The Enneagram: a powerful tool for success

Have you ever heard about the Enneagram? Do you know what this tool is used for? The Enneagram is one of the most impressive approaches to human personality, although there are many others.

The Enneagram is a self-knowledge and personal growth tool that describes the nine personality types in a very rich and deep manner. It is so incredibly accurate that it causes immediate identification even in those who are skeptical of less traditional approaches, disconcerting those who read about the eneatotype that describes their personality.

The Enneagram: how does it work?

Composed of a circle, a triangle and a hexade, the Enneagram is a 9-point geometric figure that functions as a procedural symbol, present in many ancient traditions, from Pythagorean Greek, thought to Hermetic and Gnostic philosophies.

Today, the Enneagram is used by many scholars to explain human behavior and it is very much present in the nontraditional psychology, coaching and human resources of large companies. It defines nine basic personality types and allows people to understand recurring behaviors and identify the elements that empower and weaken them.

What can we learn with the Enneagram?

The knowledge transmitted by the Enneagram is very broad, but we can highlight some concepts that underlie the approach.

The first of these is to recognize that we are not our personality, that is, we are not restricted to the patterns we develop from birth, which when put in perspective, allow us to identify the potentialities and inclinations we have developed and transform them in our favor.

In this sense, the goal is to stop our automatic reactions. Everything that emerges irrationally is linked to these normally negative teachings and memories of experiences that put us in a state of defense.

Rationalizing these processes interrupts the cycle and allows us to react in different ways to what we are used to by withdrawing from mental enslavement. The result is that we are able to access our true identity and let the more spirit-conscious conscience command.

The 9 types of the Enneagram

The Enneagram consolidates 9 basic personality types and its study allows one to identify their eneatotype, understanding why recurring behaviors are positive or negative.

The eneatotype tells a lot about attention and reaction patterns and the factors that lead us to motivation or apathy. It strongly demarcates the specific skills and difficulties we have and highlights weaknesses.

Enneagram in the corporate world

Many companies face a recruitment-related productivity problem because they cannot hire the right profile for their companies’ context. Sometimes this difficulty is not about training professionals, but about their personality and behavior. The point here is to identify the correct profile and fit the requirements of a particular professional position and the company culture.

Hiring an introvert for a company’s sales force may not be a good decision for both the company and the professional, who will have to perform duties that will leave them frustrated and unmotivated.

Feeling comfortable and having a level of identification with our work makes us happier, more satisfied and available to the challenges of working life.

Thus, several companies have incorporated the Enneagram test in their selection processes, to enhance the chances of success in hiring. In addition, the Enneagram also helps in strengthening the qualities and potentials of teams as a whole and can be very helpful in working on leadership, performance, communication, decision making, conflict mediation, and feedback building.

The knowledge of the 9 Enneagram types is a powerful management tool that saves resources from the HR department and broadens tolerance and acceptance of differences in the corporate universe.

How can I discover my eneotype?

There are several tests available that can tell you more accurately what our type is. Having done the test and aware of what our personality represents in the Enneagram, it is impossible to stop there. The good news is that there is great literature on this topic, videos and many courses that go very deep into the topic.

A good analogy for a better understanding of this are signs: knowing what our sign may be sufficient to understand our amazing thinking and acting. However, there is a whole universe beyond: our ancestry and the map of life that a good astral chart can offer complement in a fundamental way the living landscape in which we are inserted and bring valuable information for self-knowledge and development.

The same is true with the Enneagram. Knowing our eneatotype is just the beginning of a fantastic journey where we are the central characters.

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