# Questionnaire for Enneagram Identification



## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

There is a 20 question survey for MBTI already, but I don't particularly like the questions in that one. Also, it is more relevant to MBTI and not to Enneagram at all. So, I thought I would try and create one for people trying to figure out their Enneagram type to fill out.

*The questions are a work in progress. Looking for suggestions/changes/new questions!* Once a solid set of questions is obtained, I will compile the final questionnaire and post it in the "Type Me" forum. The questions are meant to be open-ended as interpretation can say a lot about a person as well.

1. What are your biggest motivations in life?

2. What are your top values currently?

3. What do you hope to accomplish by the end of your life?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)?

5. Your top biggest fear, why do you think you have it?

6. How do you want others to see you?

7. List some of your best traits.

8. List some of your weakest traits.

9. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

10. How do you respond to an insult from a stranger?

11. How do you respond to a compliment from a stranger?

12. When someone says something you don't agree with, what is your reaction?

13. How do you handle a large amount of sudden stress?

14. What type of situation makes you feel at your worst?

15. What type of situation makes you feel at your best?

16. What feeling do you dislike feeling the most? Why?

17. What feeling do you enjoy feeling the most? Why?

18. What is your overall outlook on your own life?

19. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?

20. What is your overall outlook on the world and the universe?



Please make suggestions and improvements! Don't answer the questions here, they are for the "What's my Enneagram" section. Thanks!


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

One of my "testing" criteria for these sorts of things is "Would answering this frustrate me?" "Would it make me stare off into space and tap my foot and bite my lip trying to figure out some way to answer it?".

Most of these are not frustrating to answer, which is good. They should require a lot of thought, but not be frustrating.

1 and 2 would be a little frustrating to answer, though, but not excessively so. I think it is the wording more than anything else.

1 should be changed to "What motivates you in life?", I think. It means the same thing, but my wording would get more of an answer out of me than the first wording. 

Another good question to add would be "What do you try to avoid _being_ in life?" to correspond with 1, because your questions about fear don't touch on some non-head related aspects of motivation. And throw in "What do you try to avoid _doing_ in life?", because that would help include body types, methinks. 

2 doesn't really belong, because our top values will change in the circumstances.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Thanks @_Owfin_ ! I will definitely tinker with it and incorporate those.

I just did a test run of the survey myself and I found that it *was* a bit long and frustrating. Perhaps I should condense it to 10 most important questions.

I have also been considering asking more *specific* questions such as the ones you and @_listentothemountains_ have brought up in her thread. Then again, those may introduce biases when people start to answer in accordance to the type they _want_ to get.

I might make it so that there are 10 main questions and then 10 "optional" ones, such as the last three which are not that relevant but give more of an overall view.


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

Spades said:


> Thanks I have also been considering asking more *specific* questions such as the ones you and listentothemountains have brought up in her thread. Then again, those may introduce biases when people start to answer in accordance to the type they _want_ to get.


The trick is to prick underlying motivations of a type not by tailoring the question to a type, but to design a question in such a way that at least one of the triads will give telling answers. Basically, you make them tailor the answers to a type.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

*Revision 1.0:*

Main Questions

1. What motivates you in life?

2. What do you try to avoid doing or being?

3. What do you hope to accomplish by the end of your life?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)?

5. What is the reason for your one biggest fear?

6. How do you want others to see you?

7. What type of situation makes you feel at your best?

8. What type of situation makes you feel at your worst?

9. What feeling do you enjoy feeling the most? Why?

10. What feeling do you dislike feeling the most? Why?

Optional Questions

11. List some of your best traits.

12. List some of your weakest traits.

13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

14. How do you respond to an insult from a stranger?

15. How do you respond to a compliment from a stranger?

16. When someone says something you don't agree with, what is your reaction?

17. How do you handle a large amount of sudden stress?

18. What is your overall outlook on your own life?

19. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?

20. What is your overall outlook on the world and the universe?


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## madhatter (May 30, 2010)

Maybe questions that zero in on the key motivations of the triad, something like "what motivates you more: anger, shame or fear?" and "How so?" or something along those lines.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

Spades said:


> 1. What motivates you in life?


Actually, I like the way the MBTI thing asks this: "What do you yearn for in life?" I guess it's because I don't really expect E-newbs (said endearingly) to know what motivates them. If they knew, then why would they be here? 



> 5. What is the reason for your one biggest fear?


This would help pin down if trauma/experience got in the way of type's core fears. 
For example... I dislike showing emotion because I often got burned for it. Now, on the surface this fear sounds very much 5ish, but it's really 6ish because I relied on, trusted, others and felt like they betrayed me.
Still, is this my biggest fear... Not really, but then my biggest fear is relatively 6ish by itself. Maybe we should ask why they fear each of their fears, instead of just the one.



> 7. What type of situation makes you feel at your best?
> 
> 8. What type of situation makes you feel at your worst?


I'd rephrase this to, "What are you like when you're at your best/worst?" 



