Have you ever wondered why some people love some colors while others hate those and prefer a different set of colors? The reason behind this variation of colors, just like emotions, varies as per the perceptions of various personalities. It will be interesting to know about color personality types and see how they impact the feelings and emotions of individuals.
People use colors as tools. They help to gain better knowledge of themselves and their peers. There are meanings attached to each of them. For instance, red is a symbol of love. It can also be a sign of anger. Similarly, green associates itself with nature and can even denote growth, stability, and balance.
In the following article, we will have a complete overview of the color ideally suited for each personality type. It will also talk about the impact of developing various perspectives on life.
Color Personality Types
We are all aware of different kinds of feelings that individuals possess about colors while leading their lives. These feelings or sentiments arise out of the earlier experiences they have had in their life. They have had their maximum impact during the years of growing up. Those years have continued to affect people’s lives in some way or the other.
Even if people do not remember all those events and experiences, they lie within their subconscious minds. Although colors can evoke subjective emotions and feelings, they can also have universal meanings and interpretations.
Here, we must specify the contribution of Carl Jung toward representing each personality with color. He has stated that Blue and Green are introverted thinkers and feelers, while Red and Yellow are extroverted thinkers and feelers.
When we talk of personality types, on the one hand, there are 16 different types of personalities under Myers-Briggs. On the other hand, there are nine personalities under Enneagram Personality Types. We will see how colors relate to those personality types under each broad category.
Apart from these, we will also touch upon a few other aspects of color personality. If you wish to know the exact color that fits your personality type, take one of the most popular color personality tests, the True Colors Personality Test. Don Lowry developed this test in 1978 using four primary colors, orange, blue, gold, and green.
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Myers-Briggs 16 Personality Types and Their Associated Colors
The model of 16-Personality is a helpful tool for knowing and categorizing personality archetypes. It is developed based on the following factors: Introversion-Extroversion, Sensing/Intuition, Thinking/Feeling, and Judging/Perceiving. Then the individuals come under categories in a specific type based on which of the four traits they tend to practice.
Let us now discuss the 16 personality types and the colors associated with each of them –
1. INFP – White
All those who are INFPs, possess introverted, intuitive, feeling, and perceiving traits. The white color can perfectly capture the compassionate and elegant nature of a person with this personality type. People with INFP personalities have purity and innocence that help them develop an in-depth understanding of the world. It perfectly reflects itself through this white color. White also emphasizes peace, which allows them to express their creativity.
The white color is also representative of fresh beginnings. It is ideal for INFPs as they always remain open to exploring new perspectives and possibilities that life has to offer. The white color even reminds them to keep moving forward and exploring the promise they hold within themselves. All in all, white is representative of wisdom, creativity, and open-mindedness.
2. ENFP – Orange
ENFPs are extroverted people with intuitive, feeling, and perceiving traits within their personalities. They are full of positive energy. Hence, the vibrant orange color can capture their spirit and enthusiasm for life. It depicts their urge to explore the world around them. The optimism and energy that exist within an ENFP remain unmatched. Hence, orange is the most suitable color for these individuals.
Orange also happens to be a symbol of originality and creativity. These two traits can perfectly embody an ENFP. They always look forward to new ways to express their opinions and are never afraid to take risks. One can also associate the orange with an ENFP because they are fascinated with adventurism and exploration. This youthful color will portray their happiness in life.
3. INFJ – Silver
People with INFJ personality types are intuitive and creative. They have a deeper understanding of everything that happens around them. The silver color perfectly gets hold of their mysterious and complex personality. INFJs happen to be the wisest among all Myers-Briggs personalities. They carry deeper insight into the current condition of humanity.
Silver reflects the calm and reflective nature of an INFJ. They can put their thinking cap on and introspect. Hence, they can become excellent problem solvers. The color would emphasize this strength and help INFJs elegantly express their informative ideas. It will remind them about taking time out to reflect and stay in touch with their personal life.
4. ENFJ – Gold
ENFJ personality type people are compassionate and caring in nature. They always intend to help others in all possible manners. It is where the golden color manages to encapsulate their warmth. It also showcases their intention to offer love and support to those around them.
