What is the Enneagram

What is the Enneagram?

The enneagram describes nine distinct personality types. Each of the nine types is rooted in a specific viewpoint or belief structure that largely determines what is important to you and how you interact with the world to fulfill your hopes and dreams. Each of us adopted one of the nine patterns to protect a specific aspect of our selves that felt under threat during the development of our personalities. As you discover more about your enneagram personality type, you will also be learning about the unconscious motivations that determine much of your behavior.

Finding your Enneagram...

Although you will probably relate to elements from each personality type, there will be one in particular that serves as your natural baseline. Finding your enneagram is usually done by reading each description and seeing which one resonates the most strongly with you.

ONE: Perfectionist, Reformer, Judge, Crusader, Critic

Overview: In a search for perfection, the attention of the One goes to the environment, improvement, imperfection and correction.

Wound: Fear of being wrong, bad, evil or corruptible

Self Definition: I am good, I am right, I am in control, I am appropriate and I am incorruptible

Avoidance: Anger, Limitation, Impropriety

Goal: To reclaim a sense of Serenity for true perfection.

Finding Oneself: Ones will probably agree with most of the following statements:

- I put much effort into correcting my faults.

- I'm often bothered because things aren't the way they should be.

- I hate to waste time.

- I often blame myself for not doing better.

- Often the least flaw can ruin the whole thing for me.

- I have trouble relaxing and being playful.

- I frequently have a sense of urgency that time is running out and there is still so much left to do.

- If something isn't fair, it really bothers me.

- I get angry when I see others "getting away with it.”

- I normally see things as either right or wrong.

TWO: Giver, Caretaker, Helper, Nurturer, Advisor

Overview: In a search for higher will, the attention of the Two goes to flattery and meeting other's needs by being helpful.

Wound: Fear of being worthless, useless, dispensable or inconsequential

Self Definition: I am caring, I am nurturing, I am helpful, and I am appealing

Avoidance: Own needs, Own neediness, Immutability

Goal: To reclaim their sense of humility in service to a higher will.

Finding Oneself: Twos will probably agree with most of the following statements:

- Many people depend on my help and generosity.

- I take more pride in my service of others than in anything else.

- I need to feel important in other people's lives. I like people to need me.

- I seem to have personal radar for the detection of moods and preferences of others.

- Each of my friends brings out a different part of me.

- I am attracted to difficult relationships.

- I don't feel that I have that many needs.

- I believe that gaining approval is equal to gaining love.

- When I have time off, I frequently spend it helping others.

- Having a sense of personal freedom is very important to me.

THREE: Performer, Motivator, Achiever, Producer, Status Seeker

Overview: In a search for hope, the attention of the Three goes to performance, prestige, and status for approval.

Wound: Fear of being incompetent, inefficient, unmasked or unable to do

Self Definition: I am productive, I am successful, I am competent and I am the best

Avoidance: Failure, Nothingness, Second Best

Goal: To reclaim a sense of honesty to restore hope and authenticity.

Finding Oneself: Threes will probably agree with most of the following statements:

- I like to keep myself on the go.

- I identify with achievement and performance.

- Being able to get things organized and accomplished just seems to come natural to me.

- "Success" is a word that means a lot to me.

- I like to have clear goals set and to know where I stand on the way toward those goals.

- I firmly believe that status and respect must be earned.

- Projecting a successful image is very important to me.

- Making decisions are not a problem for me.

- I usually do not stop working long enough to ask myself how I feel about what I am doing.

- I'll be happy after the next promotion.

FOUR: Individualist, Artist, Melodramatic, Mystic, Elitist

Overview: In a search for connection to original source, the attention of the Four goes to the search for meaning, what is missing, melancholy, and longing for the unavailable.

Wound: Fear of being painfully lacking, inadequate, flawed or defective

Self Definition: I am unique, I am special, I am aesthetic, and I am tasteful

Avoidance: Ordinary, Commonness, Commonplace, negative mirroring

Goal: To reclaim a sense of emotional balance to reconnect with original source.

Finding Oneself: Fours will probably agree with most of statements:

- I have the sense of something missing from life.

- I try to look casual and natural.

- I have always had an attraction for symbolism.

- People don't feel as deeply as I do.

- I like to do things properly and with class.

- My environmental surroundings are very important to me.

- It's easy for me to distinguish between "the best," and "the best known."

- I don't like to think of myself as being ordinary or having an ordinary problem.

- I find myself swinging back and forth between highs and lows. Either I'm very up or very down, I don't feel very alive when I'm in the middle.

- People have accused me of being overly dramatic, but they really don't understand how I feel.

FIVE: Observer, Investigator, Thinker, Sage, Voyeur

Overview: In search of omniscience and knowing, the attention of the Five, goes to observing, hiding and withholding.

Wound: Fear of not existing, annihilation, being fully embodied or contamination

Self Definition: I am knowledgeable, I am perceptive, I observant and I am different

Avoidance: Emptiness, Not Knowing, Surplus, Negative Visibility

Goal: To reclaim a sense of non-attachment for true knowing and omniscience.