> 11. List some of your best traits.
> 
> 12. List some of your weakest traits.
> 
> 13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.


I have mixed feelings about these. For some types I think asking how others perceive them is better... for some types, these are better. For some _people_, these aren't going to work.



> 14. How do you respond to an insult from a stranger?
> 
> 15. How do you respond to a compliment from a stranger?


Not really telling... I mean, there'd be some types which are obvious (a 9 ignoring an insult for example), but I think there's too many overlaps with these reactions to pin down a type.



> 16. When someone says something you don't agree with, what is your reaction?


Sounds kinda more like an MBTI question than Enneagram, IMO.



> 17. How do you handle a large amount of sudden stress?


I like this one, should be one of the core questions. I think "How do you act/feel when stressed?" would be better, given that sudden stress is... subjective and untelling. I actually prefer asking about prolonged stress, as it shows disintegration with better accuracy.



> 18. What is your overall outlook on your own life?
> 
> 19. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?
> 
> 20. What is your overall outlook on the world and the universe?


I think 19 would be the best one out of these. 20 is too broad, really, and wouldn't tell us much. 18... It's okay, might be useful, might not. Depends on how one answers it. I think 18 pretty much covers what was already asked in the core questions, only lends itself for less information.


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## madhatter (May 30, 2010)

Paradigm said:


> Actually, I like the way the MBTI thing asks this: "What do you yearn for in life?" I guess it's because I don't really expect E-newbs (said endearingly) to know what motivates them. If they knew, then why would they be here?


Actually, I dread questions like that. I have a hard time even knowing what I yearn for, let alone articulating it.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

madhatter said:


> Actually, I dread questions like that. I have a hard time even knowing what I yearn for, let alone articulating it.


 Doesn't that confirm you're a type 9? :tongue:

I understand your frustration with it. Do you prefer the motivation one?


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## madhatter (May 30, 2010)

Paradigm said:


> Doesn't that confirm you're a type 9? :tongue:
> 
> I understand your frustration with it. Do you prefer the motivation one?


Lol, yes...yes, it does.

I don't much like the motivation one either, but at least I can frame that one in the typology system. Less personal. XD


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

madhatter said:


> Lol, yes...yes, it does.
> 
> I don't much like the motivation one either, but at least I can frame that one in the typology system. Less personal. XD


 But _that's_ cheating.  Which is kinda what I'm afraid of, too. If we ask motivations then we'll get people quoting descriptions, and tbh I don't want that. Like I said, the newbs might be wrong on what motivations them, or downright won't know.


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## madhatter (May 30, 2010)

Paradigm said:


> But _that's_ cheating.  Which is kinda what I'm afraid of, too. If we ask motivations then we'll get people quoting descriptions, and tbh I don't want that. Like I said, the newbs might be wrong on what motivations them, or downright won't know.


That is a good point. The member who helped me with my type didn't ask what is your motivations. He asked me things like how do you handle conflict, what are reactions, etc. To narrow down the centers, probably. You know, not too technical or jargony, but not too broad or vague either.


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## kiskadee (Jan 9, 2009)

Spades said:


> 4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)?
> 
> 5. Your top biggest fear, why do you think you have it?


This part confuses me a little. Is the second one referring to phobias, since it doesn't have the "not including phobias" bit? Or is it just asking basically the same thing, with the only significant difference being that the second question is asking about only your biggest fear while the first is asking about all of your great fears? If it is the latter, would it perhaps make more sense to merge these two questions into one? Either way, I'd like more clarification.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

madhatter said:


> Maybe questions that zero in on the key motivations of the triad, something like "what motivates you more: anger, shame or fear?" and "How so?" or something along those lines.


I'm considering this. There is a definite danger of confirmation bias here. People who know about the different triads may be compelled to answer "anger" for example without really thinking it over, because they think they are a gut type. Also someone pointed out that 2's, 7's, and 9's might not be aware which *negative* emotions motivate them.



Paradigm said:


> [snip]


Thanks for the detailed suggestions! I will integrate them into the next version.

One thing that I was going for _was_ slight ambiguity. Some of the questions are meant to be interpreted in different ways, as the interpretations can say more about the person than the answer itself sometimes.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

Spades said:


> One thing that I was going for _was_ slight ambiguity. Some of the questions are meant to be interpreted in different ways, as the interpretations can say more about the person than the answer itself sometimes.


Ambiguity in what way? I mean, which questions were you referring to?

And you're welcome


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Grish said:


> This part confuses me a little. Is the second one referring to phobias, since it doesn't have the "not including phobias" bit? Or is it just asking basically the same thing, with the only significant difference being that the second question is asking about only your biggest fear while the first is asking about all of your great fears? If it is the latter, would it perhaps make more sense to merge these two questions into one? Either way, I'd like more clarification.





Paradigm said:


> Ambiguity in what way? I mean, which questions were you referring to?
> 
> And you're welcome


I will address both these questions, as well as provide a new revision much later on tonight.


