# Reactions to Learning Enneagram by Enneatype



## LostFavor (Aug 18, 2011)

Literally thought of this while in the shower, for amusement.

Figured I'd share. 

Note this is thought of as reactions to learning enneagram. Not to be confused with reactions to enneagram in general. Some people just don't care and aren't interested at all; I'm not including those people in this.

1 - Will heavily contemplate whether being a one is the right thing to do.

2 - Will help other people figure out their type with a big smile on their face.

3 - Will be the best three they can possibly be. 

4 - Will resist being any one enneatype for long, since being a single type means being like everyone else.

5 - Will learn as much as possible about how it all works, so they can draw thorough conclusions and protect those conclusions. 

6 - Will find a support group of other sixes as fast as possible.

7 - Will try on as many different types as possible before moving on.

8 - Will try to restructure the logic of the typing process, such that they have control over what type they are.

9 - Will accept quiz results to keep the peace, even if it means wearing an inaccurate enneatype label.


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## Flaming Bassoon (Feb 15, 2013)

LostFavor said:


> 7 - Will try on as many different types as possible before moving on.


I did this for a while because I kept changing my mind. That fast moving mind is what finally made me identify myself as a head type -- first 6w7 cuz I have anxiety problems, but once those were sorted out I saw the light lord, I saw the light.


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## Lord Bullingdon (Aug 9, 2014)

LostFavor said:


> 5 - Will learn as much as possible about how it all works, so they can draw thorough conclusions and protect those conclusions.
> 
> ...
> 
> ...


I just thought it was funny because these are my core/connections and I've done all these things at some point. Not sure if everyone has these issues with typing, though.


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

LostFavor said:


> Literally thought of this while in the shower, for amusement.
> 
> Figured I'd share.
> 
> ...


with all due respect....this is not accurate at all. more like 

1: "hmmm, yeah, I guess I can be a little critical. I should probably work on my anger a bit and not be so hard on myself and others"
2 (correctly typed): "wow....I'm an egotistical asshole" :laughing:
2s (incorrectly typed): "finally a description that appreciates my goodness!" 
3: wait what? I promise I'm not that much of a narcissist. I must be some other type. I'm cheerful and easy to get along with, maybe I'm a 7 (to be fair, they are right about the narcissism bit. most 3 descriptions suck)
4: "yay! I'm special" (whether or not they're actually correctly typed....)
5: "ok, makes sense"
6 (phobic): "....I guess. I wanted to be a 4 :sad: "
6 (counter-phobic): "LMAO! what are you talking about. I'm an 8!  "
7: "eww! I don't want to be this irresponsible! I'll try on 1, 3 or 8 for awhile and see if that fits better"...*a few month later*: "damn, I really am a 7"
8: "ok, yeah. I'm an 8" 
9: "wait....it says I'm angry? I don't think I'm angry? do other people think I'm angry :sad: "


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Swordsman of Mana said:


> with all due respect....this is not accurate at all. more like
> 
> 1: "hmmm, yeah, I guess I can be a little critical. I should probably work on my anger a bit and not be so hard on myself and others"
> 2 (correctly typed): "wow....I'm an egotistical asshole" :laughing:
> ...


Love this list, but one correction:



> 4: "yay! I'm special" (whether or not they're actually correctly typed....) *ONLY IF they're incorrectly typed.*


4: "ugh, I'm so embarrassed, I don't want anyone to know this about me..." IF they're correctly typed.


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## Quernus (Dec 8, 2011)

Animal said:


> Love this list, but one correction:
> 
> 
> 4: "ugh, I'm so embarrassed, I don't want anyone to know this about me..." IF they're correctly typed.



Yes... :blushed: I literally felt my face grow hot and I got a little woozy/dizzy. 


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Also, with regards to 7: I've never had a 7 *not* be like "Yep, that's pretty much me in a nutshell!" Based on friends IRL anyway. One of my coworkers became so impressed by the accuracy, he printed it out, went home and showed his mom! Lol. Then that was all he talked about for days.

Oh, actually, there was one person... who said "oh... god... don't say that... no, stop! You've said too much." All I did was say I suspected he was a 7, and gave a *very* brief summary that amounted to "wanting to experience novelty and excitement as a distraction from introspection, and a fear of being trapped in pain". Then he refused to actually read about 7 because it was too painful, rofl. But he agreed.


