What is The Enneagram?
It is a personality typing system like no other! It doesn't label you or put you in a box; it shows you the box you've put yourself in...and it shows you the way out.
The word "enneagram" has Greek origins: ennéa, meaning "nine" and grámma, meaning something "drawn" or "written". So it really means a drawing of 9.
Each number in the Enneagram is a Type. It represents a dominant pattern of personality. That pattern is not simply about the behaviour you display but more importantly, it is about the REASON behind the behaviour.
No type is 'better' or 'worse' than another; they are all different and valid, each with "positive" and "negative" traits.
Each of the 9 types has a high expression, average expression, and low expression. The less aware you are of your automatic patterns and the more you identify with your "personality", the lower the expression of your type. In other words, your goal is to become more aware of your patterns so that you operate as if you have your personality, rather than your personality having you.
(For ease of discussion, we say that you ARE a type. However, one should remember that you are simply following a specific pattern; you are more than a "type".)
What are the lines?
Each type is connected to 2 other types by lines. These lines are the map. They show you the direction of stress (disintegration) and the direction of growth (integration).
For example, Type 1 is connected to Type 4 and Type 7. If you are a Type 1, in stress, you will first dip into your unhealthy traits, becoming rigid, critical, and nit-picky. Then you'll take on the negative qualities of Type 4 by being moody and irritable.
When a Type 1 grows, you will be balanced in your higher qualities of responsibility, morals, and hard-work and will take on the positive qualities of Type 7. You will learn to relax, play, and take pleasure in life again.
How does the Enneagram help?
By understanding your type, you gain powerful insight that helps you:
Understand yourself
Learn WHY you do what you do so you can better motivate yourself and direct your life.
Overcome Inner Obstacles
Your unconscious negative patterns are obstacles on your journey. When you are aware of the patterns, you can choose a smoother path to travel.
Feel Complete
Deep inside each of us, there is a pain, a feeling that something is missing or broken. When you follow your map of growth, you (re)claim your wholeness.
What are the benefits?
The benefits of knowing the Enneagram are widespread. Here are a few of them:
- Leadership:
- understand how to best manage people and boost their performance based on their type and their unique needs
- understand the reasons for team member's behaviour by recognizing their blind spots
- build team cohesion
- empower others to grow into the best of their personality type by overcoming inner obstacles
- build trust and respect by knowing how to motivate each member on the team
- Parenting:
- choose the most effective parenting style for each child based on their personality and yours
- increase compassion by truly understanding your child and the reasons for his/her behaviour
- build trust and respect by meeting your child's unique needs
- help your children grow by helping them unlock their potential
- create loving, lasting and harmonious bonds with your children
- Relationships (at home and work):
- recognize where you and the other are compatible and identify potential challenges in the relationship
- stop others from "pushing your buttons" by understanding your buttons and disarming them
- support each other by understanding what the other needs most
- avoid misunderstandings by seeing the other's world view and communicate in ways that make sense to them
- Personal and Spiritual Growth:
- transform inner obstacles by seeing your blind spots and break "glass ceilings"
- express to the world a full YOU by following the map for growth
- unlock your natural strengths and talents
- increase self-acceptance and self-compassion
- claim your wholeness by decreasing the extreme duality that unconsciously created your personality
Enneagram typing "tests" are only about 50-60% accurate!
This is because it is difficult to extract the REASON for behaviours from test questions. A narrative approach to typing is much more accurate and facilitates learning about all the types rather than simply receiving a "test result".
There is so much to learn about the Enneagram! It is exciting and....I'm going to warn you...it is addictive...to learn about!
What's included?
Your Enneagram typing session includes:
- working one-on-one with a coach for 90-minute to explore the Enneagram with the goal to narrow your type down to 1-3 types
- 30-minute of one-on-one follow-up to further reveal your type and answer any of your questions.
- downloadable worksheets to help determine your type
- virtual or in-person sessions
Your investment: $175 (plus tax)
Tracy Brunet - CEO at Farm Marketer
"The Enneagram has been a GAME CHANGER for me. I am confident in saying that I have a strong understanding of personality types; however, the Enneagram has taken it to a whole new level. I have been studying personality types and self-help material for over a decade. The Enneagram’s body of work provided the final missing pieces of the self-awareness puzzle. After all this time, studying, and books, I was still left wondering “Why am I like this?” and “Why can’t I change that?” when it comes to certain things in my life. Immediately Louise and the Enneagram answered my most pressing questions. I had several MAJOR lightbulb moments. Not only that, I am starting to accept myself more. This has honestly been a huge sigh of relief. I am really excited to be working with Louise to discover, accept, and move to version 2.0 of me. If you are looking to improve yourself (and close relationships) through greater self-awareness, I would highly recommend Louise and her coaching."
Jane Reimer - CEO at Letter Cut
"The Enneagram has helped me understand myself better and I feel it has given me permission to be me. It has given me tools to grow and work with my strengths and weaknesses in balance. It has given me a framework for how I talk about myself and explain how I experience life. It has changed how I relate to others by giving me a different understanding of them, like a curiosity, wondering how others are taking or experiencing a situation. I am less reactive, realizing that others’ actions and behaviours are because of how they view life and it’s not because of me."
Rose S. - University Student
"Knowing my Enneagram Type has helped me to identify how I relate to myself and how I relate to others. It has helped me identify where I've grown and where else I need to grow."
