Photo by Jessica Olah, Verywell
“If we observe ourselves truthfully and non-judgmentally, seeing the mechanisms of our personality in action, we can wake up, and our lives can be a miraculous unfolding of beauty and joy.”
— Don Richard Riso., The Wisdom of the Enneagram
The Skye community had the privilege of gaining insight from this quote and listening to Skye coach Jenna Starkey teach us about the Enneagram Personality Model. Jenna is a certified career coach that is passionate about bringing people together and leading discussion on how we see the world!
The Enneagram Personality Model describes and evaluates motivations and patterns in how people manage emotions and understand the world around them. The ultimate goal in taking this test is to “increase [our] level of integration with awareness of [our] patterns,” as Jenna explained.
Prior to learning about each Enneagram type, we wanted to take a deep-dive into where we are currently and consider the places in our lives that need some extra support or attention. We asked ourselves:
- How do I want to feel right now in life and work?
- Where am I getting stuck?
After some self-reflecting, Jenna gave us an overview of the 3 Intelligence Centers.
- Heart Types (2, 3, 4) (Feeling)
- Head Types (5, 6, 7) (Thinking)
- Body Types (8, 9, 1) (Instinctive)
We went through an in-depth overview of each Enneagram type. The 9 types with their positive affirmations are as follows:
- Type 1: Reformer/Perfectionist; Affirmation: “There can be goodness in the imperfection.”
- Type 2: The Helper; Affirmation: “I am appreciated for who I am, not what I do.”
- Type 3: The Achiever; Affirmation: “I am the best at being me.”
- Type 4: The Individualist; Affirmation: “I am more understood than I realize. Others experience these emotions too.”
- Type 5: The Observer; Affirmation: “I open my heart and welcome support from others.”
- Type 6: The Loyalist; Affirmation: “I trust myself.”
- Type 7: The Enthusiast; Affirmation: “I can experience joy in the boring or hard stuff, and in missing out.”
- Type 8: The Asserter; Affirmation: “Vulnerability is strength.”
- Type 9: The Peacemaker; Affirmation: “I am listening to myself, and I will express myself.”
Jenna’s suggestions for all types to activate all 3 Intelligence Centers:
- Move your body! Ask yourself, “what is my body telling me? what does it need?”
- Allow yourself to feel and process your emotions
- Embody and express gratitude, as well as compassion and forgiveness
Looking to take the test yourself and learn more about each type? Visit www.enneagraminstitute.com, www.integrative9.com, or www.enneagramworldwide.com.