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## Quernus (Dec 8, 2011)

Animal said:


> _4: "yay! I'm special" _(whether or not they're actually correctly typed....)*ONLY IF they're incorrectly typed.*




I honestly don't even see how people mistyping as Fours could have that reaction! It's like, a breakdown of defense mechanisms related to preserving identity, not an _actual _bolstering of identity. And it can further reinforce that the "difference" Fours feel/have from "everyone else" is either partially delusional (not entirely, but subconsciously self-fed).... or at least, _*not* inherently (or even effectively) a good thing. 

_Among other things, I basically read it like this: 

"You're obsessed with yourself because you know you're actually defective, and you're afraid of that defectiveness/banality/unloveability so you make everything more intense and dramatic than it needs to be, to try to attract someone who might REALLY understand you, flaws and all, but you push them away before they can actually prove it to you, and instead fantasize about their idealized images even though you _hate _when others do that to you (while also kind of thriving off of it for brief periods). And also you are consumed by envy over petty comparisons that -surprise- no one else actually even cares about anyway... You are needlessly extreme and intense out of some twisted mix of self-absorption/self-preservation/self-sabotage, and you will basically suffer alone for much of your life (which you also kinda get off on). And you don't want anyone to know, so you will go to great lengths to appear a certain way/avoid looking a certain way [insert embarrassing examples here], so just get over yourself. PS - You are not actually 'authentic'. BOOM" 

Now that's just me but I don't know how anyone would celebrate being called out on that. Mistyped or not.


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## periwinklepromise (Jan 26, 2015)

Quernus said:


> Among other things, I basically read it like this:
> 
> "You're obsessed with yourself because you know you're actually defective, and you're afraid of that defectiveness/banality/unloveability so you make everything more intense and dramatic than it needs to be, to try to attract someone who might REALLY understand you, flaws and all, but you push them away before they can actually prove it to you, and instead fantasize about their idealized images even though you _hate _when others do that to you (while also kind of thriving off of it for brief periods). And also you are consumed by envy over petty comparisons that -surprise- no one else actually even cares about anyway... You are needlessly extreme and intense out of some twisted mix of self-absorption/self-preservation/self-sabotage, and you will basically suffer alone for much of your life (which you also kinda get off on). And you don't want anyone to know, so you will go to great lengths to appear a certain way/avoid looking a certain way [insert embarrassing examples here], so just get over yourself. PS - You are not actually 'authentic'. BOOM"
> 
> Now that's just me but I don't know how anyone would celebrate being called out on that. Mistyped or not.


I agree that this is a better reading of type 4, but the beauty of mistyping yourself is that these things are not _actually_ your deepest issues, so you tend to just scan for the "fun stuff".

A non-4 might read this same passage as a description and pull out:
"You're afraid of the banality, so you make everything more intense." Yeah, I'm definitely not boring!
"People don't REALLY understand you." It's so sad to be superior to all the boring people I made fun of in junior high school. It's not my fault I'm deep
"You instead fantasize about their idealized images." I'm sooo imaginative and creative, I'm a real dreamer
"You will basically suffer alone for much of your life." I'm so noble and interesting and deep! and some princely figure will come eventually!
"PS - You are not actually authentic." Oh, I'm not one of them, I'm _actually _authentic.

It's a lot easier being called out for stuff if it doesn't actually apply to you. Then you can just laugh it off or wear it like a badge. 

I've seen so many people initially mistype at 4, and they definitely all said, "Oh, thank god, I'm _actually_ special. Not like those other people who are just *faking*."


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Quernus said:


> Yes... :blushed: I literally felt my face grow hot and I got a little woozy/dizzy.


My reaction as I finally couldn't deny it anymore was pretty dramatic, but I won't bore everyone with a long rendition...



> Also, with regards to 7: I've never had a 7 *not* be like "Yep, that's pretty much me in a nutshell!" Based on friends IRL anyway. One of my coworkers became so impressed by the accuracy, he printed it out, went home and showed his mom! Lol. Then that was all he talked about for days.


Pretty much my experience too. They love being 7s, and think it's the best type and they won the jackpot as usual, "me and my luck!!" and talk about all facets of it until it's boring and then move on to something else. The 7s I know (including my father, who is a 7w8) LOVE to be teased about 7s' flaws and how they think they're so great etc; they make it fun.