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## luemb (Dec 21, 2010)

I've run a test run of version 1.0.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

*Revision 2.0:*

Main Questions

1. What gives you motivation in life?

2. What do you hope to accomplish by the end of your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why do you have them?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What makes you feel at your best? How do you feel?

7. What makes you feel at your worst? How do you feel?

8. Describe how you experience each of: anger, shame, anxiety.

9. How do you feel and behave under a lot of stress?

10. How reactive are you? Assertive? Passive?

Optional Questions

11. List some of your best traits.

12. List some of your weakest traits.

13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

14. How do you respond to an insult from a stranger?

15. How do you respond to a compliment from a stranger?

16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?

18. How self-confident are you? What would boost that confidence?

19. What is your overall outlook on your own life?

20. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?


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## soya (Jun 29, 2010)

Oops...wrote responses instead of helping revise. Guess I'll save those for the future thread.


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

Spades said:


> *Revision 2.0:*
> 
> Main Questions
> 
> ...


Good, only 2 I found could be manipulated by people trying to get a certain type, but it isn't easy enough to be a problem. The two were:

8: But the other questions would compensate, plus an honest answer would be really useful. And the wording here is good, because you have to answer each of them.

10: I could see somebody who was shooting for 9 saying they were passive, but ehhhhhh... not likely.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

*Revision 2.1:*

Main Questions

1. What gives you motivation in life?

2. What do you hope to accomplish by the end of your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why do you have them?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What situation makes you feel at your best? How do you feel?

7. What situation makes you feel at your worst? How do you feel?

8. Describe how you experience each of: anger, shame, anxiety.

9. How do you feel and behave under a lot of stress?

10. How reactive are you? How assertive? How passive?

Optional Questions

11. List some of the traits you like most about yourself.

12. List some of the traits you dislike most about yourself.

13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

14. How do you respond to an insult from a stranger?

15. How do you respond to a compliment from a stranger?

16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?

18. How self-confident are you? What would boost that confidence?

19. What is your overall outlook on your own life?

20. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?



 Aside: It feels weird having a Type 6 under my username.


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

Spades said:


> 10. How reactive are you? How assertive? How passive?


Hmm, the more I look at 10 the less I like it. I think some context would be needed.


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

Yeah, #10 needs revision. It can be polarizing. The 'reactive', 'assertive' and 'passive' can be easily associated with idealized types (esp. the assertive, and many types are assertive). I can also see people not fully explaining why they describe themselves as one of these. 
*
Sample revision:* Are you more likely to stand your ground or go with the flow? Is it easy to get a rise out of you or does it take a lot to ruffle your feathers?
[This covers both assertiveness and aggressiveness as well as passivity and reactivity (and whatever comes in between). It's also phrased in a way that's not e-jargony.]

The less enneagram specific references in the questions, the more honest I expect the answers to be. 

We absolutely need a question about *conflict* in the compulsory questions. Because stress doesn't always arise from conflict. Instead of adding another question, the question about response to stress could be turned into a two part question. 

*Sample:* Describe your response to 1. conflict 2. stress


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Owfin said:


> Hmm, the more I look at 10 the less I like it. I think some context would be needed.


I absolutely agree. I was really reluctant to add enneagram-specific questions but thought I would give it a shot. I really like @_Boss_'s suggestions regarding this so I'll include them in my next revision!


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

*Revision 2.2:*

Main Questions

1. What gives you motivation in life?

2. What do you hope to accomplish by the end of your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why do you have them?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What situation makes you feel at your best? How do you feel?

7. What situation makes you feel at your worst? How do you feel?

8. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

9. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

10. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?

Optional Questions

11. List some of the traits you like most about yourself.

12. List some of the traits you dislike most about yourself.

13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

[Room for two more]

16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?

18. How self-confident are you? What would boost that confidence?

19. What is your overall outlook on your own life?

20. What is your overall outlook on society and humanity?


*[This is an unfinished revision]*


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

Spades said:


> 1. What gives you motivation in life?


I still have _very serious_ doubts about the whole "motivation" phrasing. Can't you use another word or something?



> 6. What situation makes you feel at your best? How do you feel?
> 7. What situation makes you feel at your worst? How do you feel?


We should keep in mind that situations aren't always telling, but thank you for the addition 



> 10. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?


 This would be an okay optional question, but I don't think it should be a main one.



> 16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?
> 17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?


I can see these leaning more towards instinctual answers, so these are pretty good.



> 18. How self-confident are you? What would boost that confidence?


Totally not type-dependent at all. All this does is promote stereotypes.

----

I'll think on some questions to add, but gotta head out now.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Paradigm said:


> I'll think on some questions to add, but gotta head out now.


