The “Provider / Supplying” Personality type, or the ESFJ personality type, describes a person who is an Extrovert (E), who perceives the world through Sensing (S), who relies on their Feelings (F) about the people and circumstances involved in a given situation as a basis for decision making, and who views the world from the vantage point of Judgement (J).
If you are an extrovert, you enjoy interacting with the outside world around you, as well as with the people in it. You thrive from this interaction, and very much prefer it to being alone with your thoughts. You like to use your five senses to identify what the facts of a given situation are, but you like to use your feelings about the people and the circumstances involved in a given situation as a guide for your decision making process. You view the outside world from the vantage point of your own structure of personal beliefs, ideals, and values.
The parenting style of a person with an ESFJ personality type is one filled with happiness and harmony. You are the kind of parent that the other parents think of as the personification of what an ideal parent should be like. You have a strong domestic streak and put a lot of effort into making sure your child has a clean and comfortable home to grow up in. You are the parent that creates order in your home, and your actions promote the traditional values that you believe are important. You are very involved with your child’s daily life. This means that you make sure he starts the day with a good breakfast, and that he has a warm coat to keep him warm on the way to school. It also means that you ask your child a lot of questions like: “How was your day at school?”, and that you listen intently to the answers he gives you. You truly want everyone in your family to get along well with each other. If they start to have trouble doing that, you jump in, and smooth things over. You enjoy being a part of the community, and are happy to connect with other people in order to assist with projects that will benefit everyone.
A child who grows up with an ESFJ parent feels that he comes from a happy family. He knows that he is loved and cherished, and he returns that love to his ESFJ parent and the other members of his family. This child knows, without a doubt, that his ESFJ parent will always be there to take good care of him, because that parent has been a constant in his life. He has many memories of happy times spent with his entire family. He learns the traditional values that his ESFJ parent’s actions have emphasized. He learns to enjoy being part of a group, and how to get along with the other members of that group.
A child who has the ESFJ personality will grow up and seek a career that allows him to care for other people, as well as to provide a service to the community he is a part of. He will feel most comfortable in a career that includes a sense of order when it comes to how things should be done, and will want to work with a group of people. An adult with an ESFJ personality will become a Psychologist or Counselor, or a Teacher at a Public School. He may also gravitate towards a career in Nursing, as a Social Worker, or even a Massage Therapist.