My 7w6 friend literally said, "Being a 7 is like winning the jackpot of enneagram!"


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## Despotic Nepotist (Mar 1, 2014)

Swordsman of Mana said:


> with all due respect....this is not accurate at all. more like
> 
> 1: "hmmm, yeah, I guess I can be a little critical. I should probably work on my anger a bit and not be so hard on myself and others"
> 2 (correctly typed): "wow....I'm an egotistical asshole" :laughing:
> ...


Not with the intention of derailing the thread, but out of curiosity, what would you say the most common and the rarest tritypes are?


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## NylonSmiles (Sep 19, 2012)

Animal said:


> My reaction as I finally couldn't deny it anymore was pretty dramatic, but I won't bore everyone with a long rendition...


When I found out I was a 4 I actually grieved for a bit lol


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

NylonSmiles said:


> When I found out I was a 4 I actually grieved for a bit lol


I cried for two weeks.. although there were also painful events that pushed me to realize it .. (perceived rejection by another 4, mirroring).. too complicated to explain outside of art. I came back to write a post about it and then quit the forum for a while. I felt naked. It took me more than a year after typing that way to start talking about the actual issues and how they manifested in me, like shame and envy and the shallowness of embodying your 'authentic/flawed identity' ... thus presenting something contrived... instead of just _being_. I hate the idea of being contrived, shallow in any way... I mean I know it on some level, at times, but I didn't want to talk about it. Still don't, really.


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## NylonSmiles (Sep 19, 2012)

I kid you not, I practically reacted the same way. And like you I was dealing with situational stuff but finding this description was bitter sweet in a way as it explained soo much, yet at the time it almost felt too late for me being in the bottom health levels so I grieved over the realization of what I was, but also not having had the explanation earlier. I finally came back about a year and a half later when I was still typing at 459 due to trauma asking how being a Sx dom and triple withdrawn can coexist because I was feeling so at odds with my own nature. Actually if it wasn't for your descriptions of 7 that go way beyond the typical surface ones, I would probably still be typing that way or have just given up on tritypes @*Animal*


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## Quernus (Dec 8, 2011)

*1- *All right, I may be the annoying fuddy duddy right now, but SOMEONE'S got to know how to do everything right. When I reach my final form, everyone will thank me. Well, everyone who has proven worthy.

*2-* My!*some sort of My Little Pony character voice*What an awful, yucky description! Riso and Hudson, this is the thanks I get... after all I've done for you.

*3- *Yeah, what's the problem? I'm wealthy/CEO/Democratically Elected Tsar, you're not. I win, you lose, that's fine.

*4- .*..Oh, god... I AM THE WORST.... someone put me out of my misery.... even the "unbiased" writers think I'm the worst, look at how humiliating my descriptions are compared to everyone else's! What have I done... why am I this way?!!

*5-* *Frowns* I suppose there's nothing I can dispute about this. In fact, all of my most successful D&D and RPG characters act this way, they must be 5s as well. Now excuse me, I have "work" to do. 

_*Privately researches the entire history of enneagram, all of its implications and theories, sets up thing to receive alerts whenever new information is posted online about it, then goes back to whatever they were working on before*
_
*p6-* Okay, yeah, that's true, yep, checks out. Eh. Bleh. Is this bad? Being a six? I mean, am I doing it right? 

*cp6-* *Throws book across room* f*ck that astrology business, you're not telling me what to do! How to think, what to wear! F*cking horogram enneascopes trying to reverse psychology me into taking off my tin hat.

*7- * Hahahaha, yep! How'd they know? Yeah, I TOTALLY do this! Oh, that too... whoops... hahaha. Makes sense, Seven is known as the luckiest number, after all! *throws a Seven-themed party* *wakes up next morning* What happened last night? Oh well... *Moves on to something else*

*8-* Right. I'm sure I'm just a huggable ol' teddy bear underneath everything, whatever. So basically, don't F*CK with me (~or my son ever again~), and we're good. :angry:...:laughing: ...Just playin' (....not just playin'). 

