The 9 Enneagram Personality Types

The Enneagram is a self-development tool that provides us with a description of how and why we tend to behave the way we do based on our personality type. I was very resistant to learning about it a few years back because there was a huge hype around it. Once I got to it though, and I found out I’m an Enneagram 4, I began to understand my usual resistance to following trends and what’s hot at the moment. Fours, also known as the individualists, spend most of their time differentiating themselves from the crowd and eventually empowering others to explore their own individuality.

In this case, however, I must say it was my loss that took me so much time. The Enneagram offers great value to those who seek to know more about themselves. It helps us pinpoint the core issues of our personality and what we can do to evolve and become a more balanced person. In other words, the Enneagram sheds light on those complex psychological patterns that often hinder our journey and prevent us from moving forward. It can work as a mirror of what lies deep within our unconscious mind. While in a previous article I described the benefits of using this tool, in this one you will learn more about each personality type according to the Enneagram.

Type	What motivates them	What they avoid
E1	to be virtuous	blame
E2	to be loved and needed	acknowledging their needs
E3	to be perceived as successful	failure
E4	to be understood	being ordinary
E5	to gather information	relying on others
E6	to feel secure	fear
E7	to be happy	pain
E8	to be strong	vulnerability
E9	to keep the peace	conflict

Enneagram 1

Enneagram 1, the Perfectionist, is a personality characterized by a sense of ethics and righteousness. People with this personality type tend to be reliable and motivated to lead a life in a way that is virtuous and of service. They try to avoid blame.

Enneagram 2

Enneagram 2, the Helper, tends to be warm, caring, and giving. They look for love and they like to feel they are needed. They tend to avoid acknowledging their own needs.

Enneagram 3

Enneagram 3, the Performer, is a personality that is oriented toward success and wired for productivity. They want to be perceived as successful and they avoid failure.

Enneagram 4

Type 4, the Romantic, is creative, sensitive, and moody. They want to be perceived as different and they look forward to being understood. They avoid being ordinary.

Enneagram 5

Type 5, the Investigator, is analytical, detached, and private. Their motivation is to gather as much knowledge as they can and save energy. They avoid relying on others.

Enneagram 6

Type 6, the Loyalist, is committed and practical. They want to feel secure and tendo to avoid fear.

Enneagram 7

Enneagram 7, the Enthusiast, is usually fun, and spontaneous. They look forward to going on an adventure, so they are motivated to be happy and avoid pain.

Enneagram 8

Enneagram 8, the Challenger, is usually associated with intensity, and confrontation. They are motivated to be strong and they tend to avoid vulnerability.

Enneagram 9

Enneagram 9, the Peacemaker, is often pleasant, relaxed, and welcoming. They are motivated to keep the peace and merge with others. They tend to avoid conflict.

Concluding Thoughts

Finding out and learning more about your Enneagram personality type is often a breakthrough for many people. It not only describes the overall aspects of our personality it also offers us glimpses of potential blind spots and different levels of integration. There is more to the Enneagram than what we were able to cover here so I do hope your curiosity will lead you to learn even more about this tool. If you are already familiar with the enneagram, let me know what your personality type is in the comments!

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