ENFP/ENFJ

I gave my seniors a version of the Myers-Briggs personality test in their service reflection class today. 48 questions answered either a. or b. revealed all. When they finished, I handed each of them a 2-page summary of their four-letter personality type. And let the freak-outs commence. "Miss, how do they know?!" "This is totally ME!" They grabbed the papers out of each other's hands, "Oh my gosh! This is YOU!"

I remember taking the M-B for the first time, and feeling the same way. Today, I tested as a strong ENFP, though I used to get ENFJ and the description feels more accurate. According to the personalitypages description, ENFJ's:

*are people-focused individuals. They live in the world of people possibilities.

*have the tendency to be hard on themselves and turn to dark thoughts when alone.

*tend to define their life's direction and priorities according to other people's needs, and may not be aware of their own needs.

*may feel quite lonely even when surrounded by people. This feeling of aloneness may be exacerbated by the tendency to not reveal their true selves.

*do not like dealing with impersonal reasoning. They don't understand or appreciate its merit, and will be unhappy in situations where they're forced to deal with logic and facts without any connection to a human element.

*get their best satisfaction from serving others.

*may have difficulty making good decisions, and may rely heavily on other people in decision-making processes.

Yup, yup, yup, yup...that would be me! The good, the bad, and the ugly...all true for me. One of my girls scored "The Mechanic," which is ISTP. She realized that we scored as polar opposites. "That makes a lot of sense, doesn't it, Miss?" Ha! Considering the two of us butt heads on almost a daily basis? Yes, yes it does make sense!

It was great to see the girls come alive today. The reflection class for service is one of those "whatever you want it to be" classes, and I've struggled to ground it in something concrete. Considering they are at the same service site every Wednesday, there are only so many conversations we can have about their struggles and successes. I'm hoping that we can sort of sink our teeth into the types the next time we meet (keeping the momentum for 2 weeks will be hard--I only meet with them every other cycle). How does their personality type help them at their service site? How does it hinder them? What does it tell them to work on? To celebrate?

I am certainly reminded that while it is wonderful to serve others, to be considerate of their needs, I also must remember to put myself first now and then. I need to remember that I can't always do what's best for everyone else, and I shouldn't beat myself up over it.