Simultaneously, they also maintain their elegance and class. These people will find immense comfort in this color of gold. It is because the color reminds them of the importance of developing credible relationships.
Gold is also a symbol of wealth, success, and prosperity. ENFJs yearn for all these things in their life. It refers to their drive and ambition. They have their urge to succeed and make a positive impact on this world.
5. INTP – Blue
There cannot be any color other than blue to depict the personality of an INTP. It reflects their analytical, abstract, and independent nature. The color also becomes a symbol of creativity, knowledge, and insight. These qualities are essential to the building of an INTP personality type. They deal in highly creative thinking and provide innovative solutions.
Blue is the symbol of their introverted nature. It encourages them to take time for themselves to process and reflect on the happenings around them. Blue color helps to calm things down and provides focus and clarity in the mind of an INTP.
6. ENTP – Purple
This extroverted personality type individual is a natural explorer who loves to undertake innovative approaches in their life. They always look for new avenues to push limits and challenge traditions. Purple is the color to represent the adventurous nature of an ENTP. It is a symbol of imagination, innovation, and ambition.
They love exploring new ideas and offer unique solutions and several connotations connected with the purple color. This color also represents their need to stay ahead of others and experience the thrill of taking risks in life to achieve success.
7. INTJ – Navy
The Navy color has elegance and sophistication that fits with the INTJ personality. It can capture their knowledge and intelligence while continuing to be elegant. INTJs are introverts. They love thinking independently.
They are always looking for new ways to seek improvement in their lives. The Navy reflects its intention. It is because this color has links with maintaining proper structure, order, and control.
This color is also a symbol of their inner world. INTJs must spend time with themselves to process their thoughts and explore uncharted aspects of their minds. The Navy color offers a calming influence on the personality of an INTJ. It helps to deal with introspection and can encourage these individuals to follow their instincts.
8. ENTJ – Black
Do you look at the black color and wonder with which personality you can develop a connection? Then, no look further than an ENTJ. An individual with this personality type is an extrovert with intuitive, thinking, and judging characteristics. Black refers to a determined approach. It also talks of the ambition they exhibit for reaching goals while displaying a sense of power and authority.
Black color has its association with confidence, strength, and leadership. These are the qualities that ENTJs have in abundance. They are born leaders who always find ways to assert themselves and take complete charge of situations.
9. ISFJ – Coral
Coral is the color that fits perfectly with the ISFJ personality type. It signifies their warmth, kindness, loyalty, and dependability. These qualities form an essential part of ISFJ. Their focus lies on people. Hence, they often put others’ needs ahead of their own. Coral can perfectly capture this spirit. It contains nurturing properties, which make an ISFJ supportive and compassionate.
This color also reflects their requirement for being stable and secure. ISFJs are most comfortable when they can experience proper order and maintain structure. Coral can provide just that. It has a calming influence on a person with this personality type.
10. ESFJ – Pink
When we talk of an ESFJ, we refer to a person with extroverted, sensing, feeling, and judging traits in their personality. On the other hand, Pink is a color of friendship and love. It reflects their desire to get in touch with others. ESFJs always give priority to relationships over anything else. They love to make people happy. These people also flourish in social environments.
This color also symbolizes their requirement to attain balance and harmony in life. An ESFJ focuses on maintaining peace and often tries to find a way through which they can make others happy. Pink even embodies warmth and compassion inside it, the two personality traits that naturally belong to an ESFJ.
11. ISTJ – Gray
If a person is an ISTJ, then Gray would be the perfect color to depict their personality type. It can reflect their disciplined and practical nature while symbolizing reliability and stability. These are the qualities that ISTJs carry in abundance.
They are highly organized. It makes them feel great when they can work with high levels of detail orientation. ISTJs rely on logic and a proper structure for making decisions.
Gray captures this spirit as the color links with the maintenance of order. Thereby, it allows them to accept their structure and discipline. The color is also reflective of their need for safety and security. ISTJs always wish to maintain a specific level of steadiness while leading their lives. They always prefer following those routines that give them stability.
12. ESTJ – Khaki
People know ESTJs for being analytical and logical in their approach toward life. Khaki is the perfect color to reflect this personality type that thrives from fulfilling a mission. It symbolizes reliability, practicality, and the ability to organize.
