The Development of ENTP Children

Grey · Feb 27, 2010

ENTP: Everything's Negotiable
'If charm were money, he'd be a billionaire.'

ENTP children are energetic, creative, adventurous, and fun. But they can be exhausting to have around, both physically and intellectually. The most important part of all ENTPs is their highly developed sense of what could be. They see possibilities everywhere and are energized by talking about them and sharing them with the people around them. They are also driven to understand why the world is as it is and are motivated to try to change things to be better, or at least in the way they think they might be improved! ENTPs are logical and analytical children, eager to learn new things and explore with as few restraints on them as possible. Having an ENTP in your house is usually a fascinating, exciting, and challenging proposition.

The examples that follow are drawn from stories of real children. But since all people are unique, your ENTP may not demonstrate all of the characteristics described or may not demonstrate them with the same degree of intensity. But if your child really is an ENTP, most of what you read should sound strikingly familiar.

Preschool ENTPs
Birth to Age 4

Nearly all ENTP babies are described as alert, active, and ready to reach out to interact with their environment, especially with the people near them. From their first hours and days, they are eager to make eye contact and hunger for human interaction. They may or may not be early walkers or talkers but they seem to have an urgency to push forward and grow up quickly – a tendency that follows them throughout their lives. They are very energized by being around others, usually the more the merrier. Eager to elicit reactions from adults, they will often perform with increasing enthusiasm. They are often squirmy, active babies who quickly become busy little monkeys, ready to climb on or off anything, and are eager to try to do things for themselves. Easily bored and always in search of a new challenge or source of stimulation, they especially like experiencing things that are new or out of the ordinary.

Donald's mother taped the many congratulatory greeting cards they received upon his birth around the wall near the baby's changing table. Donald was fascinated with all the colors and patterns on the cards. But after looking at them for a few days, he grew bored and busy. So his mother switched them around and replaced some with photographs of family members or colorful ads pulled from magazines. Anything new immediately got and kept Donald's attention during clothes or diaper changes.

ENTPs are typically very active and excitable children. They become more and more wound up when people come to visit, and they appear to get an adrenaline rush from being with others, even people they do not know. ENTPs enjoy being the center of attention and are rarely hesitant about playing with children they barely know or talking to adults. Most will eagerly initiate contact and come across as very outgoing, confident, and friendly. They love to delight others with their long and engaging stories.

The early language of most ENTPs reflects their vivid imaginations and their innate love of learning. They particularly enjoy adding new words to their remarkable vocabularies and are constantly listening to adult conversations and asking the meaning of unfamiliar words or expressions. They sometimes make up their own language, inventing silly expressions that are most fun when they have the intended effect of charming or amusing adults. ENTPs often use adult or complex speech patterns, sounding more grown-up or sophisticated than their years. Word games, puns, and plays on words are a great delight to most ENTPs. One young ENTP girl decided that she needed to add the phrase 'whole world' to her middle name, just to give the act of telling her name greater impact.

Most ENTP toddlers love being read to and are often early readers while still in preschool. When four-year-old Denise discovered that she had taught herself, her mother remembers, she ran around in circles shouting for joy. ENTPs especially like fantasy or dramatic stories with high drama and adventure. They usually like to act things out and may ask to hear the same story, or particularly dramatic portions of their favorite stories, again and again.

There is a pivotal scene in the popular Disney movie Beauty and the Beast in which Belle nearly destroys an important rose, which is normally kept protected in a glass case. The Beast catches her just as her hand is reaching for the rose. He roars at her, 'Don't you know what you could have done?' It is a moment of high tension, and it was four-year-old Tory's favorite part. He loved to hear it read, watch it again and again on video, or act it out with great emotion and energy.
Leslie and her father had a nightly story telling time. They began their continuing story of 'Never Island' and each night added new adventures for the characters, with wonderful details. Even though they pretended that it was her father telling the story, Leslie was an eager and active participant, full of ideas and opinions about how to make the story better or more outrageous.

Preschool ENTPs are also great fans of dramatic play. They often enjoy dressing up and pretending they are action heroes, animals, or characters of fantasy. They are generally quite adept at improvising and pulling costumes, sets, and props together and can readily persuade other children (or adults) to participate in their fantastic productions. They enjoy building toys and using all sorts of materials to express their creativity. They usually love Legos and working with clay or paint, often preferring to make big and elaborate art.