*9*- wow, this does make sense, this must be true. Wait, is it true? I mean, I don't think I'm angry... I mean, do you think I'm angry? I mean, I guess I can see how I'm angry sometimes, maybe. If you insist. We can agree to disagree, I don't wanna argue about it or anything, it doesn't really matter anyway.


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## d e c a d e n t (Apr 21, 2013)

Animal said:


> My 7w6 friend literally said, "Being a 7 is like winning the jackpot of enneagram!"


It can certainly seem that way. I don't even _like _7 much, but being one still seems nice at times. =P


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## Stellafera (Jan 19, 2015)

Anecdotally, I've noticed that 9s seem to be the most common "how the hell did you not see these traits in yourself" type. Some people will sound like a copy-pasted type 9 description and you ask them their thoughts on the theory and it goes 

"I'm hovering between 3, 4, and 6... typing is too hard for me"



Swordsman of Mana said:


> 6 (phobic): "....I guess. I wanted to be a 4 :sad: "


Opposite reaction here. When I started enneagram I barely understood what a 4s deal even was, they were angsty on a level I didn't even understand. I just thought, nobody's fundamentally broken, if you're broken you can go fix yourself, why are we still on this.

_(Note to the 4s in this thread: I'm sorry)_

*Type 6:* "I'm loving the parts about the anxiety and catastrophism, but how am I supposed to believe that I'm 'not an independent thinker' if nobody has ever told me that before? "

----

I love @Quernus's, ha


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## O_o (Oct 22, 2011)

Lol, every 3 I've met and showed the description to felt uncomfortable with the narcissistic tones tied to them. Or just very uncomfortable that the entire thing existed and that I knew about it. 

With the 1 description- Initial reaction was "Aw.. no, I'm much more easy going and flexible than this, right guys? Friends? Family?" *crickets* I had/have a hard time swallowing "black and white thinking" and "I'm right - you're wrong" themes some go on about.


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## Quernus (Dec 8, 2011)

Okay now I will do a serious one.

1- Well, this isn't good. But looks like there is a way to improve. I'm going to overcome all these shortcomings and be the heathiest One I can be! edit: Or, brief denial period, picking apart all the parts of the description they don't think relate to them/think they're above.

2- Wow. I guess I really am a little manipulative. I do try to be everything for everyone else. So do any of my friends really like me for me? This explains a lot. Gosh... I'm so lonely...

3- Pretty much the same as what I wrote above as a joke, but maybe less callously. Or maybe not less callously.

4- Also pretty much the same as what I wrote above as a joke, or in several comments to this thread, lol. But basically: "This is really embarrassing, I hope other people don't see through this", and then a period of thinking very heavily about what it means about oneself and wtf to do 

5- Sure. *detached* I acknowledge this seems accurate. *Sees the problems re: detachment from a detached angle, finds it very curious, doesn't really do anything about it right away... if ever*

6- Wow. This is definitely me. (at least in my experience, this is how they've all reacted... I would like to see something more climactic)

7- Yep, me in a nutshell! *moves on immediately, or, gets excited for awhile and then moves on*

8- So?

9- Oh... my... Hmmm.... I DO have issues with boundaries. Wow. Am I really angry? I don't know anymore. Well, I'm going to focus on the peacekeeper aspect, that's such a positive thing! I'm definitely a peacekeeper.


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## Quernus (Dec 8, 2011)

O_o said:


> Lol, every 3 I've met and showed the description to felt uncomfortable with the narcissistic tones tied to them. Or just very uncomfortable that the entire thing existed and that I knew about it.


For me, they've just kind of acknowledged it and focused on the success/ambition aspect. But they're usually very quiet about it. I wonder if they are so quiet because they are secretly uncomfortable and not wanting to admit/let onto it (as they're prone to doing). I sure hope so. 



> With the 1 description- Initial reaction was "Aw.. no, I'm much more easy going and flexible than this, right guys? Friends? Family?" *crickets* I had/have a hard time swallowing "black and white thinking" and "I'm right - you're wrong" themes some go on about.


Actually, yeah, my ex who is a One reacted similarly. Or kind of like "Oh... I don't know about this, ehhh. I don't think I'm THAT extreme. Ugh, I can see why you think this part, but [excuse about why he was better than that]".

