5 Differences Between ESTPs and ISTPs

I published this article close to two years ago, but recently I’ve learned quite a bit more about the distinctions between these two types. We try to periodically go back and update our staple articles as we learn more, so, it’s time to do this one. I’m going to go ahead and launch right into it.

BEWARE OF BIAS

There is an introvert bias within the typology community. What do I mean by that? Well, extraverts tend to be described in too extreme of a way, partially because of the introvert’s perspective on them and partially because it is mistakenly assumed that all extraverts will be social experts, in addition to constantly needing and craving the presence of others. However, extroversion in the typology sense is different from social extraversion. (Extraverts can and do introspect) Ergo, the potential bias that exists here is the ESTP thinking that he/she is an ISTP, which is obviously not necessarily the fault of the ESTP, but more likely due to misinformation within the community. At this time, I’m unaware of situations where ISTPs mistake themselves as ESTPs. It’s not impossible, but probably not common.

FUNCTIONS:

ESTPs and ISTPs have the exact same functions, just in slightly different orders.
ESTP = Se-Ti-Fe-Ni
ISTP = Ti-Se-Ni-Fe

If you’ve narrowed yourself (or someone else) down to one of these two types, then you’re incredibly close to figuring out your type.

PERSONALITY DIFFERENCES:

1. Se impulsiveness/indulgence

ESTPs lead with Se, which means that will be their driving force. Here is where you need to throw away the action hero stereotypes, because those are not going to describe the average Se dominant. Extreme risk is not typically a factor in the average person’s daily life. Furthermore, no one (regardless of type) is going to be prone to taking an action that they believe will get them killed (unless suicidal, obviously). Ergo,  an ESTP will more likely see himself/herself as taking calculated risks. It’s the onlookers who are more likely to view an ESTP’s actions as impulsive or crazy, but once again, this will depend largely on the scenario.

Now, with that thought in mind, Se impulsiveness also outlets in the form of indulgence. In other words, an ESTP will want to indulge their Se. This means that they may struggle to look before they leap, or tell themselves ‘no’. Se doms will probably find it difficult to stand still and do nothing. They will more actively chase experiences, whether that be a new restaurant, new venue, new activity, or etc. Bear in mind, this can also outlet in the form of impulse spending.  Obviously, an older or more mature Se dom can learn to reign themselves in. However, a younger Se dom will probably struggle with acting on impulse too often. When you consider this type, you have to think about what is a more realistic sensory experience that the potential ESTP can obtain versus the stereotypical extreme examples. (For instance, skydiving is expensive.)

ISTPs, on the other hand, are not leading with Se. Ergo, while they will struggle with impulse to a degree, it won’t be as bad as the ESTP. The ISTP is likely to be more easily discouraged from indulging his/her Se when the potential outlet becomes less convenient. In other words, the chase for experiences will be less active and less constant. They may want a particular food item, but after discovering it’s not present in their current location, they may feel too “lazy” to go out and get it. Or perhaps, they get an idea for an activity that they want to do, but someone makes a negative comment towards the idea, resulting in them giving up on that desire a bit too readily. (Not saying this will always happen, but that’s the general idea.)

ISTPs will probably act much more impulsive under an extreme emotion, like anger. They’ll lash out suddenly when something strikes them the wrong way. As a whole however, their default will not be action, like the Se dom, but rather they’ll default to more of an analysis mode. That’s not to say that they’ll be smarter than an ESTP. It’s more akin to overthinking or a tendency toward caution. They may occasionally find themselves overthinking something to the point that it prevents them from acting in time or acting at all, since Ti dominance will tend to override auxiliary Se.

2. Se in motion

An ESTP is likely to struggle with stagnation, wanting to be more constantly on the move and gaining new experiences. You know that stereotype of the wandering loner, aimlessly traveling from place to place with no particular purpose in mind? That is more likely to be an ESTP than an ISTP. Se will just seek out new experiences and scenarios, not needing a goal beyond fulfillment of their Se desires. Essentially, their priority is to soak in information via their dominant perception function: Se.