ENTPs are curious and spontaneous children. They like surprises and are usually able to deal with unexpected changes in plans without resistance or hesitation. They may vocalize an initial strong opinion, but they are usually pretty adaptable. They like being busy and outdoors and are rarely afraid of getting dirty or reluctant to try new things. They may have a strong interest in nature and great curiosity about the workings of the human body. Rarely squeamish, they will press their parents for more and more information until they fully understand how and why the body works as it does. Many are particularly fascinated with human sexuality and they are not satisfied with answers that are unclear or indirect. Also, they have an uncanny ability to sense when adults are trying to skirt sensitive topics. Their antennae pick up on the discomfort of the adult, which intrigues them all the more, and so they persist. They ask an enormous number of 'why' questions and can leave their parents reeling as they try to satisfy their child's unquenchable thirst for knowledge.

Socially, ENTPs are usually well liked by their peers and tend to have a large group of friends. They typically enjoy group activities in preschool and are eager to volunteer to be the leader or to demonstrate their knowledge or physical prowess. They like games of all kinds, especially challenging ones, and are fairly competitive by nature. Young female ENTPs are just as happy to play with boys as with girls and are not as interested in playing with stereotypically girl toys like Barbies as their friends may be.

The Joys and Challenges of Raising Preschool ENTPs

While ENTPs are exciting and stimulating children, they need a variety of different ways to channel their energy. Because they grow bored so quickly, they are rarely happy to play alone for any extended period of time. When they're awake, they seek constant interaction and engagement. They may talk so talk, and so loudly, that it can sometimes feel like just too much of a good thing. Because ENTPs think out loud, they can't help but interrupt adults to ask the many questions or make the numerous comments that just pop into their heads. They learn by experience and gentle guidance the subtleties of polite conversation. Their minds work so quickly that being asked or forced to wait their turn to speak often makes them forget what they were going to say. This can make them very frustrated, angry, and tearful. Patience is definitely a learned skill for most ENTPs.

ENTPs usually need to be moving, running, climbing, and jumping at all times. Most would be happy to have a continuous stream of friends and may be happiest with several children around at once. A rainy day can be a nightmare for parents and ENTPs who live in more rural places. Parents may find they need to plan ahead and have plenty of new and unusual tricks up their sleeves at all times.

In addition to their inquisitiveness, ENTPs are also very strong-willed and independent children. They are highly motivated by challenge and are always looking for ways to do things for themselves.

As early as six months old, Claire was dressing and undressing herself in her crib. Her mother would go in after her naps and find her naked – with even her diaper off. Claire's parents eliminated this obvious problem at night by putting her pajamas on backward so that the zipper or snaps would be in the back, out of Claire's reach. Claire also wanted to hold the spoon at mealtimes, and hold her bottle; later she cried when her parents insisted on brushing her teeth. They finally resolved to let Claire do for herself as much as possible, so when they finally did have to take over a task, it would be the exception rather than the rule.

Claire's parents were wise to resist the pressure many parents feel to control or rein in their independent child. Because ENTPs are so proud, they really hate feeling helpless. They value their competence so highly that parents may need to hold themselves back from trying to do too much for these children. ENTPs who are allowed to try to do things for themselves not only learn how to do them properly, but they also get a strong message of approval and respect from their parents. And usually, children rise to meet the level of expectation their parents have for them. Insisting that you do things for them not only causes unnecessary battles, but also undermines their belief in your confidence in them.

Emotionally, ENTP preschoolers tend to get angry more often than they get their feelings hurt. They are very direct and bold children and can make their friends mad when they insist on doing things their way. Because most ENTPs have such good ideas and such confidence in the quality of those ideas, they can have trouble compromising or giving up their vision. IF a disagreement about which way the play ought to go ensues, they may choose to play alone, but more typically, they will try to convince or charm their friends into adopting their plan. When things go too far and a friend is hurt or crying, the ENTP may seem confused or unsure how to handle it.