I'm starting to really dislike some of my own questions now as well. I do want to keep the word "motivation" in there somewhere. What do you find bothersome about it? I suspect my next revision will be a big one. Though I'm tired of hanging around PerC all weekend; it will have to wait a bit =)


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## LibertyPrime (Dec 17, 2010)

Spades said:


> I'm starting to really dislike some of my own questions now as well. I do want to keep the word "motivation" in there somewhere. What do you find bothersome about it? I suspect my next revision will be a big one. Though I'm tired of hanging around PerC all weekend; it will have to wait a bit =)


Hmm I think the problem would lie in the fact that if the person doing the questionnaire knows about motivation and has a preferred type in mind <.< they will just write that specific type's motivation in there and sabotage themselves.


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## luemb (Dec 21, 2010)

Rim said:


> Hmm I think the problem would lie in the fact that if the person doing the questionnaire knows about motivation and has a preferred type in mind <.< they will just write that specific type's motivation in there and sabotage themselves.


hm... this comment spawned a train of thought. 

Sometimes people mistype because they have no idea they are any different than anyone else. I didn't know I was "different" in having a constant, underlying stream of fear running through me, I thought that level of anxiety was normal. The only way to work around this is to get people to read descriptions, or to specifically ask them to describe what they see as "normal" somehow. 

Also, instead of the word motivation, you could say:
"What makes you decide to act? How do you choose to act?"
EDIT: It could also say: "When you do choose to act, what sort of considerations do you make in deciding how to act?"

Back to the first thing I mentioned, you could ask:
"What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?" -> may not provide very useful information, but in my case it would probably have helped.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

Spades said:


> What do you find bothersome about it? I suspect my next revision will be a big one.


 'Cause of what I said already and what Rim said.

Are you still working on the revision?

PS (to everyone): I request assisstance in What's My Type, it's getting stupidly silent in there. :'(


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Paradigm said:


> Are you still working on the revision?


I should get on that...it just seems like a never-ending task and I've been focusing on applying to grad schools and summer positions.

If anyone wants to volunteer to make the next revision, feel free! (I'll get to it _eventually_).


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

*REVISION 2.x* (with help from @Boss)

Main Questions

1. What drives you in life? What do you look for?

2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst? 

7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power. How do you respond to these?

10. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?

Optional Questions

11. List some of the traits you like most about yourself.

12. List some of the traits you dislike most about yourself.

13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

14. What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?

15. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?

16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?

18. 

19. 

20.


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## Falhalterra (Apr 24, 2011)

*Main Questions*

*1. What drives you in life? What do you look for?*

What drives me in life is my need for someone in my life, to be in love, to have many experiences. Pretty much, something internal that I can’t describe.

*2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?*

I hope to have a good job/career that pays well enough, marry at a young age, work together to build up each of our finances, travel around the world, and possibly have kids and really influence people for the better.

*3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?*

I hope to avoid arrogance, selfishness, and ignorance in myself. I don’t want to be too vindictive, manipulative or jealous.

*4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?*

One of my biggest fears is living alone and having to fully provide for myself. I grew up with my grandparents, being denied to see my real parents and ever being able to trust anyone with all the issues I had. There have only been a few people I have talked to about my problems and I don’t really spend any time thinking much of the future. I fear being alone every day more than anything because I don’t like to live only with myself. I feel more like me around people I enjoy being with.

*5. How do you want others to see you?*

I want others to see me as a loyal and trustworthy person worth loving and giving security to so that I don’t feel alone in this world and treated respectfully. I want to be taken seriously as well.

*6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst? *

What makes me feel my best is venting, having as much sugar as I need to operate each day ( xD ), having meaningful experiences, and loving myself for how I look and feel. What makes me feel my worst are all of my insecurities, anxiety, criticism, constant sarcasm, ridicule, doubt, and negative emotions coming from others.

*7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.*

A.) Anger: I rarely become very angry, thanks to stopping that earlier in High School by breathing and ignoring the stimulus. If I do, I’m slow to anger and it comes off more from incredible irritability more than anything else. B.) Shame: For me, it comes from my embarrassment. The more embarrassed I get, the more shame I get. It also happens every time I snap at someone or overreact about something. It can get to me so much that I can get severely depressed for a few hours. C.) Anxiety: I’m almost always experiencing this and it comes on very easily. It starts as nervousness in my chest and makes my arms shake, and can sometimes lead to shortened breathing close to a panic attack. I do have General Anxiety issues, so it’s not surprising. lol

*8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.*

A.) Stress: I take long deep breaths and try to escape the situation or ignore it by mentally blocking it out. B.) Unexpected change: I get angry, depressed, sad, and then I vent in order to deal. C.) Conflict: I come off as irritable, but I do accept what I need to do. More or not I usually compromise.

*9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power. How do you respond to these?*

A.) I respect most authority but I am always questioning it. It’s even on a bumper sticker on my car. I just respond by being cautious and skeptical. B.) Power: I fear it to an extent but I’m still trying to learn more about the various forms of it. I respond to it by being defensive, more often than not.

*10. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?*

I’m usually idealistic and optimistic, but there are times where I realize how naïve it is. Otherwise, I’m naturally realistic.

