An Overview of the Nine Personality Types
As a growing number of organizations are discovering, the Enneagram approach to understanding human beings—their behaviors, motivations, values, thinking styles, ways of problem solving, and so forth—is the most effective method for improving individual and team performance available today. It takes individual differences into account and maps out the basic motivations of each personality orientation.
The nine personality types of the Enneagram are what we actually see in everyday business and organizational life. This system identifies the dynamics of personality with startling clarity, making applications precise and useful.
Type One: Reformers
Principled, purposeful, self-controlled & perfectionistic
The rational, orderly type. Dislike sloppiness and error, attracted to order and high standards for self and others.
Ones are concerned with maintaining quality and high standards. They focus on details and like to improve and streamline procedures. They are often good at coaching others on how to improve themselves, be more efficient, and do things correctly. Well-organized and orderly, they can also be overly critical of themselves and others. They dislike waste and sloppiness, but can deteriorate into micromanagement and constant, demoralizing criticism. At their best, they have good judgment, make wise decisions, and model ethical and responsible behavior.
Type Two: Mentors
Caring, generous, people-pleasing & intrusive
The helpful, interpersonal type. Dislike solitude and impersonal dealings, attracted to service and making personal connections.
Twos are sensitive to the needs of others and seek to be of service. They appreciate the talents of others and act as confidants and guides, good at networking people and services. However, they typically have trouble saying no to requests and tend to become stressed by trying to help others too much. They dislike impersonal rules and work situations and can deteriorate into favoritism and time-wasting personal over-involvements. At their best, they are empathetic and generous and help build team interpersonal connections.
Type Three: Achievers
Adaptable, self-developing, efficient & image-conscious
Ambitious, focused, excelling, driven. Dislike ineffectiveness and lack of ambition, attracted to success and recognition.
Threes know how to work efficiently to get the job done according to customer expectations. Often attractive, charming, and energetic, they are conscious of the image they project of themselves as well as of their team and company. They like getting recognition and are attracted to success and positions of prestige. They can be competitive and workaholic, driven by the need for status and personal advancement, deteriorating into cutting corners to stay ahead. At their best, they are accomplished and admirable, often seen as inspiring role models by others.
Type Four: Designers
Intuitive, expressive, individualistic & temperamental. Artistic, dramatic, and self-absorbed.
Dislike uniformity and regulation, attracted to creativity and putting their personal mark on things
Fours deliver personalized service and/or develop distinctive products known for their refinement and sense of style. They can be uncompromising in their pursuit of the right effect, word, or design and of gauging the personal impact of a product. They dislike tasks that they feel are not creative or give them room for their personal imprint. They may be hypersensitive to criticism and can deteriorate into moodiness and erratic work habits. At their best, they bring intuition and creativity into the workplace and enrich it with their sense of depth, style, and appreciation of the personal dimension.
Type Five: Investigators
Perceptive, innovative, secretive & detached
Curious, provocative, and eccentric. Dislike intrusions on their time and space, attracted to depth and learning.
Fives are tireless learners and experimenters, especially in specialized or technical matters. They like to understand in detail, spend time on research, and follow their curiosity wherever it leads. They are highly analytical and preoccupied with discovery, not paying attention to project time constraints and relationships. They can deteriorate into arrogance and noncommunication, intellectual bickering and one-upsmanship. At their best, Fives are visionary pioneers, bringing strikingly new ideas and profound depth to their work.
Type Six: Troubleshooters
Committed, responsible, anxious & suspicious
Engaging, loyal, and likeable. Dislike unpredictability and rapid change, attracted to clear structures and foresight
Sixes are diligent and reliable workers. They build alliances and partnerships that help orient their co-workers and get things done. They are able to assess the motivations and relative merits of others and scan the business environment for potential problems. They dislike taking risks and want consensus and predictability. They can be indecisive and have difficulty taking responsibility or action without group authority and can deteriorate into evasiveness and blaming others. At their best, Sixes are self-reliant, independent, and courageous, often calling a group back to its root values.
Type Seven: Enthusiasts
Spontaneous, versatile, talkative & scattered
Accomplished, upbeat, and impulsive. Dislike limitations and routines, attracted to new possibilities and excitement.