A simple argument over whose turn it was to play with a toy provided a learning experience for Bryan's mom. ENTP Bryan and his play-group friend Jeffrey struggled over the toy drum. The boys' mothers intervened and insisted that since Bryan had the drum first, he got to play with it and Jeffrey would have it next. Jeffrey was upset by the decision and began to cry. His mother comforted him, but Bryan seemed not to notice. Bryan's mother explained to him that Jeffrey was crying because he was angry and suggested that Bryan go comfort him. Bryan looked at his mother and asked, 'Why? His mommy is helping him.' The incident was unsettling for Bryan's mother for several reasons. She was embarrassed by her son's apparent lack of sensitivity. And she was also surprised because she was used to seeing tremendous empathy from Bryan for a hurt or endangered animal, but saw he had very little concern for his crying friend.

Becoming gentle and nurturing is a learned skill for young ENTPs. Parents need to patiently and logically explain the reason behind another child's tears or feelings, helping their young ENTP to understand why the child feels as he does. As ENTPs begin to learn that feelings are the logical and natural effect of actions, they will better understand and even be able to predict what effect their behavior will have on others. Not understanding what they did to cause emotional outbursts makes them feel stupid and incompetent. With time, knowledge breeds understanding, which can eventually become genuine empathy.

Because most ENTPs are such brave explorers, they are just not very interested in rules or structure that seek to limit or restrict them. Many times they simply do not pay attention when rules are stated, or because they are so easily distracted, they may genuinely forget the rules. But most times, their insatiable curiosity combined with their driving need to understand the rationale behind the rule results in a constant testing of boundaries. Most parents of ENTPs admit that their child is often in trouble for pushing limits.

ENTPs are also not as motivated as children of other types to comply with orders simply because they are told to or in order to please their parents or other adults. Even as small children, they have the courage to stand up to adults and will challenge their parents whenever they see fit. Since young ENTPs actually enjoy and derive great energy from arguing, it is usually better for parents to decide on what their position is, state the reasons behind their limits or choices clearly and logically, and then stick to it. It's fine and even advisable to entertain a certain amount of debate, but the ENTP needs to know where the bottom line is. Making a lot of exceptions to the rule will only fan the flames of the child's natural desire to find alternatives. Save it for times when the child makes a really well thought out and convincing argument.

Since ENTPs have little or no naturally embedded sense of time or order, they may have trouble understanding your need to keep their rooms tidy or to get someplace on time. Their style is casual and relaxed, and they are more likely to view frantic, rushing parents as ridiculous rather than alarming or inspiring. As with so many of the conflicts of child rearing, we parents sometimes get ourselves locked into a certain mind-set and demand that the child adapt to our way. It usually helps to save the confrontations for the really big issues and let the little stuff go. After all, will it really spoil some vast, eternal plan if we are five minutes late to the dentist? Consider the cost our children pay for being rushed and pushed to meet the expectations of others.

Grey · Feb 27, 2010

School-Aged ENTPs
Age 5 to 10

The growing ENTP is a child with many interests and a great eagerness to try new experiences. She may continue to love art activities and begin to find where her special talents lie. These may be in traditional expressions like singing, dancing, acting, or painting, or in less typical but equally ingenious pursuits.

Chloe loved to build contraptions, specifically traps. She combined rubber bands, string, pieces of toys, and furniture to devise complicated and ingenious traps that worked through a series of actions and reactions. She loved involving her stuffed animals and was always eager to show her parents her inventions.

Whatever ENTPs are doing, they are more energized with an audience. They love to perform, sometimes right on the very edge of acceptability or safety. They are usually much more interested in impressing adults than children. In fact, some ENTPs claim they don't like babies, and some may even be too aggressive with children younger or smaller than themselves. Many ENTPs love sports and find that during their elementary school years, they want to play on every team possible. They usually love being involved at school, and because they are so often liked and respected by their peers, they may be chosen to serve in student government or other leadership positions. They are often described as charming and popular and seem to begin the social whirl of telephone calls, parties, and sleepovers either earlier or with greater frequency than children of other types their age. Their desire to grow up quickly shows in how they press for extended bedtimes and more freedom to go places; they may desire to stay home alone or even talk of boyfriends and girlfriends while still in elementary school.