Other Ones, however, have seemed to kind of accept it... not happily, and they also tend to point out how they're not "THAT" extreme on certain aspects... but they also seem to see it as something to overcome. Then again, I wasn't as close to those people, so maybe on the inside they were reacting differently.


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

@** @Quernus

This is exactly what happened with @*Sun Daeva*. We were online, talking about, at the time, his gut *fix* ..

And we got to a 1 description and this is what he said, almost to a T:

Him:
I'm not critical. I have criticisms in my head all the time, but I don't say them aloud... because I'm not perfect either, and I hate being criticized... so I don't want to be a hypocrite.

Me:
And that makes you _not_ a 1....because....???


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## Stellafera (Jan 19, 2015)

Quernus said:


> Actually, yeah, my ex who is a One reacted similarly. Or kind of like "Oh... I don't know about this, ehhh. I don't think I'm THAT extreme. Ugh, I can see why you think this part, but [excuse about why he was better than that]".
> 
> Other Ones, however, have seemed to kind of accept it... not happily, and they also tend to point out how they're not "THAT" extreme on certain aspects... but they also seem to see it as something to overcome. Then again, I wasn't as close to those people, so maybe on the inside they were reacting differently.


1s come across to me like they're having a push pull between _wanting_ to be firm about things but _knowing_ that human society at large considers that behavior pushy and demanding.


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## O_o (Oct 22, 2011)

Quernus said:


> For me, they've just kind of acknowledged it and focused on the success/ambition aspect. But they're usually very quiet about it. I wonder if they are so quiet because they are secretly uncomfortable and not wanting to admit/let onto it (as they're prone to doing). I sure hope so.


LOL, I'd like to know too :kitteh:I think it's SP 3 more than the others (and the one specific strong case I'm thinking about was that combination as well). But it's overall not a positive trait, so I can see it feeling uncomfortable for some who think the trait is negative; as an image type, to read certain descriptions and think that the person next to you is reading them and thinking that those kind of descriptors fit. 



Animal said:


> @** @*Quernus*
> 
> This is exactly what happened with @*Sun Daeva*. We were online, talking about, at the time, his gut *fix* ..
> 
> ...


Lol definitely agree with that, about the criticism, then that thought of hypocrisy. With that criticism, overall, being more internally focused (or flipping around that way) in the end. But when people are being openly critical of others, I'll typically almost automatically be extra critical of them and throw something back if there's some hypocrisy. Critical people feel like fair game when it comes to openly criticizing


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## Mad Scientist (Jul 31, 2016)

This is great, the is why you need to have people around you help you type, because most types ironically have each of these.


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Mad Scientist said:


> This is great, the is why you need to have people around you help you type, because most types ironically have each of these.


Yeah... I mistyped and someone really nailed me to the wall with Sx 4.... and I remember him saying that every argument I made for why I'm not a 4 was more 4ish than the last. :ninja:

On my very first typing thread, someone suggested 4 and I told her I have no shame whatsoever and I've never envied anyone, because I would want to be "MORE ME" rather than be anyone else, and I can't stand people who envy others and have no identity of their own.. and shame is a useless waste of life. Then I went ahead and made another typing thread and redirected everyone. And I focused on other themes.... 3ish themes! Success!!! Oh but every single thing was more 4ish than the last, still. Fortunately for me, nobody on that thread was able to figure it out at the time, but now when I show people parts of the thread they break out laughing at how 4ish it is..even in my attempt to NOT SEEM ANYTHING LIKE A 4 BECAUSE OMG THAT IS NOT ME!!!! .. sigh. I really hate myself for this sometimes. I prided myself on ... for all my flaws.. at least I was self-aware. Well, I guess I was self-aware which is why people immediately saw 4, but then I didn't like what they saw...


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Oh, I just remembered the crux of my argument for why I was _so not a 4_....

I insisted that I don’t need an ‘identity’ because I strive to be true to myself and to wear my true self on my sleeve. So the whole idea of ‘identity’ was contrived. Why did people need an identity? Why couldn't they just be themselves, and present their 'true self' to the world? Those damn fakers. I would represent my true sense of self with my clothing, my music, my attitude. Why do I need an identity then?