They form essential parts of this extroverted, sensing, thinking, and judging personality type. These individuals perform well in systematic environments. These people must remain fully aware of their guidelines and expectations.
The earthy color denotes an ESTJ’s down-to-earth and logical nature. It also reflects dedication and loyalty toward their goals. Khaki even symbolizes hard work, strength, and stability. All these qualities are essential for the success of an ESTJ. It reminds them about the importance of keeping focus.
13. ISFP – Green
When the color is green, it can be associated with an ISFP personality type individual. It encompasses their link with nature and the surrounding environment. Hence, it gives them a sense of freedom for getting in touch with the environment. This color reflects their lackadaisical approach. It often reminds them about taking things easy and enjoying life’s simple pleasures.
The green color becomes a symbol of growth and resumption. It encourages ISFPs to take risks and explore the details that this world carries within them. Green also denotes that their nature is spontaneous and creative. ISFP personality types are full of energy and curiosity. Thus, they make it convenient for them to adopt new things and offer fresh ideas.
14. ESFP – Yellow
ESFP personality types are individuals carrying lots of warmth within themselves. They often make any environment lively with their energy. Hence, there is no better choice than yellow to depict their energy and enthusiasm. It also signifies their optimistic approach toward life with the strong desire for having lots of enjoyment and dealing in adventurous activities.
Yellow offers encouragement to have confidence in their decisions. They greet life with positivity. This tone of color even embodies their spontaneity, creativity, and love for socializing.
ESFPs love being with people. They enjoy taking an active part in exploring new experiences. The enthusiasm they show toward enjoying their life remains unmatched. It is where yellow also helps to depict their exuberant nature.
15. ISTP – Turquoise
The turquoise color is an ideal match for an ISTP personality type individual. It points toward their willingness to explore. Turquoise symbolizes open-mindedness and independence. They remain curious while undertaking all their pursuits. This vibrant color tone also refers to the practical nature of an ISTP. It reminds them to stay grounded in all their decisions. Simultaneously, it allows them to explore untouched territory and take risks.
It is a color that provides balance. Thus, it reflects ISTP’s need to attain change and stability. They can look into a situation logically and objectively before coming to conclusions. These people know how to act swiftly and explore the unknown facets of life. The Turquoise color reminds them about this balance and allows them to stay true to their values.
16. ESTP – Red
The red color perfectly embodies the nature that an ESTP carries within themselves. It refers to courage, confidence, and ambition. These are the qualities that individuals with this personality type have within themselves. We all know that red is a powerful and passionate color that reflects the spirit and resolve of an ESTP.
They will never back out from a challenge but face the same and come out of it with flying colors. Red is also a sign of courage and perseverance that these individuals always carry within themselves. They are leaders in the true sense of the term.
Four Colors of Personality Traits and Project Management
When you are into project management, as a manager, you must have good communication skills. It is necessary for passing along your input and suggestions to others. It will help you to achieve the desired results.
Hence, understanding the psychology behind various personality traits can help to coordinate people, tasks, and projects. There have been numerous analyses, research papers, and books on the characteristics of different characters. Among these, the book ‘Surrounded by Idiots’ by Thomas Erikson is worth reading.
In this book, Erikson divides people into four separate groups:
- Red
- Yellow
- Green
- Blue
Four Color Personality Types
Erikson describes four color personality types as follows –
1. Red Personality – Leader
Erikson states that red ones are the rarest of the lot in the book. Another aspect is that they are the easiest to locate in public.
Individuals having ‘red’ personalities are the ones who:
- Loves dominating across fields and conversations.
- Always possess something interesting to share with others.
- Do not hesitate to interrupt someone in the middle of a sentence.
2. Yellow Personality – Fun-Loving Person of the Group
Thomas Erikson states that a group requires at least one yellow person to create an enjoyable atmosphere. It also helps in enhancing creativity.
A yellow person is one who:
- Likes adventure and loves to make any situation a fun-loving one.
- No one faces issues with him. Everyone enjoys having him on their team.
- Does not appreciate being under rules and regulations.