Academically, ENTPs may do very well and view school as another opportunity to compete with themselves and their peers, or if they are not terribly motivated, they may demonstrate surprisingly little effort but still get good results. They are generally only willing to put serious effort into a project that they have a great deal on control in designing or in subjects where they alike and are inspired by the teacher. They like creative subjects or units best, often preferring those dealing with science and theoretical concepts. They love a classroom debate and may be willing to take a stand on issues they think are unfair.

In third grade, Marcus proposed he and his classmates strike against a teacher he thought was unfair. His argument was that the teacher had a policy for making special exceptions for smaller children and holding older children to stricter standards. Marcus found the practice ageist and persuaded his classmates to complain to the principal and refuse to follow the teacher's unfair rules.

ENTPs are full of creative and inventive ideas. One six-year-old had a fully thought out theory for how planes fly. Another suggested that, in an effort to make dinnertime more interesting, his family break up the routine by planning the whole dinner based on a different color each night! ENTPs are usually readily able to see the big picture in any issue or discussion. They are able to point out patterns within the complex dealings of family relationships and are often intrigued with complicated connections between people or things. They seem themselves as special and pride themselves on their individuality. They usually don't mind being seen as different, as long as that distinction is of their own making. They like to be singled out for their accomplishments and enjoy being the center of attention. Most ENTPs embody the statement one eight-year-old ENTP made on a big sign that hung on her door for several years. It read: 'I am my own person.'

ENTPs have an innate sense of enterprise that is usually evident from very early on. They like the whole idea of making deals and often love trading cards or other collectibles, which often proves an excellent outlet for their superior negotiating skills. They are motivated by earning money and the power they feel when they have money they can spend as they wish. They may figure out ways of making money within their families and neighborhoods until they are old enough to get an outside job. But they much prefer to be independent and create some kind of 'business' rather than be stuck with regular, repetitive chores. They rarely do anything in a step-by-step way, preferring to improvise, figure it out as they go, and leap around, doing whatever part of a task appeals to their interest at the moment.

Many elementary school ENTPs find they have a real knack for making people laugh; they are quick to size up situations and see the humorous patterns at work. Many ENTPs can be very clever and charming and may be able to tease other people without going so far as to offend them. They love to tell jokes, are often the class clown, and tend to have a sarcastic and irreverent sense of humor. They may like to surprise or even shock people, and usually have a sparkle in their eye and a flirtatious nature that is very appealing.

The Joys and Challenges of Raising School-Aged ENTPs

As most ENTPs get older and busier, it becomes increasingly difficult for them to establish and stick to priorities. They don't tend to have a highly developed sense of self-discipline, in part because they are so curious and eager to experience as much of life as they can. Add to that the fact that most ENTPs don't really grasp the concept of moderation until they are older and may have firsthand experience with the unpleasant effects of excess in their lives. Finally, most ENTPs just hate to say no to an interesting opportunity. As a result, they may commit themselves to far more projects, activities, and events than they can realistically participate in. They may disappoint their friends and families by not showing up or by dropping out when they realize they are overextended because they underestimated how much time an activity would take. And because ENTPs are not naturally tuned in to the needs of their bodies for sleep, rest, and nourishment, they can become overtired or sick from doing too much.

Parents of ENTPs may feel frustrated with their child's seeming failure to follow through on commitments. They may think that their ENTP is starting off poorly in life, lacking the value of responsibility. Accountability is a learned skill for ENTPs. It may help to encourage your ENTP to limit his or her activities or to establish a family limit for outside engagements so that there is enough time to get schoolwork done and still have unstructured time to play. Because most ENTPs generally dislike and avoid decision making, they may need help eliminating options along the way. In the end, it can be hard even for their parents to know where the line between involvement and over-involvement lies. But it is certainly not within the ability of the ENTP child to determine that. Intervention is often required but needs to be done after talking through the pros and cons of each combination of options and guiding the child toward a compromise.

As ENTPs become more articulate in elementary school, the quality and intensity of their arguments get stronger. They understand the power of words and can be quite eloquent in expressing themselves and their positions. But they can also be quite defiant, impatient of weaknesses in others (and themselves), and critical. While they value honesty and tend to be very direct, they also have little patience for telling it any other way than how it really is. If they are misunderstood, their first reaction is to suggest that the problem lies with the other person. Over time, they may learn to soften their message and gradually build up to unpleasant news.

