Using Enneagram for Personal Growth
Have you ever taken a personality test and thought to yourself “this one personality is just like me!” Personality tests are always a fun way to get an insight into similar traits you have with others you identify with. Understanding that you are not the only person who fits into a particular category or label gives us a sense of belonging—through sameness.
But once you recognize what your personality type is, do you take action with this new knowledge to better yourself? Most of us don’t.
A few years ago, someone recommended a book to me called The Road Back to You, by Ian Morgan Cron and Susanne Stabile. I had never heard of the Enneagram before this recommendation but since I’m always on a journey of self-help and transformation, I thought I would give it a read and here’s what I learned.
WHAT IS ENNEAGRAM?
The Enneagram takes its name from the Greek words for nine (ennea) and for a drawing or figure (gram). It is a nine-pointed geometric figure that illustrates nine different but interconnected personality types. It connects each numbered point on the circumference to two others by arrows across the circle, showing their dynamic interaction with each other.
Understanding the different Enneagram types is helpful for personal self-discovery and healing, understanding others and their personality types, and the different communicating patterns each type responds to.
WHAT ARE THE NINE TYPES OF ENNEAGRAM?
They diagram below shows the nine types of Enneagram with descriptions of each type following.
Enneagram
The Reformer: (also known as the Worker, Perfectionist)—A focused, hardworking, intense perfectionist. When these traits fall on the healthy side, it is a benefit to this personality type. When expressed on the unhealthy side, these types measure everything, particularly about themselves and their performances, with perfectionism.
The Helper: (also known as the Giver)—An empathetic one with a sense of sensitivity on others' needs. While being supportive of others is a positive trait, they tend to place the needs of others ahead of their own personal needs which can be detrimental to their own self-care.
The Achiever: (also known as the Performer, Motivator)—A work-oriented, goal-oriented, active one. This type use their abilities to look through the lives of others and learn from them to achieve their own success. They are optimistic- they will try to avoid negative people. However sometimes the unhealthy behaviors of this trait are seen as manipulative and self-serving.
The Individualist: (also known as the Romantic)—A self-absorbed, over-analyzed one. This type is emotionally sensitive. On the healthy side, they are able to project their sensitivity into creativity. The contrast is, they take everything too personally, which affects them most of the time.
The Investigator: (also known as the Observer)—A non-committed, reserved loner. They often find things that they only have an interest in doing. Their main desire is to seek knowledge and transform it to wisdom. Investigators tend to spend a lot of time in their head, preferring thinking over feeling.
The Loyalist: (also known as the Networker)—A responsible, reassurance-seeking, secure-finding moralist. This type desires personal contact and affirmation on what they do. They also have deep needs for group relationships. They are often energetic and lively.
The Enthusiast: (also known as the Visionary)—An analytical, entertaining, fun-loving idealist. This type enjoys life and is easily distracted by new interests. They find it hard to follow practical plans and ideas.
The Challenger: (also known as the Activator)—A competitive, passionate, vital one. This type deals directly with most situations. They are not easy to admit their wrongs and whereas prefer to make a stand, will challenge you in simple conversations.
The Peacemaker: (also known as the Universalist)—An easy-going, unaffected emotionally, peaceful one. Others respect this type and they are socially friendly. They can solve problems for others and stay calm to handle situations but can be non-confrontational as they try to avoid conflicts.
THE THREE TRIADS OF ENNEAGRAM
The Enneagram then splits these nine types into a group of three triads, which are centers of intelligence. The groups are instinctual or gut center (Types 8-9-1), Feeling or heart center (Types-2-3-4), and Thinking or head center (Types-5-6-7). In each of these triads, the resulting actions could be expressed both internally and externally.
Here is what the Enneagram looks like with the three triads.
The Instinctual or Gut center is based on the body and how it wants to react to a situation. The actions in this triad are instinctual, driven by anger or rage.
The Feeling or Heart center is based on emotions. The attention of these emotions is usually for others' needs and the attempt to affect others positively.
The Head or Thinking center is based on thoughts and the actions are more driven by fear. The focus is on the insight of the world through ideas, by thinking, planning and observing.
UNDERSTANDING WINGS, STRESS AND SECURITY NUMBERS
Enneagram chart
As you’re reading through this, you might already find that you fit into one or more type of the Enneagram or Triad and many of us do. This overlapping of traits is identified through wings, or parallel Enneagram types—that while not your dominate type—you may lean towards the characteristics of these types at times.
There are intersecting lines of connection between the types which are defined as stress points or security points. This occurs as each Enneagram type connects to two other Enneagram types by lines of connection.