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## Stellafera (Jan 19, 2015)

Animal said:


> Oh, I just remembered the crux of my argument for why I was _so not a 4_....
> 
> I insisted that I don’t need an ‘identity’ because I strive to be true to myself and to wear my true self on my sleeve. So the whole idea of ‘identity’ was contrived. Why did people need an identity? Why couldn't they just be themselves, and present their 'true self' to the world? Those damn fakers. I would represent my true sense of self with my clothing, my music, my attitude. Why do I need an identity then?



:laughing: And that's why sometimes people _aren't_ the best judges of their own behavior.


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Stellafera said:


> :laughing: And that's why sometimes people _aren't_ the best judges of their own behavior.


/Animal crawls under the bed to judge its own behavior by itself/


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## bramble (Feb 4, 2016)

I _sighed_ when I typed as a 4



My 3w4 friend didn't like typing as a 3, she never looked further into it haha. She didn't like the 'shallow image focus'


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## Mad Scientist (Jul 31, 2016)

I would think most 4s would not want to be typed at all, that's how my sister is. With both MBTI, INTJ, and enneagram, 1w9, I realized I'm one of the most unrelatable people, which is the main reason I struggle with knowing my personality.


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## Shinsei (May 9, 2016)

>


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## karmachameleon (Nov 1, 2015)

Animal said:


> Love this list, but one correction:
> 
> 
> 4: "ugh, I'm so embarrassed, I don't want anyone to know this about me..." IF they're correctly typed.


Reading about 4s myself didnt make me embarrassed. What did make me embarrassed was when I was telling my sister about enneagram, and then I had to tell her what my type is and explain it...
Finally finding out my type was a relief because I could understand myself and my masochistic, melancholic tendencies and learn to spot them.


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

Mad Scientist said:


> I would think most 4s would not want to be typed at all, that's how my sister is. With both MBTI, INTJ, and enneagram, 1w9, I realized I'm one of the most unrelatable people, which is the main reason I struggle with knowing my personality.


No, fours in general like to know "what's wrong with them," and typing at 4 sheds light on that. Fours spend their whole life trying to find the 'missing piece' and why there's something missing from within that would make them complete. They love to have answers for where their flaws stem from, as that is part of understanding their origin, their nature, their psychology. Ichazo refers to type 4 as an analytical type for this reason - because fours love to reflect on their own nature. And since a 4 spends their whole life building up an identity based on their own origin, ideals, flaws etc, they aren't generally threatened by being typed a certain way. I don't believe that myth at all; I've never met an actual four who is like that.


Sixes are like that, though. They don't like limitations to be imposed on them; they want their minds to be free. I often see sixes writing that they don't want someone to 'put them in a box' by typing them. They don't like the idea of being enslaved or summed up by an idea and then being expected to behave in a certain way. Sensitivity to expectations is the realm of the head triad, as is ideas. Sixes love to encompass a wide array of talents. They are one of the most expansive types, as they question everything and are skeptical and poke holes in things (like, don't LIMIT ME by calling me Type X . What does Type X even mean? Why cant I be Y too?? ) ... they are constantly deconstructing and reconstructing ideas to try to navigate the rapid thoughts and chaos they experience, and to feel secure in a world where nothing can be known for sure. Sixes are one of the most highly creative types in my experience, and this trait is VERY undervalued in six descriptions. Their minds can conjure all sorts of things. They are situated between type 5 who wants to dig into their mind to figure their mind out at its roots, and type 7 who wants to escape their mind. They also have a line to 3 and a keen interest in identity as compared to the other head types. The idea of restricting them to just one type feels stifling to them. 

But fours' identity can't be defined by anyone else, or even by an idea. Enneagram, to a four, can help them to reflect but that can also be a bad thing - as it is a way to cling to what is wrong with them, mourn that they can never change, over-analyze the problems that cause them to be so miserable and unlovable, and lose themselves in their 'digging deep down' to figure out what lies at the root of them, type included. Type is an easy way to communicate "What's wrong with me" although it's never enough; a four can find a thousand things wrong with them. But there won't be an issue about being 'limited' by an idea, a concept, or a type the way it is for sixes.


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## Jerdle (Dec 30, 2015)

*6: *Nope. This description is bullsh*t. I must be a [4 or 9 if p, 8 or 3 if cp, 5 or 1 if w5, or 7 or 2 if w7]!