During a telephone conversation with her best friend, Laurie, ENTP Becky was explaining her choice for a partner in an upcoming project. Laurie wanted Becky to choose her, but Becky thought she should choose another child, with whom she had worked on a past project. Her mother heard Becky say, 'Laurie, I don't really know how to tell you this, but I just think I need to choose Teresa because we work so well together.' A year before, Becky's mother says, she doesn't think Becky would have tried to be so gentle. Her mother was glad to see her daughter working toward developing the sensitivity that didn't come naturally.

Grey · Feb 27, 2010

Adolescent ENTPs
Age 11 to 16

Adolescent ENTPs are often as different from one another as they are from children of other types. Their strong individualistic streak is so well defined by their teenage years, they may be totally unpredictable and entirely unique. They usually like this characteristic and enjoy the effect their constant recreating of themselves has on the adults around them. They like to confound their parents and surprise their peers. Their natural creativity often finds expression in their choice of clothing or unusual hair styles.

One weekend when Skylar was fifteen, he and his friends decided to go to a Renaissance festival in town. His father was amazed when Skylar left for the downtown festival in full period costume, complete with tights. His father had come to expect the unexpected with Skylar, but he was both surprised and impressed that his son was so unconcerned about potential reactions or ridicule from other teenagers.

Clever, creative, and non-conventional are three words that most often fit ENTPs. They are usually very popular teenagers with a huge group of friends. ENTPs are often involved with a variety of activities, sports, and interests and seem to be always of the go. Many find an early and avid interest in politics – either on a national level or in understanding the politics of human relationships. While they are content to live in disorganized, even chaotic, physical surroundings, they have very clear and organized thinking, with their arguments especially on target and well delivered. Their natural tenacity and talent for finding the flaws in other people's arguments (especially their parents'!) finds a perfect outlet in their love of debate. They may surprise those around them with the level of passion they express when making their case. It may appear that they really do feel very strongly about an issue. But often, that passion is just skin deep, and they may be equally convincing arguing the other side of the same issue. They just love a good heated intellectual discussion, and their natural objectivity makes it easy for them to remain impartial, even amid the great emotional upheaval of others. They just don't take it personally. Once the argument is over, their easygoing good nature usually reappears instantly, and they may seem surprised that others are still upset.

In school, some ENTPs continue to demonstrate their excellent reasoning and learning skills. For others, academic performance may matter less.

Twelve-year-old Gary told his father that since there were no permanent academic records until high school, he'd wait until then to really start working and apply himself. During a school conference, Gary's teacher commented that she always had the feeling Gary was saving himself for something! True to his prediction, Gary maintained dean's list status for all but two semesters of his four years in high school.

Even late in high school, when grades really do matter and decisions will be affected by poor marks, many ENTPs seem unconcerned. They often have a remarkable ability to wait until the very last minute to start and finish projects or reports and still manage to get decent grades. It can be very frustrating to their parents, who see above-average results from so little effort and can only imagine how well their children would do if they put forward a real effort. But all ENTPs work by creative inspiration. Teenage ENTPs especially resist any outside measures of attempted control. They have great confidence in their ability to improvise or put forth just enough effort to still get by. External standards are not as important to them as internal ones. Nor will they be convinced by emotional appeals. Only logical consequences have any impact. Fortunately, because of their natural ability to look toward the future, many ENTPs see the headlight of the oncoming train in time to bring up their grades and get into college.

Other ENTPs suffer from a lack of involvement and seem to squander their considerable talents by not committing to anything. They seem unfocused and willing to drift. Their tendency to look to the future makes them so unconcerned with today that they have trouble getting serious about tomorrow. They seem to know that they could do anything they put their minds to, and knowing that somehow takes them off the hook of actually doing it ! They may feel smarter than or superior to their peers, teachers, and parents and have real difficulty mustering respect for them.

