Are you an Adventurer (ISFP) personality type who wants their dates to be more fun? (Of course you do!) Maybe you’re seeking excitement as a single person or ways to refresh your recreation with an existing partner. (Or maybe you’re looking for ways to please an Adventurer in your life.) It helps to understand the mechanics of your personality traits – and the statistical inclinations of your personality type. Here, we’ll take a look at some of the responses in our ongoing “Ideal Date” survey to help you think about how to make your dates sparkle.
Variety Welcome!
About half of Adventurers surveyed say they would enjoy two activities on a date, which is the most common response from any personality type. But almost a third of Adventurers say they’d enjoy three or more activities, which is high for Introverts (about 17% average). That information makes us think that while personal preference rules (that’s a universal caveat to all of this), Adventurers like you – or anyone dating someone with this personality type – should consider a date filled with a variety of activities.
Adventurers appreciate novelty, and frankly, their attention and enthusiasm often wander when something catches their eye. (You know that if you are one.) As an Adventurer, leaning into that tendency can make your dates more fun by keeping your energy up and your mind stimulated. For you, new fun is great fun. But should trying a lot of activities on a date be a spontaneous or planned thing?
Surprises and Novelty
Well, a little more than half of Adventurers (55%) say their ideal date includes a surprise activity, location, or event. That’s about ten points higher than average for Introverts. But, as you know, there’s a big difference between following your own inspiration in the moment and being surprised by someone else. If you have a lot of confidence and trust in the person you’re dating, then you might want to ask for more surprises on your dates. Otherwise, you can consider being more vocal about your sudden whims in the moment, and let your partner be the one who’s surprised. Or perhaps try a bit of both.
However you approach surprises, it’s clear that trying new things is likely an important part of your dating fun. About two-thirds of Adventurers say their ideal date includes something that they’ve never done before, and that’s substantially higher agreement than the Introvert average (about 48%). So, whether or not you’re the one who plans novel activities, we suggest that you try to make them a consistent theme on your dates, even if they’re not always the central theme. You may not find it easy to come up with a steady stream of truly novel dates, but you can add novel elements or changes to regular activities.
Solitude, Sup, and Thrift
The majority of all personality types agree on certain ideal date characteristics, like being alone together, sharing a meal, and inexpensiveness. Why mention that, if it’s so universal? Well, because you or your date may not know that it’s so statistically universal. Trying to figure out what the other person wants or a compromise between what each person wants can be a stressful part of dating. We humbly suggest that for Adventurers, keeping the above stats in mind – and discussing them with your date – can help ease that tension.
Sure, there are moments when extravagance is welcome or appropriate, but wouldn’t it feel nice to relax together into basic fundamentals of fulfillment? Focusing on each other helps build or renew love, eating is an essential and pleasurable part of life, and resource conservation is a wise, core human drive. Of course, that doesn’t mean that the ideal Adventurer date is a drive-through dinner, even though it caters to these concepts. Rather, these basic points can be infused into various date activities as a kind of foundation to support enjoyment.
Spending time alone can be done in public, and a satisfying meal break can be worked into almost any other plan or become a novel adventure in itself, by trying unfamiliar cuisine or cooking new recipes together, for example. And as far as minimizing expenses, dating itself tends to require a certain amount of funds, because going out is rarely free. So thrift can be more about maximizing what you get for what you spend, rather than not spending much money. When the goal is a joyful shared experience, too many limits or cost concerns can be an off-putting distraction. Which brings us to…
Material Matters
Who pays for an Adventurer’s ideal date? Well, about half of those surveyed say it’s good to split the bill, about 18% prefer to be treated, and about 15% want to pay. (The remaining “N/A” respondents may prefer free date activities.) So for your personality, sharing costs might be the best default option, whether that means splitting bills or just alternating who pays. In the real world, dates should probably include some consideration of each other’s financial situation and preferences. (Author’s note: The earlier in a relationship you settle on mutually comfortable spending habits, the better!)
If you and your date want to shake things up with a little risk and excitement, consider these ideas for deciding who pays for a date (maybe not all the time or on a first date, though!). One option might be a quick game of rock paper scissors, where the winner gets to treat their partner as a way of making generosity the victory. Or try credit card roulette, where your server blindly picks one of your credit cards from a hat or under a napkin. Leaving who pays up to chance can relieve a common point of date-night stress (and random results may average out over many dates).
But what about gifts? Everyone likes gifts, right? Perhaps in some contexts, but when it comes to their ideal date, about 62% of Adventurers say it doesn’t include a gift at all. A few say they’d like to give a gift (about 15%) or exchange a gift (about 18%), but very few (less than 5%) say they’d like to receive one on their ideal date. Perhaps it’s a complication (and additional expense) best left for special occasions?
Your Ideal Date
Now that we’ve checked in with the statistical side of the ideal Adventurer date, let’s think about the personality mechanics involved. As an Adventurer, you have certain limits associated with your Introversion, especially when it comes to socializing or entering dynamic situations that demand a lot of energy. Yet within those limits, your personality type is among the most adventuresome (hence the name!), and a date is a context in which you’re probably motivated to step outside of your boundaries for the sake of love, excitement, and shared connection.
So with that in mind, we suggest that you embrace your inspirations on a date, even if they’re outside of your normal habits or experiences. Obviously, you’ll also want to consider your partner’s personality, needs, and preferences, but wherever you can follow your own volition, feel free to do so. For you, dating is not necessarily a good time to practice restraint or mute your whims, although you certainly should avoid unreasonable risks and take care to be safe and healthy. But otherwise, be as adventurous as you can.
If you’re dating someone new, it’s important that they see and accept your spontaneous side and even your impulsive inconsistencies. If you want a happy relationship, you need to be comfortable being yourself, and that means being able to express all aspects of your personality. You’re not someone who’s likely to enjoy a sedate routine, as you usually need some degree of novel engagement to feel truly alive. If your date can’t handle – and enjoy – being with an Adventurer personality, you should know.
And if you’re going out on dates with a long-term partner, it’s likely that you two have already established various life routines, probably out of necessity as much as preference. In that case, the role of dates can be to provide a counterpoint to that pattern – a dose of change and novelty that helps you be personally happy and keeps your relationship fresh. Dating as a committed couple is a chance for you to tap into your uninhibited self, because with a loving, trusting partner, you may be able to walk even farther on the wild side with less risk than when you’re dating people you don’t know well.
Conclusion: Have It Your Way
As an Adventurer personality type, you need to feel like you can explore romance and fun date activities on your terms with few limits. That doesn’t always mean being in control or doing something extreme, but it does mean feeling free and excited to see what happens next. If you’re lucky, you’re paired with someone who understands that about you and is willing to help make it happen. (If that’s not the case, have them read this article as well as the description of the Adventurer personality type.)
But you can also take steps to create an ideal date, including the little personal interests and delights that are far too unique for our research to capture. It’s never too early (or too late) to start communicating your dating preferences to a partner. That may mean subtle hints when first getting to know someone or frank conversations later on when communication is open and flowing. Or you can just be bold and up front and see what that gets you! You are an Adventurer after all, aren’t you? Hey, we’d love to hear what your ideal date is like, especially if it already happened. Let us know in the comments below!