How Talking to the MBTI Types Feels Like
ESTJ: You’re sitting in a train, staring out the window. The air in the cabin is cool and smells a bit like lavender. You pull your coat tighter around you, and it keeps you warm despite the chill. The landscape goes on for miles out the window, with the sunlight highlighting fields of flowers, framed by mountains far in the distance. Sunflowers close to the window blur together as the train speeds by. The friction between the wheels of the train and the rails is almost nonexistent, and it barely feels like you’re moving. You sit there for hours as you watch the landscape fly by.
ESTP: Car after car zip past you, scaring leaves into the air. Dark clouds cover the sun and provide no counter to the cold of the wind. Your legs are folded in front of you, decorated with water droplets from the rain that has been coming and going for the last hour. Neon signs of the stores across the street glow curiously at you. People pass you and pay you no mind. Your mind is clear.
ESFJ: The air smells like saltwater and warm pretzels, the latter smell wafting down from the boardwalk. Sunlight warms your shoulders and your back. Waves crash against your ankles, stirring up sand below your feet. The water is as clear as the air, and you can see your feet slowly sink into the ever-moving sand. Small white shells catch on your skin and the sand below, going nowhere.
ESFP: For a moment the trees flare passionately, briefly illuminated by the rose-colored firework bursting above. You lay on your back with the heavens above, hair and fingers intertwined with the blades of grass below. As more flares take to the sky, the night is filled with loud bangs echoing one right after the other. The ember sparks blaze and flicker out as though they’re sinking into an endless pool of ink. Your hands clutch the ground in the overwhelming amazement at the spectacle before you.
ENTJ: The sound of raindrops hitting your umbrella seems to echo, surrounding you with the noise. It blends in with the indescribable smell of rain, and the serenity of the battered sky. People on the streets impatiently hurry by you in an effort to stay as dry as possible. Your boots move you along with the crowd, ignoring the puddles and small rivers running on the roads and sidewalk.
ENTP: Sounds of the busy street below carry up to the rooftop where you stand, unmoving. Wind explores your hair and up your sleeves. You trace your fingers along the concrete barrier between you and the world. Buildings on every side of you tower over your frame, casting long shadows on the city below. Fire escapes and graffiti climb them like vines. Down below, people and cars weave in and out of each other, just trying to get where they’re going.
ENFJ: Perfectly trimmed orange trees socialize in rows stretching as far as the eye can see. The sounds of carefree children dancing in the orchard are intertwined with the persistent roar of rustling leaves. The sun smiles over the scene, causing the cool drink in your hand to condensate and drip over your now-chilly fingers. Your arms rest on the picnic table you’re seated at with a few other people, all of whom are smiling and untroubled.
ENFP: The car of the ferris wheel gently carries you as you stare over the side. Lights of the ride and the surrounding buildings shine proudly all around you, conversing with the stars gathered curiously above you. As you inhale the unchecked windy air you can almost feel yourself waking up and your mind clearing. You lean over the rail and see people wandering below you, fish in a sea of smoky darkness and city lights.
ISTJ: The bark digs unevenly into your back and your legs as you sit in the uppermost branches of the tree. The sky is within your grasp. Leaves quiver as wind brushes past them, enticing a few to explore the heavens with it. Your eyes wander across the landscape at the near-identical trees all gathered together just for you. The scent of pine and fresh air helps you clear your head and forget about time.
ISTP: The screeches of the subway car are barely audible over the music blasting from your earbuds. Your body sways as the car slows to a stop, opening its doors to the station. Your hand tightens on the cold metal bar keeping you standing. You absentmindedly watch the people moving in and out of the doors. They’re the only dynamic thing about the car, which has had the same hard seats and crackling speakers for as long as you could remember. You brace yourself as the car closes its doors and rumbles away from the station, taking you and the others for the ride.
ISFJ: You absentmindedly stir your drink in front of you with your straw, and listen to the ice move and clink against the glass. The bell by the front door of the cafe jingles as people walk in and out as they please, bringing the heat of the summer day with them. The sun shining on your shoulders through the window is the only thing warmer than the scent of pastries wafting over to you from the display.
ISFP: The sea happily rocks the boat back and forth, eager to make you smile. You squeal with glee as water droplets fly up to meet you. The bright pattern on the sail stands proudly, supported by the wind. Light dances across the waves and onto the glossy white hull beneath you. You can hear the soft squeaks of dolphins starboard, curious and energetic. Boredom is as absent here as loneliness is.
INTJ: Lights glow warmly from inside the building across the street, illuminating the snowflakes lazily drifting to the ground. You pull your legs to your chest, covering them in blanket. You’re leaning close enough to the window that your face can feel the chill seeping through the glass. Familiar music plays from a speaker on the desk behind you, and you can sing all of the words. A mug of hot chocolate sits on the table beside you, the steam making patterns in the air before disappearing into nothingness.
INTP: The consistent sound of raindrops pelting the roof of the greenhouse echoes around the room. They seem to come from nowhere, materializing out of the inky black sky. An abundance of plants and flowers sit scattered around on tables and a few are suspended from the ceiling, swaying with the rainfall. You sit cross-legged on one of the tables, careful not to disturb any of the plants. You absentmindedly play with a leaf that had fallen on the ground, lost in thought.
INFJ: You dip your fingers into the cool, clear water beneath you. Across the lake, the sun is slowly approaching the horizon, causing the sky to twist into shades of orange, pink, and purple. Water laps at the peeling dock you’re resting on, the only source of sound for miles. The dock rocks up and down with it. Boats pace in the distance, admiring the sunset with you. You’re glad for your sweater, as warm to the touch as the sun is to the eye. As the sun inches closer, you look up expectantly; stars are coming.
INFP: The most obvious thing about the night is the silence. It’s as if you’re the only human for miles. Lightning bugs glow and dim, bringing warm patches of light to the rough curves of the tree’s roots and trunk. Its limbs, heavy with leaves, reach to the sky, cradling the constellations above. Blades of grass sway with the wind. The occasional leaf catches your eye for a second as it sails past, into the night. You feel as light as air as you exist here, far away from your problems.
