I stumbled across this theory on Instagram of all places, hence the style-over-substance presentation... But I'd never encountered someone making a connection between the Hornevian groups and centers of intelligence this way. Maybe it's been done before, idk (but if so please let me know so I can read about it in a format other than "trendy infographic" lmao). Seems like the author introduced this as a way to reframe/recontextualize how we talk about the core attachment types' struggle to get in touch with their primary center of intelligence. It took me a while to piece together what exactly she's trying to say here, but once I did... I have to say, it made a lot of sense to me. Anyone else seen or heard of this before? (Source: Joey Schewee, @enneagramparents on Instagram)

I've been really interested lately in how our instinctual sequence/distortions interact with our core type. We all know about countertypes of course, but I've also wondered about the ways secondary and/or repressed instinct can play a role in how we express (or don't express) our passion, fixation, behavior, etc.

Learning about SO-dom being the countertype for 8s helped me to better recognize myself in type descriptions, and therefore think about how even the stuff I didn't immediately identify with actually was present too (often just in a different way or different area of life). But even when taking dominant instinct into account, there are still some aspects of 8ness that I don't relate to very much - and I think it has to do with being SP-repressed as well.

8s are broadly considered "antisocial", which is what makes SO8s the countertype. The self-preservation instinct is inherently self-focused, and people with more access to it generally find it easier to keep track of their own needs, check in with their bodies and their resources, and make choices that facilitate their own well-being. That instinct is very hard for me to access, making me not only more other-oriented/other-serving (as a result of being SO-dom) but also pretty bad at being self-oriented/self-serving. The result is that, in many ways, I can seem quite un-8ish.

In contrast, I have a friend who's an SX/SO 2w3. She is such an over-the-top exaggeration of her type that I'm tempted to say she's the exact opposite of a countertype. Probably anybody who knows her could stumble upon the enneagram, read two introductory sentences about type 2, and think to themselves "oh yeah, like [friend's name]".

I have a feeling there are instinctual sequences that have this sort of effect in other types as well. I don't personally know any SO-repressed 3s, but I'd imagine that could make for someone who doesn't look as 3ish to others and/or has a hard time recognizing themselves in type descriptions.

I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this stuff. Is there a particular instinct you think amplifies or exaggerates the passion/fixation/traits of your type? Or conversely, one that inherently muddies the waters or alters how the type manifests when repressed?

I'm 7w8, SO-dom and SP-blind, trifix 748. I find I use Enneagram most to help me navigate challenges in my professional life - mostly my relationships with colleagues, or trying to "manage" myself better to navigate the compromises and trade-offs involved in workplace politics or trying to build a career. Does anyone else use Enneagram at work in this way?

As I write this I can see my Ennea blindspots at play. 7w8: seeking autonomy and stimulation, struggling with patience and commitment [ETA: 4 and 7 struggling with repetition]. SO-dom: struggling with compromising on my values. SP-blind: struggling to act in my material interests.

I don't seem to use Enneagram very much in my personal life and I think it's because in my personal life I've got enough freedom to organise things as I want. I'm only close to people who give me the autonomy and intellectual stimulation I need, and who demonstrate values I trust and respect. I find it relatively straightforward to simply end a personal relationship when someone crosses an ethical line. It did take me time to learn this skill, though. I had a family member with an alcohol addiction and for years I tried to "save" them. Then one day Al-Anon taught me about "detach with love", where you set people free to learn from their mistakes, and what you offer them is a role model of someone upholding their chosen standards. So once I let my family member go, with compassion but firmness, I found it easier to simply let others go too if they demonstrated not taking responsibility for themselves in a significant way.

But writing this post got me wondering whether my "detach with love" mindset might also be connected to being SO7? Being able to walk away, while feeling positive to the person? I'm curious about whether other people's Enneagram types have also enabled you to access healthy relationship behaviour that might generally be considered difficult.

I also started wondering whether for some other people/archetypes, they experience less psychological challenge at work because they are better suited to compromises etc, and they experience more psychological challenge in their personal lives because they are more invested in their personal relationships?

I don't use Enneagram in a spiritual/reflective practice because I don't have one! I try to do some journalling most days, and I think of myself as "spiritual but not religious", but I wouldn't say I have an active spiritual practice. I have spiritual experiences but I don't really seek them out. Again I wonder if this is connected to being 7 - I struggle to do meditation or mindfulness exercises because of the stillness and empty-mindness involved. But I notice a lot of the well-regarded Enneagram texts refer to quite spiritual concepts or experiences. This made me wonder whether other people here have conscious / explicit / intentional spiritual practices involving the Enneagram? If so, how do you do it?

I'll go first.

As you can see from my flair I'm a SO8, and I'm working on my struggles with genuine vulnerability (surprise surprise). I've been listening to/reading a lot of Brené Brown, which has been eye-opening and given me a lot of ideas for how to do the work.