*Optional Questions*

*11. List some of the traits you like most about yourself.*

Honesty, loyalty, loving nature, understanding, nurturing, empathy, inherent goodness (my sense of morality), the ability to question myself even when I don’t want to, strong-willed, patience, imagination, creativity, and my sense of realism.

*12. List some of the traits you dislike most about yourself.*

My desperation, loneliness, slight ignorance to things I haven’t tried or watch, stubbornness, some resistance to change, childishness, and my emotional instabilities.

*13. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.*

I really want to improve on my confidence with talking to people in customer service. It would really help me improve in my job and find it easier to adapt to many other jobs out there. Plus, I’m tired of being scared of starting conversations, and I know I am a genuinely warm and talkative person.

*14. What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?*

I see the good things about people that they’d rather not see in themselves and I try to bring it out of them. I’m also good at reading emotions and checking for fake smiles or when someone is lying to me. I also tend to see the good in people and prefer not to believe in dualities.

*15. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?*

I’m usually going to become very irritable and upset, but I’ll try to hold back any insults coming from my brain to mouth. If I’m complimented, I smile a lot and my mood lifts a lot. I’ll usually stay that happy all day, no matter what happens to me to deter me from that state.

*16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?*

I am thankful to have this life I live and all the luxury I have, which isn’t considered luxury. I have a house to live in, grandparents who care about me, good friends who keep believing in me, and men who came through my life and taught me to love myself and better who I am.

*17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?*

I wish I could have a lover that never leaves, and always works through our problems with me. I can’t imagine not finding someone like that in my life and I yearn to be with someone I can share my experiences and completely be myself with.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

Falhalterra said:


> snip


 If you would like some help figuring out your type, please post in What's my Enneagram type? This thread is for questionnaire development and ideally we'd (I, maybe, but I'm a sucker for symmetry) like to add three more questions. Certainly available for use, though.

Thanks


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## unico (Feb 3, 2011)

@Paradigm -- I really like your revision. Unfortunately I can't think of anything to add right now


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

*Revision 3.0:
(A suggestion, but not sure about it)
*
1. What drives you in life? What do you look for?

2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst? 

7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power. How do you respond to these?

10. What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?

11. What do you appreciate most about others? What disappoints you?

12. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?

13. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

14. What's something you wish you could have? Why?

15. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?


*Maybe we could just keep it at 15 questions in total? I added #11 but this can be re-worded.*


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

Few things:

1. Since the compulsory questions are more in-depth than some of the optional ones, I don't see a point in having an equal number of compulsory and optional questions. I am pretty satisfied with the version Paradigm posted last. 

Though, there needs to be a filler question that gives them the option to talk about something random, some event that has impacted their life and their response to it, something personal or whatever the questionnaire didn't cover, but they find important and are comfortable sharing. it should be the first optional Q, so they don't miss it. 

2. It's best to keep 10 compulsory questions so people can really answer them in detail instead of having to bother with five more mandatory questions. Keep in mind that some of the main questions have several parts. 

3. It's important to keep the "what do you like and dislike about yourself" question in the optionals.

4. We could add trust as a third option to the power and authority question.

- working on a revision right now, will add in 10 minutes-


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

*Version 3.1*

*
Main Questions
*
1. What drives you in life? What do you look for?

2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst?

7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power How do you respond to these? 

10. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?


*Optional Questions*

11. Tell us about an event that has impacted your life significantly, more importantly how you responded to it.
AND/OR​
Tell us about a historical figure/artist/musician/poet/author whose work(s)/personality you can identify with. 

12. Comment on your relationship with trust.

13. List some of the traits you a) like; b) dislike most about yourself.

14. What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?

15. Choose a trait you really want to improve on and explain why.

16. What's something you are thankful you have? Why?

17. What's something you wish you could have? Why?


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## suicidal_orange (May 6, 2010)

This probably isn't the most constructive comment but it seems to me that these questions are targeted at naturally introspective but lazy people and are also very easy for those that want to be a type but someone's questioned it to prove they are a type they aren't - the questions are almost too direct/obvious. If you can answer these questions accurately the summary at the top of any good description should be enough to type yourself (with the exception of 6/9 maybe). But maybe that's the idea? Or maybe it's supposed to be aiming for a full tritype typing.. I never got in the loop for this discussion, maybe I should have actually read the thread(s) before replying :laughing:


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

Yeah, the idea was to keep them direct, to-the-point and not too e-specific. I don't think it's possible to bluff through the entire questionnaire just to get a certain type, assuming you're approaching it with some measure of honesty. Introspective?  You'll have to get your ass in 'introspective' gear to get something out of the questions, but you needn't be a naturally introspective aka 'lazy' person. LOL

What kind of wording do you prefer? Give an example. (q 18.)