Finding Oneself: Five's will probably agree with most of the following statements:

- I tend to keep my feelings to myself.

- I like to know what will happen ahead of time.

- I don't know how to engage in small talk very well.

- Intellectually I like to synthesize and put together different ideas.

- I need much private time and space.

- I often sit back and observe other people rather than get involved.

- I seem to be more silent than most others People often ask me that I'm thinking.

- I have trouble reaching out or asking for what I need.

- If an issue comes up, I like to first work it out by myself, then go discuss it with others.

- I like to put things in perspective, to step back and take everything in. If I leave anything out, I accuse myself of being so simplistic or naive.

SIX: Devil's Advocate, Loyalist, Skeptic, Guardian, Rebel, Persecuting

Overview: In a search for faith and security, the attention of the Six goes to doubt and fear, scanning for and focusing on danger and hidden motives or agendas.

Wound: Fear of fear itself and of being alone, unprotected, tendency to submit or physical abandonment

Self Definition: I am cooperative, I am dutiful, I am provocative and I am compliant or rebellious

Avoidance: Deviance, Uncertainty, Different

Goal: To reclaim a sense of courage to restore true faith.

Finding Oneself: Sixes probably will agree with most of the following statements.

- It's easy for me to identify with underdog causes.

- Loyalty to a group is very important to me.

- I often look for hidden meaning in other people's behavior.

- I take a long time to make up my mind because I need to explore the options fully.

- Sometimes I get caught in "nonstop taking" talking and analysis replaces acting.

- I like to be very sure where other people stand before acting.

- I often tend to operate out of a sense of duty and responsibility.

- I sometimes think that I run on a negative memory track.

- I prefer to have things scheduled rather than open-ended.

- It bothers me that I may outdo my parents.

SEVEN: Entertainer, Optimist, Adventurer, Joker, Rationalizing, Patronizing

Overview: In the search for right work and focused concentration, the attention of the Seven goes to planning, imagination, and multiple options.

Wound: Fear of being incomplete, limited, inferior, or confined.

Self Definition: I am happy, I am fun, I am enthusiastic and I am playful

Avoidance: Emotional pain, Sadness, Boredom

Goal: To reclaim a sense of sobriety for right work.

Finding Oneself: Sevens will probably agree with most of the following statements:

- I tend to make things interesting, to make things nice.

- There are very few things in life which I can't enjoy.

- I usually look on the bright side of things and don't look for the negative side of life.

- "I must be defective if I need help."

- People say I'm often the life of the party.

- I often feel stuck and bored with commitment -- I like to keep my options open.

- I tend to be very enthusiastic about the future.

- I seem to be attached to youth and energy.

- Most of the time I avoid getting into really "heavy" issues.

- I find myself expressing anger by making fun of the problem.

EIGHT: Leader, Solution Master, Maverick, Protector, Boss, Defying

Overview: In a relentless search for truth, the attention of the Eight goes to the issue of justice, power and influence - who has it, where it is, and how to get it.

Wound: Fear of being humiliated, controlled, powerless or vulnerable

Self Definition: I am invincible, I am powerful, I am strong and I am authentic, self-reliant

Avoidance: Weakness, Vulnerability, Mediocre

Goal: To reclaim their sense of innocence in order to acknowledge a higher truth.

Finding Oneself: Eight's probably will agree with most of the following statements:

- I am very good at standing up and fighting for what I want.

- I have difficulty with compromise.

- I am not afraid to confront other people and I do confront them.

- I enjoy the exercise of power.

- I am an aggressive, self-assertive person.

- l know how to get things done.

- I get bored easily and like to keep moving.

- Justice and injustice are key issues for me.

- Generally, I don't care much for introspection or too much self-analysis.

- I think of myself as a non-conformist.

NINE: Peacemaker, Mediator, Naturalist, Accommodator, Abdicator

Overview: In a search for unconditional love and union, the attention of the Nine goes to spreading out, diffusing, and identifying with and merging with others.

Wound: Fear of being shutout, loveless, discordant or inharmonious

Self Definition: I am agreeable, I am easy going, I am peaceful and I am unassuming

Avoidance: Conflict, Discord, Complication

Goal: To reclaim right action and their own sense of self for true love.

Finding Oneself: Nines probably will agree with most of the following statements:

- I often have difficulty in saying "no."

- Most things in life aren't worth getting upset about.

- I find that I often dip in and out Of conversations, thinking of several things at once.

- The most important things to be done are left to the end of the day.

- While there are some differences, I feel most people are pretty much the same.

- I hate to waste energy. I look for energy-saving approaches to things.

- I become very stubborn when I feel pushed by others.

- I can be a dispassionate arbiter because one side is as good as the other.

- I'm really sensitive about having my efforts overlooked, criticized, discounted.

- I tend to play things down to get other people settled down.

For more information, check out these enneagram websites: