Have you figured out yet what Enneagram Type you are?
You’d think I’d immediately jump onboard and take the Enneagram test. If only to be included in my friends’ conversations. Yet, I resisted taking the Enneagram for a long, long time. I’ve taken a lot of personality tests in my life. Do I really need one more?
I’ve never been an early adopter.
Nevertheless, the day always comes. My resistance turns to curiosity.
First, I read the descriptions of each Type, starting with Type 1, the Reformer.
Repeatedly, I was swayed by one and then another. C’mon, the Helper? I’m a shoe in. Wants to be loved. Check. Wants to feel needed and appreciated. Check. To vindicate their claims about themselves. Check? But the Challenger. Hell, no. To be important in their world? No. To dominate the environment. Um, no. To stay in control of their situation. Maybe?
Then I read Type 9. It was like a sucker punch to the gut. Oh. My. Sweet. Lord. I had to sit down.
Enneagram 9 folx are called Peacemakers or Mediators. We keep the peace. It sounds nice, right? However, that peace comes at a great personal sacrifice. We tend to forget ourselves. We lose our voice. We become fuzzy and inert.
Why? Because our chosen path towards peace is to acquiesce to others’ needs, desires and passions. We are good at loving people on their terms; we have a much harder time loving people on our own terms. Our needs, wants, desires, and passions create conflict. We believe that conflict separates us from love.
Conflict directed at Peacemakers tends to infuriate us because we’ve worked so hard to please you. Then, we stuff our anger.
That’s why we’re known as the Sloth.
We cannot choose self-love because it will create conflicts that will separate us from Love. So we lose our clarity. We lose our energy. We become sloths.
Wow. Just let those flawed truths sink in.
You’ve got them too. Find your type. If you are brave enough, share it in the comments.
Just to be sure, I took the official Enneagram test. Sure enough, I am a Nine. My body knew. Yet I didn’t trust it.
But hey, my score also said that Mister Rogers was a Nine. So, it’s not all bad.