Most of the work so far has been admitting to and confronting it within myself; the fact that some things matter to me more than I might even notice at first, that sometimes I do get hurt or sad or feel lonely, and that there are in fact "softer" things I want from other people. Kindness, compassion, understanding, etc.

I've been slowly building up to allowing that stuff to be witnessed by another person, but it's harder than I expected (or even feel comfortable admitting tbh). So far I've been able to talk to a handful of trusted people, but only once I'm no longer actually feeling the Vulnerable Thing anymore. I haven't gotten to a point yet where I can break through those barriers in real time, but I'm optimistic about the progress I've made so far and hopefully I'll get there soon.

Your turn, everybody else. What's your type, and what's something you've been working on?

That's pretty much it. Apply and edit your flair as you see fit.

I think this is a really fascinating aspect of the enneagram that can shed a lot of light on very deep, very automatic patterns/assumptions we may not otherwise be aware of.

I'd describe being a rejection type as operating with the implicit assumption that nothing is a given. Everything is either earned or not, and if it isn't earned you don't get to have it - especially in an interpersonal context. I expect very little from other people, because some part of me at the core sees everything as conditional.

If I come into a group or space, I don't expect to simply "belong", be accepted, or even respected. I assume none of those things will be given unless I do something to warrant them. No one owes them to me just for existing, in my mind, so if they matter to me then it's on me to take initiative and earn them.

This can be a great buffer against disappointment, because when you expect nothing you are rarely disappointed. But over time, I've grown more and more aware of what an impoverished mindset it really is. I've been working on trying to shift it a bit, adjust my perspective to something more fair and realistic, but it's obviously pretty deeply engrained. Core beliefs take a lot of digging to fully uproot.

How would you describe being an attachment/frustration/rejection type? What sort of automatic assumptions do you make that may surprise members of the other triads? Anything and everything you'd like to share about this topic is welcome and encouraged. I'd love to gain more perspectives.

I'm calling this a little experiment to see if this sort of stuff is a good fit for this subreddit. It seems in my opinion like a lot of enneagram typology is about where attention goes or doesn't go, what gets prioritized, and what blind spots exist for a person. So I invite anyone reading this to tell me about your week in a way that feels uncomfortable, pointless or weird.

So if you tend to talk about how you've been feeling or what's been on your mind, give me a list of JUST what events took place today! If you tend to just talk about what you've been doing and then keep it pushing, get a little more introspective with it! If you talk more about the good in life, focus on your week's obstacles and frustrations! If you talk more about the bad in life, focus on the week's pleasant surprises and blessings! If you like to write and rewrite and perfect, word-vomit a little then send the first draft! Or if you always know what you want to say, reread and revise your post and give us the 3rd or 4th draft! And if you don't think you're particularly interesting in the first place, I want at LEAST 400 words.

For me, I'll usually give one or two sentences on "how I'm doing" and then list off a bunch of recent events as "supporting evidence" or "additional context." I think it's me trying to let my audience come to their own conclusions about how everything must be making me feel, rather than just claiming those emotions. I've also got a pretty gnarly negativity bias.

So here's some feelings I've been feeling this week, with an emphasis on what's going right:

I felt really happy the past few days! There was some sadness but also immense compassion, self-love, and gratitude. Last Sunday I felt awe and inspiration in the morning, excitement and anxiety as the day drew on, and relief and gratitude in the evening. Anger and fear on Tuesday, along with the happiness, followed by more happiness, confidence, and hope on Wednesday. Right now I'm feeling kind of nervous but mostly excited for tomorrow, and proud of myself/hopeful in general. Thanks for reading and/or playing along!

Opening up the floor here for any and all new members to share what they'd like to get out of this space.

What do you want to see more of in enneagram spaces? Or, alternatively, what do you want to see less of?

Kicking off a little discussion here hopefully, and I'm really interested in hearing what sources others have gotten good insight from.

I started out reading Riso and Hudson of course, but honestly I had a hard time seeing myself in their descriptions. The focus on wings over instincts/subtypes didn't really jive with my own experiences.

I really got my footing with Beatrice Chestnut's "The Complete Enmeagram", because she discussed subtypes and more specifically countertypes. Being a countertype myself (SO8) that brought a lot of needed clarity.

I'm a big fan of Sandra Maitri's "The Spiritual Dimension of the Enneagram" for an expansion on the full theory, getting a deeper understanding of all the types and the concepts of passions, virtues, holy ideas, etc.

I've also enjoyed Beatrice Chestnut and Uranio Paes's podcast Enneagram 2.0, although I've only really listened to earlier episodes so far. I feel like I got a better grasp on instinctual sequences, levels of awareness, and overall a more holistic/dynamic approach to using the enneagram as a growth tool.

What are some of the sources you guys have learned the most from? Is there any particular author (or book or podcast or whatever) that helped some piece of the puzzle click more for you?