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Boss said:


> Yeah, the idea was to keep them direct, to-the-point and not too e-specific. I don't think it's possible to bluff through the entire questionnaire just to get a certain type, assuming you're approaching it with some measure of honesty. Introspective?  You'll have to get your ass in 'introspective' gear to get something out of the questions, but you needn't be a naturally introspective aka 'lazy' person. LOL
> 
> What kind of wording do you prefer? Give an example. (q 18.)


Perhaps if we condense the questions such as #7 and 8 are, we don't need so many. Really my only personal preference is that the number of questions is divisible by 2 or 5, for aesthetic and/or obsessive-compulsive reasons =P


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

Psychologically speaking, I can see a 5 part question being rather annoying to answer. Combining Q7 and Q8 results in a very dense question. I don't want that, at all. They're among the most important questions listed. Even a simple question break can affect how its answered. I combined the list traits you like and dislike about yourself. 

If you really want the 2/5 divisibility thing, the idea of breaking up Q11 into two parts is the best option (18 Qs total is plenty). I see no need to subtract anything from the questionnaire. As for adding 2/3 more questions to the optionals, I find it pointless to have an equal number of main and optional questions. 10 optionals is a bit much for a 10 main Qs list.

However, I am open to replacing one/two of the optional questions if someone were to come up with more incisive ones.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Boss said:


> Psychologically speaking, I can see a 5 part question being rather annoying to answer. They're among the most important questions listed. Even a simple question break can affect how its answered. Combining Q7 and Q8 results in a very dense question. I don't want that, at all. I combined the list traits you like and dislike about yourself.


Sorry, I was afraid my wording might not be clear when I wrote it.

I meant, condense *other* questions, the way #7 and #8 are condensed. In fact, I'm worried they are _too_ condensed but the a), b), c) numbering makes it more effective.


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

I am not in favour of condensing the main questions any further. That'll compromise the quality of the questionnaire. As for the optional ones, I have condensed them as much as I could. So, leaving the 10 mains as they are, if you could suggest a workable condensed version for the optional ones, that'd be cool.


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## snail (Oct 13, 2008)

@Boss I'm trying out your questionnaire, to see if it tells you anything useful about my type.

*
Main Questions
*
1. What drives you in life? What do you look for? 

I am driven by my values and convictions. I seek a world that is fair and kind, where everyone can feel safe and accepted. When I see injustices, I am the force that opposes them.

2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?

I want to inspire people to reach their full potential, on a spiritual level.

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being?

I want to avoid becoming a hateful person. It is important to avoid being permissive, but it is also important not to alienate the people I am trying to make less harmful.

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?

My biggest fear is that I am displeasing to God, because I worry that it is easier to say how things should be than to live accordingly, and that all of this condemnation and disapproval I feel toward the evils around me will someday be turned back on me.

5. How do you want others to see you?

I want others to see me as a compassionate, wise, sensitive, morally pure, harmless, nurturing person who is able to empower others to be more authentic, but more than wanting to be perceived that way, I want to actually be all of those things someday.

6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst?

Hugs, acceptance and approval make me feel my best, but only if I am being rewarded for things that are real rather than for modifying my behavior in unnatural ways. Criticism and accusations make me feel my worst. I don't want to be bad, and I definitely don't want anyone to treat me like I am bad for things that aren't actually wrong.

7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

Anger makes me panic because it comes on so suddenly, in fierce bursts that I can't prevent. I tend to yell something in response to the thing that triggered it, cry, and get all shaky.

Shame is terrible, so I try to avoid doing anything I will be ashamed of. When I feel ashamed, it is a heavy feeling near my stomach that distracts me from everything else. 

Anxiety tends to cause panic attacks, and is closely related to anger. Most of the time, when I experience anxiety, it is because something is unfair and makes me angry. When it isn't anger-related, it just sort of paralyzes me and keeps me from doing the things that cause it.

8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

When I am stressed out, I stop all projects, isolate myself and try to eliminate all reminders of responsibilities. I become as idle as possible until I feel capable of dealing with things again.

Unexpected change can be good or bad. If it is a good change, I flow with it. If it is a bad change, I resist it.

Conflict makes me feel disconnected, so the first thing I do to stabilize myself after having a conflict is to find validation from another person who cares about me and accepts me. I have an "interpersonal" coping style when I am recovering from having been accused, wronged, or made to defend my values against someone's unfair or harmful ideas. Nothing else works.

9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power How do you respond to these? 

I don't really believe in authority, other than God's authority. Nobody else should have power over anyone else except to prevent that person from being harmful. Dominance hierarchies are usually artificial, and tend to come from devaluing passive or non-forceful blessings, which are the ones that are actually the most important. We can all teach and guide each other. It is our duty to do so.

Power comes in many forms, many of which are misunderstood. It is just an amplifier of whatever is already there, whether that thing is good or evil.

10. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?

The meaning of life is to love everyone, which is so difficult that even knowing what I am supposed to do does not make it any easier. Humanity is corrupt, and needs to be reformed. Whether or not we are able to fix the things that are wrong with it, we ought to at least try as hard as we possibly can. If we don't, nothing will change, and the world will continue to be evil and unfair.