3. Green Personality – The Supporter
Whether anyone is right or wrong, if you have a green-colored personality type individual by your side, they will always offer their support. It is especially the case if you have impressed a green person as they are those who:
- Possesses maximum stability and calmness among all other colors.
- Likes to stay in the background.
- Will offer their input only if one requires or asks for it.
4. Blue Personality – Order and System
The blue color goes with those individuals who want everything to happen perfectly and systematically. They truly appreciate it if they –
- Get a whole lot of details to work with while undertaking their responsibilities.
- Do not have to work on those assignments requiring spontaneity.
- Can have time for processing information.
Impact of Color Combinations on Personality Traits
Let us briefly check out the different color combinations that have their say on the personality traits of individuals –
1. Blue and Orange
- When we depict personality types through these colors, they focus on giving.
- Blues focus on checking out the finer details at work.
- Oranges pay attention to individuals. They anticipate their needs and make them feel at ease.
2. Purple and Crimson
- Purple showcases a person’s creative side and ability to think out of the box.
- Crimson portrays an individual’s ambitious nature to reach the finish line.
3. Crimson and Blue
- This color combination refers to hard-working and committed individuals.
- They happen to be the most effective color combination.
4. Blue and Purple
- Personalities with these colors find meaning and beauty in distinctly different manners.
- While combining their strengths, these two colors can develop functional beauty.
5. Crimson and Orange
- Orange and crimson lie at two extreme ends of the extrovert-introvert spectrum.
- These individuals can have fun while hanging out if they know of the above aspect.
6. Green and Crimson
- An individual with a crimson-colored personality has a go-getter attitude toward life.
- The green-colored personality type individual likes to chill out.
- These two personalities can often get irritated with one another.
7. Purple and Green
- People with personalities of these colors can gel with one another quite well.
- Accepting one another’s attitudes as genuine can make for teams that avoid conflict.
8. Green and Gray
- A green-colored personality type individual sees a lot of strength in stability.
- A gray-colored person finds strength in pushing through hurdles to form a real relationship.
9. Orange and Green
- Personalities with these color types love being in their comfort zones.
- They love taking time to fulfill their tasks.
10. Gray and Crimson
- Gray and crimson-colored personality types boldly carry out their interactions in social circles.
- Still, the emotional impulse driving their courage is different.
11. Purple and Orange
- Purple and orange-colored personalities communicate well with one another.
- While purple types are expressive, oranges are great listeners.
12. Green and Blue
- The stress levels of blue and green-colored personalities are at their lowest.
- Green adopts a modest attitude, while Blue focuses on nurturing the details.
13. Gray and Purple
- These two share their personality traits.
- They even share their interests and take inspiration from one another.
14. Orange and Gray
- Personalities with these types of colors focus on improving relationships.
- Orange places itself in vulnerable ways and can hurt the sentiments of Gray if it uses its chance to crack a joke.
15. Blue and Gray
- Truthfulness is a quality for individuals having these color personality types.
- Understanding of the same is different from one another.
Enneagram Personality Types and Their Associated Colors
There is an Enneagram model of personality typology as well. It is an old proposition that helps us to understand the primary nature of human psychological processes. This model comprises nine personality types that build themselves based on some motivations and values.
Let us see the colors which suit each enneagram personality type –
- Type 1: The Perfectionist – White/Silver
- Type 2: The Helper – Light Violet
- Type 3: The Status-Seeker – Royal Purple
- Type 4: The Originality-Seeker – Blue
- Type 5: The Knowledge-Seeker – Green
- Type 6: The Security-Seeker – Yellow/Gold
- Type 7: The Stimulation-Seeker – Orange
- Type 8: The Power-Seeker – Red
- Type 9: The Peace-Seeker – Pink
Final Words
We have discussed how each color is critical in influencing the activities and lives of everyone with different personalities. The four colors, red, yellow, green, and blue, have traits of leading, spreading happiness, offering support through thick and thin, and following proper order and system.
Apart from these, we have seen how color is attached to Myers-Briggs’ 16 personality types. Similarly, we have also mentioned the colors ideally suited for the nine types belonging to the Enneagram personalities. We have also seen how combinations of different-colored personalities affect one another.