What Is The Enneagram?
A therapist friend of mine recently introduced me to a personality-type analyzer that I had never heard of before – the Enneagram. (He uses this with many of his clients.) . I’m familiar with Myers-Briggs, the most common personality assessment tool, but the Enneagram offers more options and explains how we act, respond and be, when we’re thriving and what we do when we’re in survival mode – i.e. Under significant stress.
The Enneagram has nine basic types, and it can help you identify your hidden strength. The Enneagram Institute website says: “At its core, the enneagram helps us to see ourselves at a deeper, more objective level and can be of invaluable assistance on our path to self-knowledge.”
I agree. I find it particularly useful that it points out our strengths and struggles. We all have blind-spots and don’t like to look at our maladaptive coping mechanisms but it helps us to know what we do when we’re stressed as well as when we’re feeling really good and in our state of “flow.”
It’s also particularly insightful to figure out the Enneagram for our partner and our children. It identifies everyone’s basic fear and basic desire. It helps us to see what coping strategies they turn to in times of extreme stress.
Here’s a short summary, according to The Enneagram Institute Website of the Nine Different Types: (Click on each header for a much more detailed description including the basic fear and basic desire.)
THE REFORMER
The Rational, Idealistic Type: Principled, Purposeful, Self-Controlled, and Perfectionistic
THE HELPER
The Caring, Interpersonal Type: Demonstrative, Generous, People-Pleasing, and Possessive
THE ACHIEVER
The Success-Oriented, Pragmatic Type: Adaptive, Excelling, Driven, and Image-Conscious
THE INDIVIDUALIST
The Sensitive, Withdrawn Type: Expressive, Dramatic, Self-Absorbed, and Temperamental
THE INVESTIGATOR
The Intense, Cerebral Type: Perceptive, Innovative, Secretive, and Isolated
THE LOYALIST
The Committed, Security-Oriented Type: Engaging, Responsible, Anxious, and Suspicious
THE ENTHUSIAST
The Busy, Fun-Loving Type: Spontaneous, Versatile, Distractible, and Scattered
THE CHALLENGER
The Powerful, Dominating Type: Self-Confident, Decisive, Willful, and Confrontational
Which one are you? Which one is your partner? Your kids?
Have fun discussing this with your partner and/or family 🙂
Warmly,
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