I'll probably answer the optional questions later.


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

@snail, I'd appreciate some feedback on the questions! I can definitely see your core 1w2 as well as your 6 head fix coming through.


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## snail (Oct 13, 2008)

Boss said:


> @snail, I'd appreciate some feedback on the questions! I can definitely see your core 1w2 as well as your 6 head fix coming through.


Whether or not the questions were effective was determined by how well you could apply them to figure out my type. 

I didn't have a problem answering any of them. They made sense to me, although I couldn't always tell what you were trying to figure out with them, because of my own ignorance about the Enneagram.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

snail said:


> Whether or not the questions were effective was determined by how well you could apply them to figure out my type.
> 
> I didn't have a problem answering any of them. They made sense to me, although I couldn't always tell what you were trying to figure out with them, because of my own ignorance about the Enneagram.


Knowing your own type can bias your answers heavily. Knowing the type of the person doing the survey can also bias the guess heavily. It's a difficult thing to test 

I'll revise it when I'm less lazy =)


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

snail said:


> They made sense to me, although I couldn't always tell what you were trying to figure out with them...


That was the point. Hopefully, the questions are phrased in a way that even those with a deeper understanding of the enneagram will find it difficult to answer them in a, deliberately (As opposed to naturally), type-specific way.


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## suicidal_orange (May 6, 2010)

Boss said:


> Yeah, the idea was to keep them direct, to-the-point and not too e-specific. I don't think it's possible to bluff through the entire questionnaire just to get a certain type, assuming you're approaching it with some measure of honesty. Introspective?  You'll have to get your ass in 'introspective' gear to get something out of the questions, but you needn't be a naturally introspective aka 'lazy' person. LOL


As usual I've been misinterpreted - the laziness isn't the natural ability to be introspective but that once you've done the introspection you don't bother to compare your findings to the types and instead get someone do it for you. 

Maybe I'm too well read but 1, 3, 4 and 6 are pretty much 'fakable' to a specific type and 7 and 8 are triad oriented to support the chosen type. I could bluff it but you're right that it's pointless. In a perfect world the whole questionnaire would make it impossible to do but that's easier said than done!



Boss said:


> What kind of wording do you prefer? Give an example. (q 18.)


Hmm... I'd have to go with something entirely different rather than just amending the wording. I don't know what it's called but a question like "What was the reason for the end of your closest childhood friendship?" would give an insight in to whether you're relationship oriented (if there's signs of sadness that it ended or if it's been maintained) as well as how much you dwell in the past (short answer = moves on quickly), whether you analyse the break-up logically or it's all emotional... It's vague and requires no effort or introspection, yet it's telling in many ways. What do you think?


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

asmit127 said:


> Hmm... I'd have to go with something entirely different rather than just amending the wording. I don't know what it's called but a question like "What was the reason for the end of your closest childhood friendship?" would give an insight in to whether you're relationship oriented (if there's signs of sadness that it ended or if it's been maintained) as well as how much you dwell in the past (short answer = moves on quickly), whether you analyse the break-up logically or it's all emotional... It's vague and requires no effort or introspection, yet it's telling in many ways. What do you think?


No, because a lot of it depends on individual situations. I, for example, never had a close _childhood_ friendship, but that was for reasons unrelated.

Besides, it's very uncomfortable and hard for me to reveal personal things about myself sometimes.


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## suicidal_orange (May 6, 2010)

@Owfin - even by declining to answer you have shown that you're a private person and that's telling. I have little hesitation in revealing the what of my past, it's the how it affected me that's private and rarely revealed while a 4 would probably focus on how they felt about it.

Could I suggest that the type 6 fear of everything might have something to do with your hesitance? What can anyone really do with stories from your childhood anyway? (Rhetorical questions...)

Nothing personal, My question was made up on the spot with little thought so it's probably no good but it's the style I was trying to demonstrate :happy:


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

asmit127 said:


> As usual I've been misinterpreted - the laziness isn't the natural ability to be introspective but that once you've done the introspection you don't bother to compare your findings to the types and instead get someone do it for you.


I was joking about the laziness. It wasn't a misinterpretation. 
*laugh* Though, of course, I expect people to put in the effort necessary to arrive at their type. The questionnaire is just a starting point. In fact, people who want to be typed will have to put in the most work. Spoon feeding someone a type or shoving it down their throat (As some interpret it) is not the intention. 



asmit127 said:


> Maybe I'm too well read but 1, 3, 4 and 6 are pretty much 'fakable' to a specific type and 7 and 8 are triad oriented to support the chosen type. I could bluff it but you're right that it's pointless. In a perfect world the whole questionnaire would make it impossible to do but that's easier said than done!


See, regardless of how 'well read' you are/aren't, if a person really intends to be dishonest and is a seasoned bluffer/troll, they'll try to twist any kind of questionnaire to (try and) get the results they desire. That said, someone very familiar with the Enneagram or someone adept at reading between the lines (think type 6) should be able to find some interesting/valuable clues. 

