#4: All About the Enneagram
In this episode, Deanna provides an overview of the Enneagram including its origins, the nine different types, and applications to the workplace.
Episode Highlights:
- Learn where the Enneagram originated from and how it was developed
- Understand how the Enneagram provides us with differing yet valid perspectives in the world
- How the Enneagram acts like an internal GPS
- Learn what the nine different types are and what their key motivations and core fears are
- Discover tangible ways the Enneagram can help strengthen organizations through the development of self-awareness, communication, and empathy
Links & Resources Mentioned in this Episode:
- Enneagram in Organizations Global Survey
- Take the What’s Your Leadership Genius Quiz HERE
- Join the Leading by Type Facebook Community HERE
- Connect with Deanna on Instagram HERE
Like the Show? Subscribe on iTunes and leave a 5-star, positive review!
Episode 4 Transcript
DEANNA PECINA: The Enneagram also helps with communication, leadership, and self mastery. Again, because when you understand yourself, you can chart a path to growth and when you understand what the people on your team are motivated by. You can really tap into that when you are in coaching conversations with them. And likewise, the Enneagram can also help improve overall team wellbeing and help create an environment of respect and trust and empowerment on your team.
INTRO: Welcome to the Leading by Type podcast. I’m Deanna Pecina, former school administrator, turned Enneagram practitioner and DISC consultant, and I’m obsessed with all things leadership and learning. I hope you’ll join me each week as we have conversations about communication, team building, and embracing your leadership genius.
DEANNA: Well, hey there, friends. Welcome to episode four of the Leading Bite Type podcast. Hopefully you’re here because you just listened to episode three, which was giving you a high level overview of the just profile. While today’s episode, I’m going to be giving you a high level overview of the Enneagram in these first four episodes of the podcast.
I felt like it was important for me to set the foundation of the type of content that we would be focusing on here on the podcast. So if you haven’t listened to episodes one through three, I encourage you to listen to those three episodes first, and then come back and listen to this particular one. As I’ve shared before, I am an organizational leadership coach, and I use the disk and the Enneagram to help entrepreneurs and CEOs build teams that allow them to work in their leadership genius.
I’m a really, really big believer in pouring into the people that you have on your team and being able to see the value and the potential in every person that you’re working with. And the DISC and the Enneagram are the two most powerful tools that you can use to really get to know and understand both the behaviors and the motivations of the people on your team.
In episode three, we focused on how the DISC is a powerful tool to help you understand someone’s behaviors and to increase your ability to be able to communicate effectively with different types of profiles. Today we’re going to focus on the Enneagram and how it can help you understand what the motivations are of the people on your team.
So let’s start by defining what is the Enneagram? The Enneagram is an archetypical model of nine types, and it’s used for personal development. And it’s considered to be looked at from an open systems perspective. It is not something that is designed to put you in a box and say, Well, you are a type two, and that is it.
No, it’s based on a systems perspective. Yes. We have one main type. But it’s far more complex than that. We have access to wings and lines and subtypes, and these are all things that I will go into in future episodes. The Enneagram provides us with insight into people’s core, core motivations and fears, and driving behaviors and needs and interactions with other people.
When you understand these things about yourself, you have the ability to identify blindspots. Identify why you keep getting stuck in destructive patterns, and more importantly, it provides you with a path to break those patterns once you understand them. When we talk about the origins of the Enneagram, the original model of the Enneagram is disputed and unclear, and it seems to be connected to different spiritual and oral traditions, as well as mathematical and philosophical tradit.
Some examples areal in nature in that an archetype is an original model from which cabalists. Sufi mystics, Pythagoreans, the Chaldeans and other ancient groups, but any specific claim of origin has never been substantiated. It is considered to be an archetype something is developed or made. If we think about literary criticism or images and figures and character types and story patterns that repeat over and over again, or that are universally, universally shared.
Across people and cultures, the Enneagram falls underneath that umbrella. Notable names from the field in the 20th century are George Gurdjieff, who considered the Enneagram a symbol of the cosmos, but didn’t make any connection with it to personality types. Oscar Ichazo built on it and connected the Enneagram to personality.
And then Claudio Naranjo was the first to connect the nine points of the Enneagram to the nine basic personality types. So in this way, the Enneagram is reflective of a collective wisdom. And we see it in work from modern day Enneagram researchers like David Daniels, John Reso and Russ Hudson, Jerry Wagner, Beatrice Chestnut, and Ginger Lapid Bogda.