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## riotgrrrl (Aug 9, 2015)

The thing that finally convinced me to accept that I'm a 9 was someone pointing out that identifying with all of them was incredibly 9ish. So I felt relieved that someone else had decided it for me and I didn't have to dive into my own identity any further, and later realised that was a pretty 9ish reaction too.


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## Rose for a Heart (Nov 14, 2011)

Quernus said:


> Then he refused to actually read about [type] because it was too painful, rofl. But he agreed.


That's basically how you know you are correctly typed. I really dislike it when people try to romanticize a type.


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## Rose for a Heart (Nov 14, 2011)

INerdTP said:


> *6: *Nope. This description is bullsh*t. I must be a [4 or 9 if p, 8 or 3 if cp, 5 or 1 if w5, or 7 or 2 if w7]!


yeah my cp 6 friend thought the enneagram was bullshit (she also calls a lot of things bullshit, it's like she likes calling them that lol, because I don't feel like they _are _all the time  ). At the time I didn't know enough about the enneagram to argue for it, but she is definitely a 6.


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## Blindspots (Jan 27, 2014)

Quernus said:


> Actually, yeah, my ex who is a One reacted similarly. Or kind of like "Oh... I don't know about this, ehhh. I don't think I'm THAT extreme. Ugh, I can see why you think this part, but [excuse about why he was better than that]".
> 
> Other Ones, however, have seemed to kind of accept it... not happily, and they also tend to point out how they're not "THAT" extreme on certain aspects... but they also seem to see it as something to overcome. Then again, I wasn't as close to those people, so maybe on the inside they were reacting differently.





O_o said:


> With the 1 description- Initial reaction was "Aw.. no, I'm much more easy going and flexible than this, right guys? Friends? Family?" *crickets* I had/have a hard time swallowing "black and white thinking" and "I'm right - you're wrong" themes some go on about.



I experienced a combination of these. I'll be sharing from my own experience below; maybe wording it out in another way might help others considering 1 as their type. (Sorry for overkilling this originally lighthearted thread with my reply. I just really feel strongly about this thing ><)




Somehow, enneagram types end up being distilled into caricatures, imbued with the judgments (prejudices?) of the users of this system as it is passed on with most people being unaware of it. Among them, type 1 ends up becoming an overly preachy hypocritical fanatic with at least one stick up their ass.

I hate being subjected to overly preachy hypocritical fanatics with sticks up their asses, like lots of my teachers from grade school or trolls from the internet. (I don't think anyone finds them healthy company to thrive in, not even 1s.) And I hated that I was lumped with the very people I can't stand. (I don't think anyone does, either, thus the existence of this topic.) So I tried explaining why I'm not the same as these purported type exemplars, despite being "under the same type": I'm introverted and would rather do my own thing than raise hell for people I won't even be talking to tomorrow. That part is reflected in reality: I really mind my own business. The same process happens as I examine all the other aspects and traits of my type: is this what I really experience, and if it doesn't fit, what else can explain it?

But lots of other issues came up in my mind. Such as, is there something erroneous or biased about how I'm going about my typing? By defining my own personality as introverted and so on, am I actually just rationalizing things? By saying "I'm like this" or "I'm not like this", am I actually denying bad behavior that I may or may not be conscious I'm exhibiting? Having the urge to be all critical or preachy or angry but bottling it up in the end, is that the same (i.e. evil) as acting it out? _Am I truly as bad as they say I am?_ Those things might be the inner critic talking, and there won't be any readily available or straightforward answers to them. It's similar to the thought process here ->


Animal said:


> ... We were online, talking about, at the time, his gut *fix* ..
> 
> And we got to a 1 description and this is what he said, almost to a T:
> 
> ...




Rather than struggling to prove the descriptions wrong by contesting the description or evaluating traits blow by blow or swearing to change yourself entirely for the better and so on, as a 1 is bound to do due to its natural fixation, *I think the real challenge for a 1 would be to make peace with the whole picture.*

Your personality as it is: your experiences, your thoughts and feelings, your strengths and weaknesses. Privately, try to outline what your psyche looks like without matching it to a specific type right off the bat, judging right away, or censoring some parts, or rationalizing, or bringing up all the but's. I suggest doing this part alone so that other people's voices won't add pressure to your reflections; the inner critic is already very unforgiving on its own. Then gradually grow to accept it. That the 1 description is written as such in the literature. Accept it, too. That people paint a mostly very unflattering image of 1 and may probably impose it on you simply because you have the number 1 floating on top of your avatar. This one I'm currently having a hard time accepting, but what I try to do is think that it would be more productive to focus on something I have more control of, like my own thoughts and actions. (Addition: Maybe, be more open to the probability that not everyone will automatically think bad of you. It's something I've tended to overlook and need to remind myself about often.)


