Intuitive: ENTPs enjoy thinking about the big picture and exploring possibilities and abstract ideas. They love brainstorming and strategizing to solve problems.
- Thinking: People with an ENTP personality type make decisions based on objective information and logic.
- Perceiving: ENTPs tend to be highly flexible and spontaneous. They enjoy learning new things and exploring new situations.
Is the ENTP personality type rare?
According to psychologist David Keirsey, the creator of the Keirsey Temperament Sorter, ENTPs are known as Rational Inventors. He suggests that this personality type is rare, accounting for around five to 10% of the population. Another study found that ENTPs accounted for around 11% of people.
Important Strengths
- Strong conversational skills: ENTPs enjoy interacting with a wide variety of people. If you have this personality type, you are probably a great conversationalist, whether you are making casual small talk or having a serious debate.
- Curiosity: ENTPs are immensely curious and focused on understanding the world around them. They constantly absorb new information and ideas and quickly arrive at conclusions. They are also quick-thinking, so they readily grasp new ideas and concepts.
- You love a good debate: ENTPs love to debate, which stems from a desire to explore a topic, learn what other people believe, and help others see the other side of the story.
Weaknesses
- Problems committing: ENTPs reserve judgment. Instead of deciding or committing to a course of action, they prefer to wait and see what happens.
- Argumentative: Because they thrive on debate, they may find themselves in conflict with others.
- Insensitive: At times, their focus on logic can make them seem dismissive or insensitive to others’ feelings.
- Problems with following through: The ENTP personality type is creative but strongly dislikes schedules and regular routines. They love new ideas, but tend to get bored with them easily. This can make it hard to finish plans. They struggle when they feel controlled and can be unfocused at times.
Strengths
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Innovative
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Creative
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Great conversationalist
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Enjoys debating
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Values knowledge
Careers Where ENTPs Thrive
Career options for an ENTP personality type include:
ENTPs tend to really struggle with anything that involves routines and boredom. They are nonconformists and do best in jobs that offer excitement and creative freedom. ENTPs can be successful in a wide range of careers—as long as they do not feel hemmed in or bored.
As debaters with great communication skills, careers in law can offer the challenge and diversity that ENTPs crave. Jobs in the business world that combine ENTPs’ rationality, creativity, and natural leadership can also be very rewarding.
How ENTPs Think
Based upon Carl Jung’s theory of personality, the MBTI categorizes personality types by their cognitive functions (intuition, thinking, sensing, and feeling), which can then be directed outwardly (extroverted) or inwardly (introverted).
The hierarchical organization of these functions is what establishes each individual’s primary pattern of behavior.
- The dominant function is the most prominent
- The auxiliary function plays a supportive role
- The tertiary function has less of an influence
- The inferior function tends to be an area of weakness
Dominant: Extroverted Intuition
ENTPs tend to take in information quickly and are very open-minded. Once they have gathered this information, they spend time connecting the various complex, interwoven relationships.
People with this personality type are good at spotting connections others might overlook and tend to focus on possibilities. They have entrepreneurial minds and always come up with new and exciting ideas.
Auxiliary: Introverted Thinking
This cognitive function is expressed in the ENTP’s thinking process. People with this type of personality are more focused on taking in information about the world around them. When they do use this information to reach conclusions, they tend to be very logical.
ENTPs are logical and objective. When making decisions, they place a greater weight on rational evidence instead of subjective, emotional information.
This function helps the ENTP process all the information that comes in through the extroverted intuition. It involves imposing logic and order to help make sense of many disparate ideas and pieces of information. ENTPs don’t just want to understand that something works—they want to understand the why and how behind how things function.
Tertiary: Extroverted Feeling
As a tertiary function, this aspect of personality may not be as well developed or prominent, so its expression can vary. When well-developed, ENTPs can be social charmers who get along well with others.
When this aspect of personality is weaker, the ENTP may be insensitive to others. That’s why people with this type of personality are sometimes seen as aloof or unkind.
Inferior: Introverted Sensing
The introverted sensing function is centered on understanding the past and often applying it to current experiences and future concerns.
Sometimes, this can be a point of weakness for ENTP personalities. They often focus more on possibilities and may fail to consider how past precedents may help predict outcomes.
ENTPs also tend to overlook many mundane details of daily life, especially when deeply involved in a project or plan.
ENTPs You Might Know
- Thomas Edison, inventor
- John Adams, U.S. President
- Walt Disney, filmmaker
- Julia Child, cook
- Alexander the Great, King and military leader
ENTP-T and ENTP-A Subtypes
ENTPs can be further categorized into two groups: ENTP-T and ENTP-A.
- ENTP-Ts are “turbulent debaters.” They seek approval, agreement, and attention, and often feel anger, jealousy, or envy. Their behavior is more emotionally driven than that of ENTP-As.
- ENTP-As are “assertive debaters.” More confident than ENTP-Ts, ENTP-As assume people accept them and are less interested in discussing their feelings than ENTP-Ts. They tend to be less emotionally reactive.
What ENTPs Are Like in Relationships
Since they are identified as extroverts, it may come as no surprise that ENTPs have very good people skills. They are skilled communicators and enjoy interacting with a wide circle of family, friends, and acquaintances. People often describe them as:
- Quick-witted
- Engaging
- Debaters
ENTPs will often engage in debates simply because they enjoy having a good battle of wits. Their love of debates leads ENTPs to take on the role of the devil’s advocate, which can sometimes lead to conflicts with others who feel like they are intentionally combative and antagonistic.
Who is ENTP compatible with?
While the ENTP personality can successfully have healthy relationships with people of any personality type, they tend to be most compatible with people who can provide balance to their dominant extraverted intuition function.
In terms of dating and marriage, some highly compatible personality types include other ENTPs, ENTJs, ENFPs, and INTPs.
How to Get Along With an ENTP
If you know an ENTP, there are some strategies that can help you better understand that person and get the most out of your interactions. Whether that person is your friend, your child, or your partner, here are a few tips that can help you know what to expect:
Friendships
ENTPs are great at getting along with people, regardless of personality type. While they are usually laid-back, they can be quite competitive.
If you are friends with an ENTP:
- Be careful not to get into the habit of trying to outdo each other. This can lead to conflicts that can jeopardize your friendship.
- Be aware of their love for debates and be careful not to escalate good-natured discussions into combative arguments.
Parenting
ENTPs have a fun-loving nature and are excited to share their sense of wonder with their children. Parents with this personality type are supportive, but they tend to see every situation as a learning opportunity.
Parents of ENTP children should know that their children may sometimes seem argumentative. It’s a natural byproduct of their love of discussion and debate. They may also seem inconsistent, being warm and affectionate in one moment and then withdrawing in the next as they become wrapped up in new ideas.
Parents should encourage their children to focus on goals and finish the things that they start.
Relationships
In intimate relationships, ENTPs can be passionate and exciting. They are warm, loving, and good at understanding their partner’s needs. You may find they struggle to follow through on their promises, which can be a source of frustration at times.
Be aware of your ENTP partner’s need for spontaneity. You can help balance your partner’s impulsiveness by helping them work toward their goals with enthusiasm and practicality.