I like to think of the Enneagram as glasses and the Enneagram provides us with nine valid perspectives of how it is that we see the world. If you are someone who wears glasses, or if you’ve ever been to the eye doctor, you know the whole process of which one looks better. 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4. And we’re all looking at the same chart of these crazy letters and things pointing in different directions.
And when we find that magic combination of the lenses, we can see clearly. Now someone else is looking at that same chart and they have a completely different prescription that enables them to be able to see the chart clearly. It doesn’t mean that one view is better than the other, it’s just what that person needs in order to be able to perceive things correctly in the world. So the Enneagram provides us with the ability to understand our perspective and then to understand the perspectives of others so that we can have more compassion and kindness and grace and forgiveness with the people around us. Because the way that they see the world isn’t wrong.
It’s just different.
One analogy that you hear used a lot in relation to the Enneagram is that it’s like an internal GPS. It reveals why you think and feel and behave in particular ways so that you can direct your internal life in the best direction for you and your personality type. So going back to the idea of the engram is not a box, it’s not something that we slap a label on you and say you’re this particular.
Identifying your type is a starting point, and then working through the process of digging in and understanding your type and why you think and feel the way you do is going to help facilitate your personal growth. Now, let’s dig into each one of the nine types. With the engram, the nine types are divided up into three centers of.
We have our action center, which is the instinctual center of the brain, and it’s very focused on doing language. We have our Feeling Center, which is more emotional language, and then we have our Thinking Center, which focuses on cognitive language. So we’re going to start our exploration with our action centers, which are our numbers, eight, nine, and one.
So starting with number eight, eights are our active controllers or protective challengers. They are assertive, directive, decisive, and self-assured. They like to take charge of situations by focusing on results and not holding back. In this regard, they sound an awful lot like Ds on the DISC profile. The key motivations are they want to be strong and in control.
They want to avoid weakness and vulnerability. They have this core desire to protect themselves. They have a core fear of being weak or powerless or humiliated or harmed or controlled, and so they live by this motto of, I must be strong and I must be in control. And with the Enneagram, when I read these mottos, I must be strong.
The word must is compelling. It’s not just a, Oh, I feel like I should be strong. I must be strong. They are driven by a need to be strong and be in control. Our nines are adaptive peacemakers or peaceful mediators. They’re easy going, accommodating, and patient, and they work to create a harmonious environment.
And they go with the flow and are keenly aware of other people and other people’s opinions, and as a result, they fear conflict or being considered unimportant or overlooked. And they have an inner stability. They crave inner stability and peace of mind, and so they. Constantly are working to promote peace and harmony and getting input from other people because they live by this need of I must create harmony and I must avoid conflict.
The final type in our action center are our strict, strict, perfectionist, or moral perfectionists. These folks are conscientious, They are controlled. They have a very, very strong sense of right or wrong, and they believe that you shouldn’t do anything if you’re not going to do it correctly. They fear being bad, evil, condemned or unredeemable, and they have this desire to be virtuous and ethical.
And so as a result, they focus on doing things right, avoiding mistakes and working, working towards self improvement and self control. And they live by this message of, I must be perfect. I must not make mistakes. Next up we have our Feeling Center and we will start with our En Graham two s who are our considerate helpers or supportive advisors.
Twos are caring and generous, and they’re very warmhearted. They’re, they make sure that everybody around them is taking care of, they are invested in their ability to be supportive. Available to the people that are close to them. They fear being unloved or unwanted, and they desire to be wanted for being themselves only.
And as a result, they focus on being dependable and providing for the needs of others and anticipating other people’s needs. And they live by a motto of, I must be helpful. I must be there for others. Next step we have are Enneagram three, our competitive achievers. These folks are super ambitious and focused.
They are action oriented, and they are focused on getting things done and achieving success. They fear being worthless or being a failure or unimpressive, unsuccessful, or expos. And they desire to feel valuable just by being themselves without having to perform. So they focus on achieving goals and present this image that supports what success means because they live by this motto of, I must be successful, I must be productive.
And finally, we have our Enneagram four s. These are our intense creatives. They are creative, intense, emotional, and expressive, and they have a very deep connection to their emotions, and they want to live life’s lives that are meaningful and authentic and full of self-expression. They fear being inadequate or plain, or ordinary or commonplace.