Usually, the higher the level of challenge, the better the chances that the ENTP will be interested in the pursuit. However, because ENTPs want to be the best at everything they do, they may also be unwilling to even try an activity if they can't be a star. They love the limelight and are often drawn to the theater or other performances on the stage or the playing field. They also have a risk-taking streak in them and may be attracted to dangerous activities or people. If they can get their need for excitement and risk satisfied with physical feats of daring like scuba diving, rock climbing, or performing on stage, they may not need to look for gratification in more dangerous places.

Many teenage ENTPs have active romantic lives. Socially precocious, they may press for later curfews and more freedom before their peers of other types. But sometimes ENTP teenage girls have difficulty in what in their younger years has always been an easy and popular social life. Like other strong Thinking girls and women, there can be real tension between their natural way of making decisions and expectations imposed on them from our very patriarchal society.

Fourteen-year-old Susanna had plenty of male friends but not a real boyfriend, as her girlfriends did. She began to wonder if there was something wrong with her. Her mother noticed that because she was so strong and independent, Susanna didn't possess many of the more stereotypically female behaviors that the boys seemed to like. She expressed her opinions, disagreed freely, and thought it was stupid to act weak and needy just to make a boy feel macho. While Susanna would not compromise herself, she nonetheless felt a lot of doubt. Her generally confident facade would occasionally crumble, and, privately, she expressed her confusion and insecurity. Her mother found it really helped Susanna to talk with other, older women of her type who understood her conflict and offered a model she could look forward to.

ENTPs can really worry and frustrate their parents with their casual and sometimes careless attitude. They frequently act as though any request is a major imposition and walk around with an attitude that says, 'Yeah, yeah, I'll get to it.' They tend to put things off until the very last minute, when the impending deadline gives them the energy to make something happen. They rarely are discouraged by roadblocks and can come up with terribly clever ways to get around obstacles.

The day before the deadline for submission of college applications had arrived, Connie still hadn't made up her mind which schools to apply to, but she had narrowed it down to eight. Her father was growing frantic with the time crunch so Connie suggested that she could apply to all eight. Her father said he was unwilling to pay eight application fees just because she couldn't make up her mind. Connie's next brainstorm was that in order to buy her some more time, her father could omit his signature on the application fee checks. That way, she would officially meet the deadline, but because the school would have to send the check back to be signed, she would have at least another week to make up her mind! Her father told Connie that while that might very well be a clever solution to her problem, it was not a responsible one, and she'd need to use her imagination more productively to find a way to meet her commitment and deadline.

Grey · Feb 27, 2010

The ENTP in a Crystal Ball

Real and lasting self-esteem for ENTPs comes from seeing themselves as the creative, competent, and resourceful people they are. By encouraging, supporting, and accepting their unique and sometimes quirky approaches to solving problems, parents of the ENTP communicate approval for divergent thinking and originality – both of which are central to the positive self-image of ENTPs. By allowing growing ENTPs to take reasonable risks, try unconventional things, and discover the outer limits of their world, parents encourage self-sufficiency in their children and the confidence to overcome obstacles. It may be necessary at times to ignore the disapproving looks and comments from a society that views these strong and outspoken children as outrageous and undisciplined. Standing firmly behind ENTPs in all their high energy and flamboyance communicates a lasting appreciation for the bright and fresh originals they are.

At their best, ENTPs are ingenious and capable problem solvers. They have enormous energy to change the world for the better, driven by an innate sense of fairness and an ability to see past the obvious to the novel. They can be charismatic leaders, inspiring others with their eloquence and their lightning-quick minds. They are funny, witty, and fun friends, and enterprising, ambitious workers who constantly seek new challenges and higher levels of knowledge. With a secure sense of self-worth, they can learn to focus their energy and avoid temptations that distract them from reaching their considerable goals. They can learn to temper some of their impulsive tendencies and become independent and successful innovators.