Besides, 'playing the part' or fabricating 'a character' can be somewhat easy to spot. That's why I don't support 'keyword' based typing. It's ridiculous. It's vital to make the process conversational and respectful (give them space is imp.), and to keep an eye out for underlying themes in the answers.

At the end of the day, typing yourself is the very first step. It's also a very challenging and time consuming process. So, self-awareness and self- improvement go above and beyond what a so-called type me thread on a personality forum could ever encompass. It can be a useful starting point, and that's about it. 



asmit127 said:


> Hmm... I'd have to go with something entirely different rather than just amending the wording. I don't know what it's called but a question like "What was the reason for the end of your closest childhood friendship?" would give an insight in to whether you're relationship oriented (if there's signs of sadness that it ended or if it's been maintained) as well as how much you dwell in the past (short answer = moves on quickly), whether you analyse the break-up logically or it's all emotional... It's vague and requires no effort or introspection, yet it's telling in many ways. What do you think?


Interesting. To be honest, I would phrase the questions in a very vague way. It's just quite difficult to do. It's important to keep them broad and not too personal, though people are certainly encouraged to share as much as they can within reason and without feeling uncomfortable.

I can be very self-revealing, intensely so. That's not true of a lot of people. Perhaps, it tells something about their type/stacking. Any information (or lack of it) can be insightful in itself.


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## Owfin (Oct 15, 2011)

asmit127 said:


> Hmm... I'd have to go with something entirely different rather than just amending the wording. I don't know what it's called but a question like "What was the reason for the end of your closest childhood friendship?" would give an insight in to whether you're relationship oriented (if there's signs of sadness that it ended or if it's been maintained) as well as how much you dwell in the past (short answer = moves on quickly), whether you analyse the break-up logically or it's all emotional... It's vague and requires no effort or introspection, yet it's telling in many ways. What do you think?


Also, I would dislike that questionnaire. The current one, at times, invites me to answer. It beckons. It makes me want to reveal information. Whereas yours would shut me up. Just knowing that I am private would not really tell you anything

So it might be good to have one of the questions like that, but certainly not all.


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

*REVISION 3.5* (more @Boss help )

*Main Questions
*
1. What drives you in life? What do you look for?

2. What do you hope to accomplish in your life?

3. What do you hope to avoid doing or being? What values are important to you?

4. What are your biggest fears (not including phobias)? Why?

5. How do you want others to see you?

6. What makes you feel your best? What makes you feel your worst?

7. Describe how you experience each of: a) anger; b) shame; c) anxiety.

8. Describe how you respond to each of: a) stress; b) unexpected change; c) conflict.

9. Describe your orientation to: a) authority; b) power. How do you respond to these? 

10. What is your overall outlook on life and humanity?


*Optional Questions*

11. Tell us about an event that has impacted your life significantly; more importantly, how you responded to it.

12. Comment on your relationship with trust.

13. List some of the traits you: a) like; b) dislike most about yourself.

14. What do you see or notice in others that most people don't?

15. If a stranger insults you, how do you respond/feel? What if they compliment you?

16. What's something you are: a) thankful you have; b) wish you could have? Why?


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## Paradigm (Feb 16, 2010)

If no one has any objections or proposed alterations, then I'd like this posted in the WMT subforum. 

@Spades, would you like to do it, or shall I? We'll have to ask a mod to sticky it. And preferably add a little note that the more info the better, etc. and stuff.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Paradigm said:


> If no one has any objections or proposed alterations, then I'd like this posted in the WMT subforum.
> 
> @Spades, would you like to do it, or shall I? We'll have to ask a mod to sticky it. And preferably add a little note that the more info the better, etc. and stuff.


I'll do it ^_^


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

I think we're all on the same page here. Starting a new thread with the final questionnaire sounds like a great idea. It would be nice to add an "Other thoughts/additions" or, however you want to phrase it, thing at the end. A sticky would be wonderful.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Posting now. Shortened #11 a wee bit so it fits on one line on my screen. Yes, I'm ridiculous. Included a small disclaimer. *Let me know if you want your name removed*. I have 24 hours where I'm able to edit the post. Thanks so much everyone!!


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## Sina (Oct 27, 2010)

YAY!! Completion feels so good! Thanks for all your time and efforts and thoughts, everyone! 

@Spades, I've seen people respond to the questionnaire right on the questionnaire thread on other forums. It's very disorganized . Do add another disclaimer reminding people to create individualized threads on the WMT sub-forum instead of responding to the OP with their answers.


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## Promethea (Aug 24, 2009)

stickying this.


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## Spades (Aug 31, 2011)

Promethea said:


> stickying this.


Hey, thanks! I have the finished version in the What's My Type forum stickied already ^_^


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## Promethea (Aug 24, 2009)

Spades said:


> Hey, thanks! I have the finished version in the What's My Type forum stickied already ^_^


Ooo.. ok. Thats even better.


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