*exhausted*


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## compulsiverambler (Jan 7, 2010)

Rose for a Heart said:


> That's basically how you know you are correctly typed. I really dislike it when people try to romanticize a type.


I think it depends on the type. 7s are going to focus on the positive about their description and think it's wonderful, because that's what 7s do. 5s are going to be analytical, objective and emotionally detached, because that's what 5s do. 9s are going to be ambivalent, etc.


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## Rose for a Heart (Nov 14, 2011)

compulsiverambler said:


> I think it depends on the type. 7s are going to focus on the positive about their description and think it's wonderful, because that's what 7s do. 5s are going to be analytical, objective and emotionally detached, because that's what 5s do. 9s are going to be ambivalent, etc.


I mean, I think the typing should be triggering at some point. Maybe for the 4 it's closer to the surface because they are closer to that ashamed/rejected part of themselves. But if the enneagram is really doing its job...you would at some point feel pained about your typing.


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## No_this_is_patrick (Jun 27, 2016)

When I found out I was a 7, I was initially just like. "Yep! That's me. That explains it. I am the coolest type. I mean I have my flaws but I already knew about those." I don't think I was shocked or embarrassed or anything. Learning WHY I am the way I am was very interesting though. But still, it made a lot of sense and I didn't really question it. I have always known I was a hedonist so I kind of already knew I was highly pain avoidant and pleasure seeking. 

My dad who is a 5w6 when I explained it to him seemed baffled that he was unusual and when I read to him about himself just kept saying things like "Well yeah, of course. All of that makes sense. You don't feel that way? It doesn't make sense not to feel that way."

My fiancee who is 3w2 was not surprised at all but said she would never usually talk about that stuff and wouldn't want anyone to know she is a 3. 

My 9w8 sister was unconcerned and just shrugged and was like "Yeah, I'm boring but I'm chill."

I have two 6 friends. The 6w7 seemed quite self conscious but agreed that was him. The 6w5 pretended to be interested for my sake but didn't care about it at all.

My 8w7 stepdad thought it was pretty much bullshit and not relevant to life. 

My 7w8 mom denies everything because she is not self aware. 

9w1 Stepmom was very relieved that she is so agreeable.

All the twos IRL that learn about it are very into being 2s and quite happy about it.

4w5 bro-in-law found out and disclosed a lot of weird stuff about himself I never knew. I think he is a good combination of proud and ashamed.


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## Animal (May 29, 2012)

e4envy said:


> 1 - "Sad, but true. The world is just too imperfect for me to ignore."
> 2 - "Yep! Kindness is my middle name!......wait, it says I'm helping others to _manipulate_ them into loving me? But...why would I do that...?"
> 3 - *reads the title "The Achiever"* "Hell yeah. You bet your ass I am."
> 4 - "So.....there are _other people_ like this?........Well........shit.:sad:"
> ...


Best. Post.Ever.

/that moment when the thank button just isn't enough./




> 7 - "Pffffffttt....everyone knows that I don't chase after fun; fun chases after _me_."


This made me laugh out loud. _So true_. Fun chases 7s.. and so does luck. And sex, and beauty, and excitement... it just comes to them because.. luck. They never asked to be so much better than everyone else or to have such an amazing life!


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## JFrombaugh (Feb 10, 2010)

Type 4: "Whaaaaaat??? I'm the same type as (insert random famous person/fictional character/forum user)?! There must be some mistake, I don't think I'm like them at all!" (Retakes test, hoping to score as a 5 or 9, or whatever type you are secretly envious of)


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## Hellfire (Nov 30, 2015)

Mine was "Haha.... This is spot on. "
I kept snickering over the bad thing the most though. 
In fact I was snickering over that for days.


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## Quakers (Nov 15, 2016)

LostFavor said:


> 8 - Will try to restructure the logic of the typing process, such that they have control over what type they are.


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