Recapping What Works with ENTPs

Provide a variety of creative play materials and toys.
Change things around a lot to keep them stimulated.
Expect a high energy level, and give them plenty of playmates and varied physical outlets for their energy.
Encourage their creative ideas; try their solutions whenever possible.
Say yes as often as you can; save no for when you absolutely must.
Be patient with their questions, and privately repeat and rephrase questions or statements they make that are tactless or inappropriate.
Offer logical answers and consequences.
Model empathy and sensitivity and explain why it is important to take the time to be nice and gentle with others.
Allow and encourage them to develop their own unique identity.
Rethink your own feelings about arguments and negotiations to find a way not only to tolerate, but to encourage and appreciate one of your child's greatest gifts – the ability to negotiate.
Encourage their decision making abilities by reassuring them that few choices are truly irrevocable, and in most cases, they can always change their minds later.
Encourage their entrepreneurial tendencies and talents by providing support, seed money (if necessary), suggestions, and advice when requested.
Anticipate a certain level of outrageous behavior, and create an atmosphere where it's safe to try out thoughts, expressions, ideas, and behavior to see what fits and what doesn't, all without fear of reprisal.
Demonstrate your appreciation of their creativity and ingenuity while providing a realistic sound board.

[Source: Nurture by Nature: Understand Your Child's Personality Type – And Become a Better Parent by Barbara Barron-Tieger and Paul D. Tieger]

JesusSuperStars · Feb 27, 2010

It's like watching me grow up all over again!

MNiS · Feb 27, 2010

Baseless Speculation: I think Mr and Mrs. Tieger are the parents of several ENTP children and wrote a book dedicated to gushing over them. :tongue:

Nearsification · Feb 28, 2010

Emailing this to my mom.:tongue:

yesiknowbut · Feb 28, 2010

Helpful: even to me as a mother with an ENTP daughter!

I don't understand why ENTPs are seen as problem children to be honest, but then it doesn't concern me either that my daughter is massively untidy and never brushes her hair. I have friends who would despair over this.

This lunchtime, she has been experimenting with the making of soup sandwiches. Provided the soup is thick enough, she thinks they work pretty well.

SWalker · Mar 1, 2010

I always love these kind of posts

Always interesting to see myself analyzed. Hope my kids are ENTP, I could nurture they're more creative side. Is there any info out there for a parent who is an ENTP when it comes to parenting styles?

Grey · Mar 1, 2010

You can always refer to the Personality Page's idea on how the personality types will parent, but that is a very small and general section they have. I do not know of any specific books myself, but I do know that there are books and resources dedicated to parenting rather than child focus out there. You just have to look.

Charlie Chaotic · Mar 3, 2010

My barbies were my favorite play things since I could act out those "dramatic scenes". Like one time when I decided my giant barbie was taking over the universe and my little superhero barbies had to destroy her. I think I got the idea from Sailor Moon.

I also remember a time where my barbie had committed first degree murder on her husband. She was in court when I asked my dad what exactly was first degree murder. He got scared, thinking I was demented or something and began to scream, "WHY DO YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT?! Well all you need to know is first degree will keep you in jail for life or get you killed!" He still freaks out a lot...

agokcen · Mar 3, 2010

I was never a fan of Barbies. I tended to dismember them. I always enacted such scenarios as those you mention in my head; I was never a big toy person, as my mind provided me with all the entertainment I needed - and it still does!

By the way...I was OBSESSED with Sailor Moon as a child!

danicx · Mar 5, 2010

Jesus Christ.

I can see all the places my parents went wrong, ha.

agokcen said:
I was never a fan of Barbies. I tended to dismember them. I always enacted such scenarios as those you mention in my head; I was never a big toy person, as my mind provided me with all the entertainment I needed - and it still does!

By the way...I was OBSESSED with Sailor Moon as a child!

I also dismembered Barbies! I cut their hair and drew on them until they were some kind of freak-monster. My parents hated this and always like to remind me how I ruined my super expensive rapunzel Barbie and made her into a biker chick. And I was also totally obsessed with Sailor Moon! Damn. I liked to be Sailor Mars when playing with friends, but always kind of needed to be Sailor Moon because she's the central one. This was a difficult issue.

agokcen · Mar 5, 2010

oneoutside said:
Jesus Christ.

I can see all the places my parents went wrong, ha.

I also dismembered Barbies! I cut their hair and drew on them until they were some kind of freak-monster. My parents hated this and always like to remind me how I ruined my super expensive rapunzel Barbie and made her into a biker chick. And I was also totally obsessed with Sailor Moon! Damn. I liked to be Sailor Mars when playing with friends, but always kind of needed to be Sailor Moon because she's the central one. This was a difficult issue.

