Personality assessment
Feb 1, 2022
Unlocking Self-Awareness with the Enneagram Test: A Path to Personal Growth and Understanding
The Enneagram test is a powerful tool that offers deep insights into personality, behavior, and motivations. Unlike other personality assessments that focus solely on behavior, the Enneagram goes deeper by exploring the core motivations and fears that drive our actions. Whether you’re seeking personal growth, improving relationships, or understanding your strengths and weaknesses, the Enneagram can provide invaluable insights into who you are and how you interact with the world.
What is the Enneagram?
The Enneagram is a model of nine distinct personality types, represented by a nine-pointed diagram. Each of the nine types is associated with different core motivations, fears, and desires, influencing how individuals perceive and respond to the world around them. While each person has a dominant type, the Enneagram acknowledges that we are a blend of many traits, offering a dynamic and fluid approach to self-awareness.
The nine types in the Enneagram are:
Type 1: The Reformer – Driven by a desire for perfection and order.
Type 2: The Helper – Motivated by a need to be loved and needed.
Type 3: The Achiever – Focused on success and achievement.
Type 4: The Individualist – Seeks uniqueness and authenticity.
Type 5: The Investigator – Driven by a thirst for knowledge and understanding.
Type 6: The Loyalist – Motivated by security and support.
Type 7: The Enthusiast – Seeks experiences and avoids pain.
Type 8: The Challenger – Desires control and self-reliance.
Type 9: The Peacemaker – Motivated by harmony and peace.
The Value of the Enneagram for Personal Growth
Deep Self-Understanding: The Enneagram helps individuals uncover their core motivations, fears, and desires, offering a more profound understanding of why they behave the way they do. By understanding your Enneagram type, you can identify patterns in your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that may have previously been unconscious. This awareness is the first step toward personal growth, allowing you to make more intentional choices.
Embracing Strengths and Working on Weaknesses: Each Enneagram type comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses. For example, a Type 3 may excel at setting and achieving goals but might struggle with work-life balance or being overly focused on external validation. The Enneagram helps individuals recognize these tendencies and find ways to leverage their strengths while addressing their weaknesses. By identifying areas for improvement, you can work on becoming a more balanced and fulfilled version of yourself.
Managing Stress and Emotions: One of the most valuable aspects of the Enneagram is its ability to help you understand how you react under stress. Each type has specific ways of responding to stress, often reverting to less healthy behaviors. For example, a Type 6 may become overly anxious and indecisive when stressed, while a Type 8 may become more controlling and confrontational. Recognizing these stress responses allows you to develop healthier coping mechanisms and navigate challenging situations with greater emotional intelligence.
The Enneagram in Relationships: Enhancing Empathy and Connection
Understanding Others' Perspectives: The Enneagram is not just about understanding yourself—it’s also about understanding others. By learning the types of those around you, whether in personal relationships or at work, you gain insight into their core motivations and fears. This deeper understanding fosters empathy and reduces conflict, as you can better appreciate why others behave in certain ways, even when it differs from your natural tendencies.
Improving Communication: Each Enneagram type has different communication styles and needs. For example, Type 2s may be highly attuned to the emotional needs of others and appreciate acts of service, while Type 5s may prefer intellectual discussions and require space for reflection. By adapting your communication style to the needs of others, you can strengthen relationships and create more meaningful connections.
Navigating Conflict: In any relationship, conflict is inevitable. The Enneagram provides a roadmap for understanding how different types handle conflict and what their core needs are in times of disagreement. Type 9s may avoid conflict at all costs to preserve peace, while Type 8s may confront issues head-on in order to feel in control. Understanding these dynamics can help you navigate conflicts with greater awareness and compassion, leading to more constructive resolutions.
The Enneagram in the Workplace: Boosting Team Performance
Building Balanced Teams: In the workplace, understanding the Enneagram types of your team members can lead to more balanced and effective collaboration. Each type brings unique strengths to the table. For example, Type 1s offer strong organizational skills and attention to detail, while Type 7s bring creativity and enthusiasm. By recognizing these strengths, managers can assign roles that align with each person’s natural abilities, leading to higher productivity and job satisfaction.
Enhancing Leadership: Leaders who understand their own Enneagram type, as well as the types of their team members, can create a more supportive and motivating work environment. A leader who is a Type 3 may be naturally driven and goal-oriented but might need to work on providing emotional support to Type 2s or 4s on their team. The Enneagram helps leaders become more attuned to the needs and motivations of their team, resulting in better communication and a more cohesive work culture.
Conflict Resolution: Just as in personal relationships, the Enneagram can help resolve workplace conflicts. By understanding the core fears and desires of each type, teams can approach conflicts with greater understanding and empathy. For example, if a Type 6 is feeling insecure about a project’s direction, a Type 1 leader can offer reassurance by providing clear guidelines and structure. This approach not only resolves conflicts but also builds trust within the team.
Using the Enneagram for Personal and Collective Growth
The beauty of the Enneagram lies in its dynamic nature. As individuals grow and evolve, they may shift between healthier or less healthy expressions of their type. The Enneagram encourages continuous self-reflection and growth, providing a roadmap for personal development. Whether used in personal relationships, teams, or leadership development, the Enneagram offers a powerful framework for understanding behavior and motivations.