A lot of times when people find out they’re fours, they almost are defensive because then that means that they’re like other people and they don’t want to be like others. They want to find themselves and their unique significance. So they focus on being authentic and expressing their individuality and being tuned into their emotions and making a difference because they’re driven by this message of, I must be authentic.
I must go deep. Next step, we have our thinking center. Enneagram Fives are quiet specialists or investigative thinkers. They are very private and curious and cerebral, and they focus on trying to objectively understand the world and acquire in depth knowledge. Fives, fear, emptiness being considered incompetent or ignorant.
They don’t like being overwhelmed and they don’t like feeling invaded. They have a desire to be capable and competent, so as a result, they try to. Understand the world by making sense of it through knowledge, conserving resources, avoiding dependence because they’re driven by this need of, I must understand it and I must conserve my resources.
Next step is our loyal skeptic. Our Enneagram six or our loyal guardian sixes are cautious, loyal, and anxious. They’re very aware of threats and what could go wrong. They are careful about who they trust, and they work towards creating safety and stability. Sixes have a fear. fear itself. They fear danger.
They fear a lack of security. They fear being blamed. They fear being in trouble. They fear all the things. And they have a core desire though, to have security support and guidance. So as a result, they’re very aware of threats and what can go wrong, and they focus on creating stability, protecting themselves, avoiding threats, and.
And being loyal and responsible, and they are driven by a message of, I must be vigilant, I must be responsible. And last but surely not least, we have our Enneagram seven s. Our enthusiastic visionaries are our or our entertaining optimists. Enneagram sevens are spontaneous, they are uninhibited, they are optimistic, and they are always seeking out enjoyment and stimulation, and they’re very future focused and positive in their approach to life. They fear being incomplete. They don’t want to feel trapped, they don’t want to feel disappointed, and they don’t want to feel like they’re missing out on something. And they have a core desire to feel fully satisfied and content.
So as a result, they avoid boredom and pain. They want to experience all of the possibilities of life and freedom. because they live by a motto of, I deserve what I want. I must have freedom. Once you have identified your main Enneagram type, then you know your starting point. You know your current location on that GPS, and now you can set your healthiest destination.
The Enneagram is different from the DISC in that there are several Enneagram tests out there that are considered reliable, but when it comes to identifying your specific type on the Enneagram, a test is really just a starting point. You have to learn about the different types, and you have to choose which of the types resonates with you the most.
For me, when I was going through the process, I could see myself in a three, I can see myself in a five, but at the end of the day, the thing that really spoke to me the most, as in Enneagram nine, is I must avoid conflict that when I read, it just struck me in the core of my being. And so you’ll find that thing in the particular number that you choose that really, really resonates with you and makes it clear, yes, this is.
In terms of application in the world of work or on a team, the Enneagram in Organization’s Global Survey was just released and it revealed some significant areas where understanding the Enneagram can help in terms of team development. First of all, it can help in self knowledge and honoring the strengths of the people on your team.
It creates self-awareness and it can create a sense of purpose and fulfillment when people. Stand their own particular type. The Enneagram can also help with relationships because when you understand other people’s types, you’re going to deepen your ability to have interpersonal relationships with your colleagues and with those who.
Are on leadership or the people that you lead and manage. The Enneagram also helps you have empathy and interpersonal relationships because when you understand where someone’s coming from in regards to their core motivations or what their fears are, you can understand. Why they might be showing up and behaving in the way that they do.
The Enneagram also helps with communication, leadership, and self mastery. Again, because when you understand yourself, you can chart a path to growth and when you understand what the people on your team are motivated by. You can really tap into that when you are in coaching conversations with them. And likewise, the Enneagram can also help improve overall team wellbeing and help create an environment of respect and trust and empowerment on your team.
I hope you have found value today in learning about the origins of the en. The different Enneagram types and potentials for how the Enneagram could be used to increase leadership and communication on your teams. If you’d like to know more about your leadership genius, head on over to leading by type.com/quiz.
I’ve created a short 12 question quiz. It can help you start to identify your leadership superpowers. Again, I want to thank you for being here today. I love spending time learning with you. I would love for you to subscribe, rate, and leave a review because I love hearing from you. And if you found value in this episode, please share it with a friend.
Come hang out with me on Instagram, leading by type, or in our Facebook group leading by type. I’ll be back here next week and I hope that you will be too. See you then friend.