The Courageous Adventurer (ISFP)

“Scared is what you’re feeling. Brave is what you’re doing.”

Bravery in Its Many Guises

The definition of bravery is not as easy to nail down as one might imagine. As we’ll discover, Adventurers (ISFPs) can be particularly hard to define through that lens, and their courage and fears make them complex and, in some ways, fragile.

In this exploration of Adventurer personalities, we’re starting with some basic ideas, which you can find more fully discussed at the beginning of our “Courageous Advocate (INFJ)” article. Courage is the product of fear. Without fear to overcome, we don’t need courage. Bravery and fear are two sides of the same coin.

Nobody has a fixed amount of courage. Bravery is always in flux and situational. Like a muscle in the human body, we can bulk up our courage with proper exercise. Each act of bravery, theoretically, works the courage muscle and allows it to grow. Courage can also atrophy when we don’t occasionally push against some strenuous challenges.

To become braver, we must first be brave more often – which sounds obvious but has some potentially perplexing chicken-and-egg qualities. Which comes first?

The Adventurer Stereotype

Typically, we perceive Adventurer personality types as unconventional people who often turn traditional concepts on their head. We include the likes of Frida Kahlo and Michael Jackson in this group, neither of whom toed the line of tradition in their cultures. Both stepped out audaciously, almost defiantly. However, all that defiance seemed to carry with it a great deal of vulnerability and fear as well. Of course, Adventurers are not all artists and pop stars. Few of them likely are, but unconventional behavior doesn’t only belong to those with fame and a performance platform.

In our research, Adventurers are the least likely personality type to say they consider themselves brave. Adventurers may appear fearless to those who live more conventional lives, but to those audacious Adventurers, it could be simply another Tuesday. In other words, self-perception may not always be accurate or in line with how others view us. The possibility exists that many Adventurers are braver than they suppose.

Adventurers may experience a conflict between their sensitivity and their bolder impulses. Or perhaps this dynamic is more of a paradox than a conflict – both characteristics take up space simultaneously within the Adventurer. Could it be possible that the tension between the two attitudes is the ingredient that shapes their lives in such compelling ways?

The view that most of us have of Adventurer personalities may be somewhat romanticized. Who doesn’t love the idea of a creative bohemian wandering about expressing themselves exactly as they wish? Depending on your perspective, the practical implications of the bohemian lifestyle may or may not be attractive. Still, on a romantic level, the journey of a free-spirited life makes an appealing story.

The truth is, while some Adventurers wander further from the norm than others, none escape their human fears, worries, and problems entirely. We may put too much of a burden on the Adventurer personality type with images that are more the product of legend than reality.

Adventurers’ traits likely make them freer and more willing to attempt creative approaches, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that these personalities aren’t afraid of being abandoned or that they don’t fear the consequences of a risky move gone bad. Their sensitivity may even magnify these fears.

But the mention of magnified apprehension may make this a good place to remember that courage can only exist in the presence of fear.

Courage, Research, and Adventurers

The survey results from our research tend to highlight the more cautious aspects of Adventurers. They were the least likely of all Prospecting personality types to say they take risks without thinking about consequences, placing well below the average of all 16 types. While considering what might happen if a person takes a risk is probably a good quality to have, the degree to which this is true might also measure how much caution is involved in the decision. (That said, the research suggests that this result is likely more about being an Introvert than an Adventurer.)

Adventurers share the top spot in saying they prefer short-term risks with low rewards (64% agreeing, compared to an average of 47%) over long-term risks with high rewards (36% agreeing, compared to an average of 53%).

Many of Adventurers’ fears are linked directly or indirectly with social concerns. Like most Introverted personalities with the Feeling trait, these warm individuals are concerned with the quality of their relationships – those being rare and precious commodities to them. Adventurers are more likely to worry about whether the people in their lives will remain and whether the quality of their relationships will continue to be high.

Adventurers were also significantly above average in saying that the fear of failure is the biggest thing that stops them from acting (80% agreeing, compared to an average of 67%). It may be interesting to note that a majority of respondents, from all 16 personality types, indicated that they were hindered by the fear of failure, making it a common problem. Despite that perspective, the percentage of Adventurers agreeing easily exceeded most other types in this poll. Also, Adventurers are more likely than most to admit that they have fears that they know are irrational. So it’s reasonable to question whether at least some of their fear of failure lacks a realistic foundation.

Virtuosos (ISTPs) – tends to agree at a comparable rate.

Interested in measuring your self-confidence? Why not take our Confidence Test and find out more about your belief in your abilities?