ISTPs obviously can suffer from unrest and stagnation. However, since they are leading with a judging function and have higher Ni, they are more likely to establish clear cut goals earlier on in life. They will seek out new experiences, but to be in a long term and constant state of wandering with no real purpose will be a less likely scenario for them. If they appear to be doing so, they probably secretly have a goal or idea that they are working towards. Remember, Se is not running the show, but rather it is supporting their Ti judgements/decisions.

3. Ti/Fe General Emotion

ISTPs, being Ti dominants, will be prone to apathy. Sure, ISTPs may laugh, or express anger, or whatever, but they’ll probably default to an apathetic, nearly emotionless state. They may even be able to reach and maintain an emotionless state. ISTPs will definitely struggle to cling to certain emotions for a long period of time. For example, let’s say someone angers an ISTP. The ISTP will remain angry for a while, but eventually that anger will exhaust him, and he’ll let it go, especially if the person is no longer present in his immediate environment. Granted, if that person returns, the anger may return just as strong as it was before, but they probably won’t continually cling to it in the interim. That level of emotion would be exhausting, and as the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind. ISTPs will be prone to avoiding their emotions, and viewing them in a negative light.

ESTPs have tertiary Fe, which means they have a generally stronger use of their feeling function. They’re likely able to express emotion longer and more frequently than an ISTP. You also may see more emotion behind their actions at times. Now, this isn’t to say that ESTPs will be what one would deem ‘emotional’, but you’re more likely to get a peek behind the curtain with them, so to speak. ESTPs will be overall better at expressing empathy/sympathy, and if their Fe is healthy, they will feel a heightened need to do so when the situation calls for it. I’m not saying that they will view themselves as incredibly good at it (although they might), but they will have a heightened awareness of their need to act in a socially appropriate way, along with a desire to do so effectively. They will more than likely have a positive relationship with their Fe, and view it in a generally positive light.

4. Fe Placement Comparison

Low Fe is prone to insecurity, whether it to be tertiary Fe or inferior Fe. Both STPs will secretly desire some form of validation. However, inferior Fe will be more crippling for the ISTPs, while the ESTPs will be more adept at using tertiary Fe to their advantage. (Obviously, age can teach the ISTP, just like age can temper the ESTP.) Both STPs typically don’t like forcing themselves to fit into social structures, just like they don’t like rules that don’t make sense. They’re usually casual people, and frequently avoid socially rigid environments. Neither type will be comfortable expressing their emotions with others, and both will tend to rebel against rules that they disagree with or find irrelevant.

With all that said, inferior Fe manifests in a few different yet related ways:

1. Insecurity in social scenarios like fearing what people might think of the topic you chose, or what you’re wearing, or something equally trivial.
2. A secret desire to fit in or conform to a minor social standard all the while fearing an inability to do so.
3. A desire to not stand out and remain behind the scenes.
4. Obsessively worrying or second guessing something you just did or said because you think you saw a negative reaction to it.
5. Overthinking something you’re about to say or do and the effect it might have on the person who will be subjected to it.
6. Struggling to insert yourself into a social group or situation without a specific invitation.
7. Occasionally taking on an anti-group mentality, desiring to spite a certain social group or standard for the sake of proving a point
8. Secretly finding amusement in the emotional drama of others
9. An unawareness of the ISTP’s personal emotions, resulting in delayed processing.
10. An unawareness of how the ISTP feels about something specifically or of their own personal likes/desires.
11. A tendency to bottle up or suppress one’s personal emotions, resulting in bitterness or sudden and extreme explosions later.
12. Struggling to relay empathy or meaningful emotion (which does not mean being incapable of feeling it. An ISTP’s emotions can run very deep unbeknownst to others).

Tertiary Fe, however, while it can be insecure, will likely be utilized more effectively by the ESTP.

