Okay, I don't think this will come as a surprise, but I am a pretty imaginative person. I love to think about a million different ways that something can happen, the different choices I can make, and most importantly my purpose in life. Ever since I had a great conversation with my brother and his wife about the Myers-Briggs personality types, I have really tried to learn everything I can about the personality that I ended up matching with. It was funny, though, because I was actually on the border between two different personalities (INFP and ENFP). One being the more extraverted and outgoing type, versus the more introverted and aware type. Which also was a good indication that we all have varying personality traits that tend to mix a lot more than we are aware of.

Anyways!

I ended up totally relating to all the definitions and meanings that were related to ENFPs. Which, if you are reading this and have no idea what kind of personalities I am talking about, let me give a quick overview.

There was a psychologist named Katherine Cooke Briggs who also had a daughter named Isabel Briggs Myers, and together they came up with this theory of varying personalities with a very practical and understandable questionnaire in 1943. It was based off of the previous findings and observations explored by the Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung. Basically, these three people discovered that there are certain variables and ideas that set people apart in the way that they view the world. These ideas were then split up by the women into 4 main categories:

1. Where you focus your attention- Extraversion (E) or Introversion (I)

2. The way you take in information- Sensing (S) or INtuition (N)

3. How you make decisions- Thinking (T) or Feeling (F)

4. How you deal with the world- Judging (J) or Perceiving (P)

(Courtesy of the Myers-Briggs Foundation affiliate website which can be found here!)

Then of course you have all 16 personalities which can be found on the above weblink also.

Sooo,

I am pretty sure I grilled my brother Jim and his wife Nancy forever about the personalities, but specifically about ENFP's and the way they perceive the world. Now of course there is always a margin of error with studies and tests but this has seriously been the first approved test that I have found that is considered one of the most accurate and widely used personality tests across the world. I believe that if everyone took the time to answer 100% honestly the questions on the test, that there is great power and knowledge that can be found when we can better understand the way we each think and feel!

One of my favorite passages I found on ENFP's stated:

"More than just sociable people-pleasers though, ENFPs, like all their diplomat cousins, are shaped by their Intuitive (N) quality, allowing them to read between the lines with curiosity and energy. They tend to see life as a big, complex puzzle where everything is connected-but unlike Analysts, who tend to see that puzzle as a series of systemic machinations, ENFPs see it through a prism of emotion, compassion and mysticism, and are always looking for a deeper meaning."

-Courtesy of 16personalities.com

After coming to terms with the fact that I am in fact an extrovert (which I don't know about anyone else but I have definitely heard some unflattering things about extroverts being needy and attention-hungry, and all that garbage), I have been able to analyze the WHY in my actions which have lead me to slow down when I'm running full steam ahead and to think my decisions through a bit more thoroughly. Not to mention that I can better embrace myself for WHO I AM, which leads to more strength and determination to take the leaps of faith and to make the hard decisions without which would have left me in a worse place. There is great power in tapping into not just my emotions, but the emotions of those around me, and I think that does in fact make me a more open and relatable person. Of course, there are down sides to almost everything, and sometimes my intuition and constantly seeking deeper meanings have gotten me into troubles that could have been avoided. I cannot count on my fingers the nights I have stayed up all night worrying and stressing about social interactions that had occurred previously, and how a lot of the time they only grew to be complicated because of my over-analyzing and inadvertent need to look deeper.

To come back full circle...now that I am really starting to take my personality in stride, my desire to live life and spread my wings to the full potential that I have, along with bringing those around me to the same heights within themselves, has lead me to really take more risks and believe that I can accomplish the seemingly daunting tasks. Some of which include stepping away from a path of life that I had previously been on to pursue a path where I can truly not be constrained in any previous pressures and ideals determined by others. Which probably sounds a bit crazy, but I am seriously feeling happy being myself and on my own, and learning to let go of preconceived notions and to allow for the universe, God, or whomever one may believe in, to lead us to something extraordinary. It just feels so insane, and also very satisfying, to read up on this personality and how my entire life and the ways that I accomplish things really do follow the ENFP traits! Even in the ways the traits start to fault. A few passages from the ENFP personality really made me laugh. They state:

"ENFPs don't take things at face value-they look for underlying motives in even the simplest things. It's not uncommon for ENFPs to lose a bit of sleep asking themselves why someone did what they did, what it might mean, and what to do about it."

"INDEPENDENT TO A FAULT- ENFPs loathe being micromanaged and restrained by heavy-handed rules-they want to be seen as highly independent masters of their own fates, even possessors of an altruistic wisdom that goes beyond draconian law. The challenge for ENFPs is that they live in a world of checks and balances, a pill they are not happy to swallow."

16personalities.com

It is just very interesting. I know that life and all of the things that can happen to each individual can also add to the way that we are shaped, and I can take a deeper look at my experiences to see that point manifested. Despite the changes I feel I have gone through, at the core of who I am, is a free spirit that is constantly reaching up for something exciting and fulfilling on varying levels.

SOO

Long story short, I think it is an extremely important matter of understanding who we are and our personalities, because then we can better pick paths that will be much more fulfilling and livening. There is nothing worse than realizing you are on a path that does not fit ones "destiny", per say, and that is what I am focusing on right now. I want to better plan world domination where everyone can feel like they fit and have the ability to do what they do best, while being happy and living REAL fulfilling lives.

There you go.

Wish me luck with my endeavors, and I will keep trying to stay up-to-date with my blog and all of my adventures! Some of which include a new kick ass hairstyle I love, a change of location to a more open and inspiring environment in the Salt Lake Valley of Utah, the switching of educational institutions from the mascot of a cougar to a griffin, and a path that as of right now is starting to look more and more like a life for JESSI.

Sincerely,

Jessi Hope