ENTP Communication Skills

In the process of communication, ENTPs try to bring to light the logical connections between phenomena and events and provide explanations for them. They find great satisfaction in having their inferences recognized by the other party.

ENTPs are interesting and easy to talk to, although some of their conversation partners may be exhausted by the somewhat adversarial form their communication takes. As a rule, ENTPs feel at ease conversing in a group, while they actively assert their independent view on the topic of discussion. For them, friendly conversations usually work out with people of equal intellect.

In communication, ENTPs usually come across as confident, precise and objective. They strive to maintain their characteristic objective and methodical evaluation, even when discussing topics relating to the finer feelings of the soul. Thus, for example, topics of love and lyric poetry also make them want to find ways to analyze the subject of the emotions.

The typical social circle of ENTPs for the most part consists of relatives, friends and co-workers. At the same time, ENTPs are quick off the mark and communicate fairly actively with a variety of different people at parties, meetings and recreational gatherings.

As a rule, business communication of ENTPs is intense. To their colleagues (or other people working in the same field), it is important to figure out an ENTP’s in-depth expert opinion on many professional issues. The topics of discussion for ENTPs usually include exchange of opinions and ideas, and critical analysis of new approaches and methods.

What is your personality type? Take the Test!

ENTP: Strategies for Successful Communication

ENTPs engage easily with people of the same mindset, or, to put it differently, with those of intuitive/thinking (NT) personality types such as ENTJ, INTJ, ENFP, and INTP. People in this group have roughly the same method for understanding the world, which is why ENTPs easily share their thoughts with other NTs, and in turn comprehend their reasoning or views.

When communicating with sensory/thinking (ST) people including ESTJ, ISTJ, ESTP, and ISTP personality types, ENTPs should keep to communication based on facts and their direct consequences. Although this method of communication may seem to ENTPs somewhat dry, they can easily adapt to it. As for people from the ST group, when it comes to their thought patterns, this style of communication fits those most, and is easy for them to comprehend.

When conversing with people of intuitive/feeling types (NF), including ENFJ, INFJ, ENFP, and INFP personality types, ENTPs need to adhere to communication mostly based on ideas, concepts and theories. Communication between ENTPs and people in this group, as a rule, touches on a variety of topics and is beneficial to both parties. And while ENTPs try to maintain as objective a view as possible, whereas a significant proportion of representatives of the NF group judge situations based on their feelings, nevertheless, they often find common ground necessary for effective communication and finding solutions.

For ENTPs, communication is most difficult with people of sensory/feeling types (SF), including ESFJ, ISFJ, ESFP, and ISFP personality types. When conversing with SF people, ENTPs should adhere to communication that is based on feelings, facts, and concrete sensations. However, the problem is that it can be difficult for ENTPs to keep up the conversation by those means. They may have to struggle to find argumentation that can better resonate with members of the SF group, which often either leads to ENTPs trying to wind down the conversation or to their stressing over the other party’s “lack of understanding”. In order to ensure a level of communication appropriate for both sides, ENTPs need to prepare themselves for a style of communication that suits SF people, beforehand.

 How to determine which personality type group another person belongs to?

What helps successful communication for an ENTP:

• The topic of discussion is conceptual in nature
• There is a need to find hidden, unobvious possibilities
• The discussion requires a good understanding of logical connections
• The topic calls for a creative approach
• The other party is an NT or NF person

What hinders successful communication for an ENTP:

• The topic material has weak logical connections
• The topic is of purely practical, mundane nature
• The topic heavily involves the finer feelings of the soul for too long
• Long communication with SF people

Read more about communication strategies »