What is an enneagram?

The word “enneagram” comes from the Greek “ennea” meaning 9 and “gram” meaning something written or drawn. So an enneagram is a drawing with 9 points.

The nine points on this diagram represent 9 different personality types, with 9 different ways of thinking, feeling and acting. Understanding these 9 different worldviews can help us to understand why other people do the things they do, and it can help us to understand ourselves better.

History

The Enneagram was brought to Europe by George Gurdjieff in the 1920s. We know that he used the Enneagram symbol and described people as having a chief feature. However, the Enneagram as we know it today comes from Oscar Ichazo in South America in the 1960s. Both Gurdjieff and Ichazo claimed to have learnt it from a Sufi sect called the Sarmouni Brotherhood.

Three Centres of Intelligence

The 9 personality types of the Enneagram are based on three centres of intelligence: the intellectual centre, the emotional centre and the instinctual centre. These are also known as the head, heart and gut centres. Types 8, 9 and 1 are in the gut centre, Types 2, 3 and 4 are in the heart centre and types 5, 6 and 7 are in the head centre.

Although each type has a home in the head, heart or gut, everyone can use all three of the centres. However, each type has their own strengths and weaknesses. You can use knowledge of your Enneagram type to help you build on your strengths and work on your weaknesses.

Head Centre

Head centre types tend to filter the world through their mental faculties. The goals of this strategy are to minimise anxiety, to manage potentially painful situations and to gain a sense of certainty through the mental processes of analysing, envisioning, imagining and planning. The higher qualities of the head centre are wisdom, knowing, intuition and thoughtfulness.

Heart Centre

Heart centre types tend to perceive the world through the filter of emotional intelligence. They are attuned to the moods and feelings of others in order to maintain a feeling of connection with them. They depend more than other types upon the approval and recognition of others to support their self-esteem and feeling of being loved. To get that approval and recognition, they create an image of themselves to get others to accept them. The higher qualities of the heart centre are empathy, understanding, compassion and loving kindness.

Gut Centre

Gut centre types tend to filter the world through an intelligence of kinesthetic and physical sensations and gut instinct. They use personal position and power to make life the way it should be. They devise strategies to assure their place in the world and minimise discomfort. The higher qualities of the gut centre are being in touch with the energy needed for action, discerning how much power to use in situations and being grounded in the world.

Nine Types

Here are some brief descriptions of the nine different Enneagram types. If you want more detail on the types then come to one of my workshops! The best way of learning about the types is the panel method, where people of a particular type tell their own stories. Alternatively, there are plenty of books and websites around on the Enneagram. I recommend Helen Palmer and David Daniels' website, http://www.enneagramworldwide.com, which has short video clips showing the different types.

Type One: The Perfectionist

Ones are conscientious, responsible, improvement-oriented and self-controlled, but also can be critical, resentful and self-judging.

Type Two: The Giver

Twos are caring, helpful, supportive, and relationship-oriented, but can also be prideful, overly intrusive and demanding.

Type Three: The Performer

Threes are industrious, fast-paced, goal focused, and efficiency-oriented, but also can be inattentive to feelings, impatient and image-driven.

Type Four: The Romantic

Fours are idealistic, deeply feeling, empathetic and authentic to self, but also dramatic, moody and sometimes self-absorbed.

Type Five: The Observer

Fives are self-sufficient, non-demanding, analytical, thoughtful and unobtrusive, but also can be withholding, detached and overly private.

Type Six: The Loyal Skeptic

Sixes are good friends, trustworthy, inquisitive and questioning, but also can be overly doubtful, accusatory and fearful.

Type Seven: The Epicure

Sevens are optimistic, upbeat, possibility- and pleasure-seeking and adventurous, but also can be pain-avoidant, uncommitted and self-serving.

Type Eight: The Protector

Eights are justice-seeking, direct, strong and action-oriented, but also overly forceful, excessive and sometimes impulsive.

Type Nine: The Mediator

Nines are self-forgetting, harmony-seeking, comfortable and steady, but also conflict avoidant and sometimes stubborn.