Sevens thrive on change, variety, excitement, and innovation. Often articulate and humorous, they are able to get others to support their ideas. They are in touch with the latest trends and are constantly looking for new possibilities and options. They are natural multi-taskers but can also get overextended and lack follow-through. They can deteriorate into endless talk and distractions, scattering their energy and talents and leaving many projects unfinished. At their best, Sevens focus on worthwhile goals and become highly productive and accomplished.
Type Eight: Challengers
Self-confident, decisive, willful & confrontational
Powerful, commanding, and hard-driving. Dislike indecisiveness and indirectness, attracted to strength and strategic action.
Eights have a clear vision of what they want to accomplish and the willpower to make it happen. They make difficult decisions and see serious problems simply as challenges to be met, obstacles to be overcome. They want to be in control and find it difficult to delegate tasks or share leadership. They champion people, protecting and empowering them, but also can deteriorate into intimidation to get their way, making unnecessary enemies both within and outside the organization. At their best, they are magnanimous and generous, using their strength to improve others' lives.
Type Nine: Peacemakers
Calm, reassuring, agreeable & complacent
Easygoing, accommodating, and receptive. Dislike tension and conflict, attracted to harmony and stability.
Nines create harmony among group members by emphasizing the positive so that conflicts and tensions can be eased. They are supportive and inclusive and work with everyone, humbly allowing others to shine. They dislike conflict and division in the team and try to create harmony and stability. But, they may accommodate others and avoid self-assertion too much, becoming secretly angry as a result. They can deteriorate into ineffectual "make-work," stubborn passivity, and serious neglect. At their best, they are able to negotiate differences and bring people together in a stable but dynamic way.
Guidelines
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The types are value-neutral: no type is inherently better or worse than any other type. Each type has assets and liabilities, qualities useful to an organization and qualities that impede harmony, communication, and growth.
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Descriptions of the types are gender-neutral, applying equally to males and females. They are also universal and cross-cultural and are currently being taught and worked with around the world.
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People do not change their basic personality type, although there is a wide spectrum of behaviors and motivations within each type which we call the "Levels of Development" (see below).
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Not everything in the description of your basic type will apply to you all the time because you fluctuate through various healthy, average, and unhealthy Levels within your type.
Why Use the Enneagram in Business?
Organizations around the world are demanding more accurate information about clients and employees. Many are also interested in developing a more humane and person-centered approach to the workplace so that they can attract and retain valuable employees and achieve peak productivity. The Enneagram is uniquely suited to meet all of these needs.
The key to success in any venture is the ability to communicate effectively with others, to inspire them to share your vision and goals, as well as to provide effective direction and to keep things on track. Yet communication is often difficult if personality type is not taken into consideration. This is because people tend to believe that others think the same way they do. They believe that others have the same motivations, values, and priorities—although this is usually not the case.
However, when personality type is understood, communication becomes exponentially more effective because people begin to recognize and make the most of human diversity.
The Enneagram is an extraordinary framework for understanding yourself, your associates and colleagues, and the "personality" of your team or organization as a whole. Each type has its own way of relating to others, its own set of perceptions and preoccupations, its own values and approaches to life. Each relates to others in different but understandable ways.
By understanding personality types, we can "speak the language" of others who are not the same as we are. Real communication is then possible, and we are able to deal more effectively with conflicts, ineffective work habits, office politics, and different management styles. If we want to maximize our effectiveness, we need to learn how to manage different types of people and how to relate to different types of clients.
Furthermore, the Enneagram helps us see our own personality dynamics more clearly. Once we are aware of different personality types, we see that our own style will not be equally effective with all types of people. Thus, one of the most profound lessons of the Enneagram is how to move from a management style in which others are expected to mold themselves to us—to a more flexible management style in which we act from an awareness of the viewpoints and needs of others. By doing so, we help others become more effective themselves—and as a result, harmony, productivity, and satisfaction increase.
For More Information
See the See the Practical Applications Section .
Links to the Other Business Programs Pages:
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Introduction, The 9 Types, Guidelines The Personality Grid, Interpersonal Grid, Disruptive Grid Enneagram with Types, Dysfunctional Workplace, Levels |
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