The best ESFJ careers, money making side hustles, and meaningful hobbies are below. Most sites and blogs have a boring list of careers that could probably fit any type. 

Not here. 

I’ve gone ahead and personalized your type for the best careers that fit. 

As an ESFJ you are probably popular among your friends, family, and community. You are the person people easily connect with on a deeper level, and you are often found organizing get-togethers, planning parties, or otherwise doing your best to bring as much happiness as possible to as many people as you can.   

ESFJ Intro

I want to share a brief overview of the ESFJ type, but feel free to skip down to the best list of ESFJ careers, side hustles and hobbies this side of the interwebs. Otherwise, keep reading for a quick run down of what makes the ESFJ one of the best of the 16 personalities. 

ESFJ stands for Extraverted, Sensing, Feeling, and Judging. 

The dominant function of an ESFJ is their Extraverted Feeling (Fe). This outward facing function boils down to trusting the gut instinct about people and situations involving others. 

The secondary or auxiliary function of an ESFJ is their introverted Sensing (Si). Secondary to the Fe this process runs in the background and catalogues everything learned in a neat and orderly way. 

For a more in depth look at the ESFJ cognitive stack and how they work, check out this page.

In terms of career paths and work, the ESFJ does best in some type of leading role in a practical environment. ESFJs love working toward tangible results in a structured environment full of people.

ESFJ Intro

In general ESFJs:

  • Make great leaders and managers. 
  • Thrive in the spotlight and do well under pressure. 
  • Make up 12% of the population.
  • Tend to be conflict averse and thus spend a bulk of their time establishing social order. 
  • Make loyal and devoted coworkers in the workplace.
  • Are great at hosting in whatever capacity.
  • Tend to enjoy gossip and can be judgmental. 
  • Have no problem with small talk. They can easily slide into conversations at whatever point. (A constant bewilderment to those of us with the I and N letters like myself).
  • Love engaging with others in a fun and charming way. 
  • Enjoy fashion and are one of the most well-dressed types.
  • Can be practical to a fault, but always want to talk about how to take action and get to the next step in the process. 
  • Notice when things are out of harmony and alignment and do their best to bring the situation back to stable ground.  
  • Are highly sensitive, and maturing of this trait is key in making progress and achieving growth.
  • Need to learn to recognize criticism for what it is and use it to improve and then let it go. 
  • Are natural connectors and great with people. 

Go here to take a free test to determine a starting point to figuring out your type (but read other type descriptions too if you aren’t confident in your score). Remember, you are not a test result, this is just one way of getting to know yourself a little bit more.

Quickly browse the career list on that site, but come back here for a better look into how your type affects the changing landscape of jobs in our millennial age.

ESFJ Careers

ESFJ Careers

As I said, the best ESFJ careers are the one’s where you get to be with people, make a difference in their lives, and feel appreciated and loved at the end of the day. Make it a point to avoid jobs in which you’ll be alone most of the time, or will otherwise not give back to society in a way that feels meaningful to you.

Let’s dive into this list of the top five ESFJ careers. 

1) Acupuncturist

As an ESFJ acupuncturist you’ll meet people in their time of need with a unique approach to healing. Since you naturally gravitate towards helping people and being there for others, this can be a good approach to finding your calling. 

Here are four ways you can make money as an expert acupuncturist. 

2) Fashion Designer

As noted earlier, ESFJs tend to be one of the most fashionable of the 16 types. Why not take your passion a step further and become a full time fashion designer? The average pay is a reasonable $67,201 per year for doing something you might already be great at. Consider it. 

3) Food Critic

Do you love food? Become a food critic and help companies improve on their offerings by providing concise, practical, and helpful feedback. If you naturally enjoy writing that’s a plus, but skills behind a camera could be useful as well. 

4) Hairdresser

Disaster almost struck at Walmart..,.

I almost had my head shaved completely way back when. It wasn’t what I wanted. The well-meaning hairdresser apparently hadn’t heard my plea to buzz the sides and cut the top. 

I never went back to Walmart. 

You wouldn’t trust just anyone with your hair right? Do the world a favor and become a trusted hairdresser. With your caring attitude and friendly demeanor, you’ll do well. 

5) Hollywood Stunt Double

This is a unique and challenging line of work. ESFJs can do well here since you’ll connect with the actor and the scene on an emotional level and dive into their character. As an extension of the actor or actress you’ll be able to easily pass as them. Hone your skills and you’ll soon become a sought after stunt double. 


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☑️Purpose vs. Passion career amplifier to do better in whatever career you choose. Includes a list of 80 careers by personality type.

☑️A getting started guide for killing it with a side hustle (and 80 side hustle ideas with matching personality types).