The arrows in the diagrams show which type your dominant Enneagram type moves toward when expressing negative traits during times of stress as indicated in the red diagram, or the positive traits in moments of feeling secure in the green diagram.
For instance, since I’m a type 5, my positive traits will move towards those of a Type 8, while my unhealthy traits will move towards a type 7.
HOW CAN KNOWING MY ENNEAGRAM TYPE HELP ME?
Enneagram chart
The type you belong to leads you to understand better your personality and how you handle situations in life. Having this knowledge—or awareness of your Enneagram type—can give you the guidance you need when you notice you are expressing the negative traits of your personality type. Each different Enneagram type has their own special requirements for taking positive steps towards changing your mindset and therefore, changing your behaviors.
Take a look the diagram of the Enneagram Deadly Sins attributed to each of the personality types. Read the descriptions for each type to understand how they are impacted by the deadly sins.
The Reformer: As this type tends to be perfectionists, learning to let go of the outcomes and be satisfied with what they have will help them get in touch with the out-of-control side of their personality.
The Helper: This type puts others first before themselves. This type would benefit from learning to get in touch with their own needs, of which they neglect.
The Achiever: While optimistic and hardworking, this type would benefit from slowing down what they are doing and instead spend more time relaxing and enjoying the beautiful moments of life.
The Individualist: This type is emotionally sensitive, and they feel the pain of living, with their own judgment communicated through their feelings. Practicing detachment from others to keep themselves from absorbing the feelings of others will help them let go of this pain.
The Investigator: They are the withdrawn type, which means they love to stay inside of their thinking world. This type would benefit from getting outside their heads by spending more time in the present with others. Instead of being an observer, they can learn to participate more.
The Loyalist: They are mostly fearful or easily nervous regarding their security. This type would benefit by learning to control their minds instead of letting the mind control them and finding ways to feel security by their own means.
The Enthusiast: They like to keep themselves busy. This type would benefit from slowing down their pace for everything, control their overactive energy and pay more attention to their feelings.
The Challenger: They are the competitive, headstrong ones. They would benefit by learning to express their physical energy in a less confronting way and express more of their tender side to others.
The Peacemaker: This type of person is a peacemaker which can make them indecisive, a procrastinator, stubborn and wanting to avoid conflict due to unresolved anger. This type would benefit by learning to be in touch with their repressed anger and find healthy ways to deal with it.
WHAT TYPE AM I?
Of the 9 Enneagram types, I identified myself as a Type 5 - the Investigator, or Observer. When I’m expressing the positive traits of this type, they work in my favor. I’m extremely analytically and quickly learn about a subject in a short amount of time because of the hours of research I spend learning about a topic. But this can also work to my disadvantage. I know these hours spent preparing for an upcoming presentation at work assures me that I’m ready for questioning and it fulfills my need to come across as competent in my work. Yet it also satisfies my need to be alone and in my own head, while I ignore my family as I engage in these types of activities.
As an Enneagram Type 5, My need for security and self-sufficiency in its healthiest form gives me the drive to be successful and independent. This need can also backfire when I push people away who want to be supportive and I tell them I can do it on my own. And when disagreements occur with others whether it’s my mother, my employer, or my spouse, my default response is to tell them I don’t need you.
If you look at the deadly sins diagram, you’ll note that the Type 5’s deadly sin is Avarice. The definition of avarice is an excessive or insatiable desire for wealth or gain: greediness, cupidity. Extreme greed for wealth or material gain.
While my desires for material things are not extreme, my unhealthy behavior brings a hoarding mentality when it comes to my personal resources. In the past I’ve always complained of giving too much of myself to others, emotionally, financially and with my time.
Understanding my Enneagram Type has helped me tremendously in my healing journey. When I’m on the healthy spectrum of my type, I know that I am on the right path. When I observe myself exhibiting unhealthy behaviors or thinking, I stop myself, align to the thought patterns as to why I’m behaving that way and immediately stop and rethink my actions.
I recognize when I’m overworking, getting caught up in an endless cycle of investigating and overthinking, or spending too much time alone in my own head.
I take the time to tell those around me that I need them as much as they need me and accept help and support when it’s offered.
I stop my hoarding thinking my giving more of myself to others, while still taking the time I need for myself.
The Enneagram type is one of the many tools I use to support me in my healing and personal growth journey. If you’d like to learn more about Enneagrams, I’ve added some additional links below:
The Narrative Enneagram – An educational nonprofit dedicated to transforming lives and creating a more compassionate world.
An Everyday Being Circle Partner, Renée Rosario, is a therapist with a M.A. in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology, and a certified teacher in the Narrative Tradition. She teaches classes nationally as a Core Faculty member of The Narrative Enneagram.