1. Tertiary Fe users tend to be better at gathering together groups of people.
2. They tend to be more comfortable inserting themselves into social scenarios, even though they may not view themselves as extraverted.
3. They tend to be more aware of what is socially appropriate, and less prone to overthinking social scenarios.
4. They may use Fe more for positive social manipulation: flattery, motivational speaking, convincing someone to do something, flirting, smooth talking.
5. Tertiary Fe users can be more prone to arguing, depending on how healthy the ESTP is overall. (This can be due to a need to rationalize a Ti matter or gain Fe validation.)
6. ESTPs may use their Fe mischievously (once again, depending on the health), because they may find amusement in stirring up trouble and watching people react to it.
7. While ESTPs tend to be better at handling other people’s emotions (compared to ISTPs), they may feel less proficient in picking up on the emotional signalling of others. This is due to Fe not being as much of an insecurity for them. Thus, they will spend less time looking out for the signals coming from others. ( IE: The ISTP will see the emotional reaction but will be uncertain of how or what to do, causing them to freeze. The ESTP is less concerned by these types of reactions, so they miss the reaction, but would be better equipped to handle it if they did happen to notice.)
8. An ESTP will be more aware of their own personal emotions and preferences, due to a better balance between their identity function (Ti) and their feeling function. They may still have slight delays in recognizing their feelings, but it will be fairly minimal and less of a stumbling block for them.
9. ESTPs are also likely to struggle less with empathizing. However, this may or may not mean that they feel adequate at it. Overall, they are more likely to view themselves as capable in this area.

5.  Ni for the STPs

Inferior Ni is partially to blame for the ESTPs impulsiveness because it goes right along with Se dominance. The ESTPs won’t readily consider the long term consequences of their actions, and will prefer to just act in the moment. Inferior Ni may make them fear the future, feel/act paranoid in regards to it, or generally avoid thinking about it. They struggle to produce goals, or make a long term plan for the future.It may also result in them not recognizing recurring patterns of behavior, causing them to just plow forward into the same situation over and over again. Obviously, this is detrimental. ESTPs may get gut feelings or hunches, although they may quickly dismiss them if there’s no supporting, concrete proof. With maturity, they can learn to trust these more. However, they may also mistake conscious observations for intuition, since their hyper awareness allows them to notice small details in people’s expressions, body language, behavior, and etc. which plays into why they’re usually very quick to react.

ISTPs with tertiary Ni should be able to use Ni to their advantage. Tertiary Ni users often feel like intuitives, especially as they reach early adulthood. While they may also fall into the trap of overindulging in the present, they should also have enough of an awareness of Ni to use it to navigate their environment. Perhaps they’ll subconsciously recognize something that is about to happen and duck out the situation before they get roped in. Perhaps they’ll occasionally, out of the blue, predict something that is about to happen based on internal, subconscious, pattern recognition. In general, they’ll probably be more aware of their gut and what it’s telling them to do, without being able to immediately trace it back to a concrete observation. They may not have enough confidence in their Ni observations to share them with others, but it may give them somewhat of a confidence in the future, and a glimpse of what might be to come. However, since the Ni isn’t high, they won’t be locked onto any particular outcome, but rather will allow their vision to easily adapt with new Se information. They also may use Ni to manipulate others, like orchestrating “elaborate” pranks.

In Conclusion…

When it comes to all of the weaknesses that I laid out in the article, bear in mind that weaknesses can be overcome. People can mature and learn to improve, so I’m not in anyway saying that you’re locked into the weaknesses of your type permanently. However, one should be able to look at their overall life long tendencies and struggles to figure out what fits them best. As to inferior Fe specifically, I posted an article on my experiences with inferior Fe some time ago: Inferior Fe from the Mind of an ISTP, and more recently I posted this: Positive Inferior Fe from the mind of an ISTP. Check that out either of those if you’re looking for more information. Feel free to shoot me an email or comment below with any questions. If you ask anything too in depth about inferior Fe, I will probably want to hold the convo over email. But anyways, I hope you found this helpful.