☑️A Checklist of the best hobbies to check off your bucket list for every personality type.

?Sign up now and amplify your success in work, life, and beyond. ?

ESFJ Side Hustles

Let’s move beyond ESFJ careers, and check out side-hustles for a quick minute. It’s important for all types to add a few side hustles to their portfolio. Why? Because even if you have a great job it’s not guaranteed it will be there forever. Companies “care” about you only until it doesn’t make sense to keep you anymore. There is no such thing as playing it safe.  

Now more than ever millennials are gaining money through side hustles and other means. Even if it only supplements their main source of income, it’s always a good idea to diversify your income portfolio. Don’t spread yourself too thin, but take up something on the side to gain stability. We should always be building our assets so that we aren’t dependent upon any one career, side hustle, savings, or inheritance.

Here are five ideas for ESFJ side hustles:

1) Alterations

I now only wear clothes that fit perfectly. It has made a world of difference in my confidence and appearance. What we wear is an expression of who we are and it does matter. 

This is a shot of me below:

Continuing on the theme of fashion design, doing alterations for friends, family, and beyond can turn into a lucrative side hustle. Who knows how to sew and make adjustments these days? Nobody. Except for you. Now, go get some business. 

2) Clown

I’m not talking about the creepy clowns in It or other horror movies (even though some would argue all clowns look creepy). I’m talking about the friendly clown named Buster that comes to your kid’s birthday parties. If you have an entertaining routine and a good reputation you can do well working your clown gig on weekends.

For more, see How to Make Money as a Clown or Princess

3) GhostwritingESFJ Side Hustles

Ghostwriting means doing all the work and taking none of the credit. This may or may not work well for you, BUT ESFJs can do especially well here. Since you can relate to others well (your E and F) and can tune into the detail and make good judgments on it (your S and J), ghostwriting could be a natural fit. 

Depending on your writing ability (and the time you have to put into it) ghostwriters command anywhere from $5000 for short projects, and up to $100,000 for big-time work. 

4) Sell your Junk Mail

I didn’t know this was a possibility until I was researching side-hustles one day, but you can in fact sell your extra junk mail to companies looking for data. Here’s how to do it. 

Don’t expect to make a ton of money with this, but we have to sort our junk mail anyways, so we might as well send it off. 

5) Wedding Singer

While in Macedonia for a wedding we were entertained by a fantastic wedding/event singer. During the rehearsal dinner his melodic yet catchy tones went for hours. He hardly took a breath. He kept us enthralled for hours and I bet the restaurant received great tips from all those in attendance. 

As with any side hustle (and even ESFJ careers!) the better you are at your chosen area, the more moolah you can command. Remember, people pay more for the best. Become the best you can be. 

Successful wedding singers connect with the crowd and get the mood up. As an ESFJ your ability to connect and read the room is an important skill for this side-hustle, and as such you’ll be able to command competitive rates. 

Go here to download the side hustle success formula and other personality bonuses. 

ESFJ Hobbies

ESFJ hobbies

The best ESFJ hobbies involve taking a step back from focusing solely on other people and doing something that brings you true joy and bountiful energy . You might consider attempting all five of these below or just take on one or two. Do yourself the favor of recharging your own batteries and cultivate a work/life balance

Here are five ideas for ESFJ hobbies:

1) Glamping

Glamping is just an upgraded form of camping without the bugs, rocks for pillows, or sleeping next to your entire family in a run down tent. 

You can take this to whatever extreme you are comfortable with and even shell out the cash for AC, heated tents, or marshmallow-to-mouth service. 

2) Bicycling

Bicycling is a great way to let loose and get some exercise too. You could become a solo bicyclist or join a group. It’s a way to explore, meet new people, and feel the rush of wind on your face after a long day of work. 

3) Ghost Tours

Do you like getting a little spooky from time to time? How about delving into the history of a city, town, or historic landmark and weaving a tale? City’s like Gettysburg, PA offer several ghost touring opportunities.

Here’s a deeper look at the ghost-touring industry if you were curious. 

4) Goat Yoga

I’ve never tried this, but I can see the allure for an ESFJ to “relax” in this way. If regular yoga doesn’t cut it for you and you love animals, give goat yoga a try. If you do so (or if you’ve done it already!) let me know in the comments below. 

5) Pottery

Pottery is a hobby alive and well, especially with ESFJs. Do it in a group (as opposed to alone in your garage) and enjoy. Like most artsy hobbies, pottery is actually great for our brains and has a myriad of other health benefits

Want more? Download the full list of bucket list hobbies here


What are your favorite ESFJ careers, side hustles and hobbies? Share below! 😀