I am an entrepreneur and my sister is a campaigner. These are two personality types in the Myers-Briggs, sixteen personality test. The letters for an entrepreneur are ESTP and a campaigner is ENFP. In this article, I will be comparing the two personality types for their key compatibilities, incompatibilities, and other traits.
While very different as personality types entrepreneurs and campaigners share some compatibility. We agree on matters of morals and ethics, but normally for very different reasons. We are deeply practical, logical, and emotionally hands-off and both typically feel that a pragmatic solution is the best one. Fixing problems is also a central part of our value system but not necessarily every obstacle, just the ones that directly affect us. Making connections and interpreting the "why" of things is also a key similarity. Lastly, we can both be extremely messy and unorganized.
ESTP and ENFP have more incompatibilities than I would have originally thought. We both have very different reasons for why we might like or agree with the same thing. In a normal conversation, I might come off as overly blunt or even confrontational whereas my sister pays a lot of attention to the quality and emotional overtones of any conversation. This happens a lot when I’m trying to help her with math. An ESTP might not care too much about how others react to something whereas an ENFP cares a great deal. ESTPs also really care about the overall plan in which something is done where an ENFP might just go with the flow. This happens a lot when we make plans with friends, I normally want to know what we are doing and for how long where my sister may just go along for the ride without any concrete plans.
I recommend that people take the sixteen personality test to both get an introspective on yourself and perhaps understand others better. While the test is not fully reflective of one’s complete behavior, it does help provide a framework to consider actions and feelings. It also may help you understand why other people behave the way they do, which might be beneficial when communicating with them.
For siblings, this can also be a good bonding experience. Through this journey, I have learned that I should be more careful with my words when I speak to my sister. Sometimes I might say a throw-away comment like, “Leila, how did you not understand that math problem, it's so simple.” But this comment may have a much greater emotional impact on her than I ever intended and may in fact hurt her confidence. In building a life-long relationship with my sister, this has been a valuable lesson.