One time, I tried to blow dry Skipper's (the teenage Barbie) hair, and her bangs got all shriveled and melty. Oh, the fun of destroying Barbies!

And I know what you mean with your Sailor Moon-based playing! My solution was to create my own, superior Sailor, in typical, one-upping ENTP fashion...

Lyoness · Mar 6, 2010

Ha, I loved Sailor Moon... but only for about a year, I grew bored with things pretty quickly as a kid (scratch that, I still do)
Sailor Moon always bothered me though, she was always too...weak? My favorite was that really tough girl, Sailor Jupiter. Yeah, she was cool.

agokcen · Mar 6, 2010

Lyoness said:
Ha, I loved Sailor Moon... but only for about a year, I grew bored with things pretty quickly as a kid (scratch that, I still do)
Sailor Moon always bothered me though, she was always too...weak? My favorite was that really tough girl, Sailor Jupiter. Yeah, she was cool.

Ahhh, I know! She was such a...crybaby. Yuck.

I liked Sailor Mercury at first because she was smart, but then she started to annoy me, too.

danicx · Mar 7, 2010

Lyoness said:
Ha, I loved Sailor Moon... but only for about a year, I grew bored with things pretty quickly as a kid (scratch that, I still do)
Sailor Moon always bothered me though, she was always too...weak? My favorite was that really tough girl, Sailor Jupiter. Yeah, she was cool.

I liked Sailor Mars because she was just so badass. At least, that's what I remember, it's possible that I just liked her red outfit and long hair. But she was totally badass.

Sailor Moon had like a dream outer-space alter-ego, didn't she? I can't remember, but that's the part I liked about her.

CJ99 · Mar 10, 2010

Very good article!

But I think you need to add more emphasis in the 11-16 part on the introvertedness of ENTPs. There far more introverted at that age than your article suggests. Personally from personal experience i thought ENTPs by that stage in life took there questioning and curiosity and aimed it more inwards towards themselves due to pressure of societies discomfort with them. And then after a while they regain their normal unbeatable self confidence!

Lyoness · Mar 12, 2010

I think you can't get too specific when dealing with a large group of people, we'll all be different, even if we do have similar thought processes. Though I know that for me, ages 11-16 certainly were filled with a good deal of self contemplation/evaluation. I questioned a good deal of things about myself, tried to understand more about my subconscious, etc. more so it seemed than my friends of other types. Though I think this is an experience most teens go through, a stage of self discovery, figuring out who they really are and where they fit in the greater scheme of things.

Oldlady · May 23, 2010

I watched sailor moon as well! It wasn't on TV, so I rented all the episodes from blockbuster. I had barbies, and I remember I had the teenage one with a skateboard, and I made her do all these crazy flips, and kelly wanted to come along but she couldn't because she was too young.

What kind of stuff did you write? I remember one script I wrote in fourth grade. It was for a hypothetical variety show. It was like, "We've had a lot of fun with these skits, but our town wasn't always like this. There was a time when we used to be obsessed with perfection!" and then it's like "Welcome to perfect town USA" and there's this snobby perfect girl and her friend and they go on this adventure with this idiot/ screw up and at the end the idiot/ screw up is in a bad situation and they're like, "We can't leave her here! I guess we're friends now!" and so the town gets over being perfect. I wonder what that means for my psyche, metaphorically...

I also wrote another one about an adventurer... I think he/she was very arrogant and stupid and had a niece/nephew or something. Someone was stupid/ a screw up... that's all I know.

I wasn't popular as the description claims, although my parents told me that when I was in pre-school I used to talk to the adults about how their children were doing. I was very much into ignoring social conventions. At my birthday one year I said we should all eat our cake face first. I did it, but nobody else did. I felt very foolish and ostracized, the butt of the joke.

It felt like I was moving forward with confidence, only to turn around and see that I was all alone.

The Development of ENTP Children

Grey

Grey

Grey

Grey

JesusSuperStars

MNiS

Nearsification

yesiknowbut

SWalker

Grey

Charlie Chaotic

agokcen

danicx

agokcen

Lyoness

agokcen

danicx

CJ99

Lyoness

Oldlady

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