Figuring out your Enneagram Type

I know you are but what am I?

Have you taken several Enneagram tests and still can’t decide what Type you are? The Enneagram is a fascinating tool for learning more about yourself, but it won’t amount to a hill of beans if you can’t figure out what your Type is. For a few of us, (myself included) personality testing can have ambiguous results. We may take many tests and get many different results back. Or maybe the result you get really doesn’t sound like you at all. Well, there are a few things you can try to solve this mystery.

You may have to try more than one, but chances are pretty good that your Type will be one of the top three results.

First of all, make sure you try several tests. For a link to some click here. You may have to try more than one, but chances are pretty good that your Type will be one of the top three results. Once you get it narrowed down to two or three, then studying the descriptions should help you make a final decision. If you’re still not sure, ask someone who knows you very well to read the descriptions and see what they think sounds most like you.

If you have had a big life change lately, or gone through something traumatic, you may find that your test results are skewed. For example, a friend of mine is an outgoing, happy, people-pleaser Two, but when she first took the Enneagram tests she had recently just been through a divorce, and was dealing with some (well-deserved) anger issues toward her ex. Her test results came back as an Eight every time. She thought she must have been an Eight for a while, before further study of the type descriptions made her realize that she was really not the assertive, aggressive, decisive Eight. If you think that may be your problem, then make sure when you answer the test questions you are thinking about how you have been the majority of your life- not just recently.

Make sure when you answer the test questions you are thinking about how you have been the majority of your life- not just recently.

One type in particular has a very difficult time testing correctly. Type Nine, otherwise known as the Peacemakers, are so accustomed to accommodating others and not listening to their own inner voice that they may have a hard time answering questions about their personality. If you keep getting different results on many tests, and find taking them extremely difficult, this may be your problem.

Another difficulty in typing is when Wings come into play. Typically, we have our main Type, and a we might identify a dominant wing. (For more information on the concept of Wings, and an animated image to explain it click here.) But in some cases we have a very dominant, or what we call “heavy” wing. A person with a heavy wing exhibits many characteristics of their Wing- so much so that it can be hard to determine what the core Type is. This happened to me. I could not determine if I was a Three with a Four wing, or a Four with a Three wing. I have many of the characteristics of both the Three and the Four. When you have a heavy wing influencing your personality, it can make testing difficult. I often tested as both numbers, but Three more often. Also, the main Type descriptions don’t always sound quite right when you have a heavy wing that is strongly influencing you. That’s why I include the Wing subtype descriptions with each type. Reading about Threes didn’t sound exactly like me, but reading about the Three with a Four wing was dead on. But remember, ultimately you are still one core Type- and the motivations and basic fears that drive you will relate to just one Type. But your actions, and some of the more visible parts of your personality will be affected by your Wing number. If you are still trying to decide between two different Types like I was, try this next tip…

Comparing your Directions of Stress and Growth can shed further light on what your true Type is. Each type travels to one Enneagram number during stress, and another one during growth. (Click here for full explanations of this.) When trying to figure out your true Type, notice what the Type does when stressed. This was the final key for me to be sure that I was indeed a Three with a Four wing, and not the other way around. A Three under stress goes to Nine, becoming detached and unproductive, getting lost in busy work. A Four under stress goes to Two becoming more attached and clingy in their insecurity. These two things are so different, it was easy to figure out which one I could relate to.

If anyone of these suggestions help you figure it out, leave me a comment and let me know.