Conclusion
The Enneagram test is a transformative tool for self-awareness, personal growth, and improving relationships. By helping individuals understand their core motivations, fears, and desires, it fosters deeper connections, better communication, and more effective conflict resolution. Whether you’re looking to grow personally, enhance your relationships, or lead a more cohesive team, the Enneagram can provide the insights you need to succeed.
Investing in understanding your Enneagram type—and the types of those around you—opens up pathways to greater empathy, self-awareness, and personal fulfillment.
More blogs to read
Ability assessment
Unlocking Talent Potential with ASSESS Focus: A Revolutionary Cognitive Ability Tool
ASSESS Focus, a cognitive ability assessment tool, designed to empower recruiters and HR professionals with meaningful insights into candidates’ ability.
Continue reading
Personality assessment
Exploring the 16 Personalities: A Guide to Understanding Yourself and Others
The MBTI sorts personality into 16 types, each represented by a unique four-letter code.
Continue reading
Personality assessment
Understanding the Big Five Personality Traits and Their Impact on Success
The Big Five—Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism—capture the core dimensions of personality.
Continue reading
Sales assessment
Building Success: Essential Sales Competencies for High-Performing Teams
Sales competencies—core skills, behaviors, and attributes that influence sales performance—are critical for developing, and retaining top-performing salespeople
Continue reading
Sales assessment
Unlocking Sales Potential: How Assessments Drive Recruitment and Performance
Skills like communication, persuasion, and resilience are vital, but they’re not always easy to gauge in an interview.
Continue reading
Sales assessment
Enhancing Recruitment and Development with Sales Assessments
A sales assessment is a psychometric tool designed to evaluate traits, competencies, motivators, and cognitive abilities relevant to sales roles.
Continue reading
Assessment center
Types of Assessment Center Exercises
This post provides a list of potential assessment center exercises that could be used in talent selection or development.
Continue reading
Assessment center
Designing an Effective Assessment Center
Assessment Centers offer a structured, immersive approach to evaluate candidates' skills, behaviors, and potential, providing a rich basis for decision-making.
Continue reading
Leadership
What is Leadership Development Assessment?
Leadership assessment for development focuses on identifying a leader’s strengths, gaps, and growth potential to guide targeted development efforts.
Continue reading
Career orientation
Most Relevant Career Orientation Assessment Frameworks
Career orientation assessments provide valuable insights into an individual’s strengths, preferences, and interests.
Continue reading
Employee engagement
Top Five Employee Engagement Drivers: Backed by Research
Employee engagement is critical for organizational success, impacting productivity, retention, and overall company performance.
Continue reading
Assessment
Talent Assessment Using ISO 10667: Ensuring Quality and Consistency
To standardize talent assesment practices and ensure their quality, ISO 10667 provides a comprehensive framework.
Continue reading
Talent acquisition
How to Select the Right Assessment Tools for Your Organization
Choosing the right assessment tools is crucial for organizations aiming to make informed decisions about recruitment, employee development, and talent selection
Continue reading
Recruitment
Hiring Millennials: How Talent Assessments Help Build an Independent and Innovative Workforce
As millennials continue to make up a larger share of the workforce, companies must adapt their hiring strategies to attract and retain this dynamic generation.
Continue reading
Competency
ASSESS Grammar Test: Boosting Workplace Communication Skills
Proper grammar is essential for conveying messages accurately, whether in emails, reports, or client interactions.
Continue reading
Competency
Manages Ambiguity: Navigating Uncertainty with Confidence
In today’s dynamic business environment, leaders often face situations where information is incomplete, outcomes are uncertain, or events unfold unpredictably.
Continue reading
Competency
Decision Quality: A Cornerstone of Effective Leadership
Decision quality represents a leader’s ability to make well-considered, timely, and effective decisions, even in complex or ambiguous situations.
Continue reading
Competency
Instills Trust: A Key Leadership Competency
Trust is a cornerstone of effective leadership and organizational culture.
Continue reading
psychometrics
Can We Assess Toxic Workplace Traits?
As we become more attuned to the detrimental effects of toxic styles, the importance of assessing behaviors that contribute to toxicity has become critical.
Continue reading
Ability assessment
The Power of Cognitive Ability Tests in Talent Management
Cognitive ability tests are effective tools for evaluating potential to excel in roles that demand analytical thinking, quick learning, and problem-solving.
Continue reading
360 degree feedback
360-Degree Feedback: Benefits, Challenges, and Best Practices
360-degree feedback has become a popular tool in talent development, particularly for enhancing leadership skills and fostering continuous improvement.
Continue reading
Psychometrics
How to Use Personality Assessments to Improve Team Dynamics
Effective teamwork is essential for organizational success, and one of the best ways to enhance team dynamics is through personality assessments.
Continue reading
Psychometrics
The Science Behind Psychometric Testing: How Assessments Drive Better Hiring Decisions
The Science Behind Psychometric Testing: How do assessments drive better results using scientific methods, such as validity and reliability testing.
Continue reading
Organizational surveys
Measuring Organizational Health: Key Metrics and Why It Matters
Discover how measuring organizational health through key metrics like engagement, leadership, and culture alignment can boost long-term success and adaptability
Continue reading
Assessment tools
Assess International vs. AssessFirst: A Comparative Overview
Assess International vs. AssessFirst: A Comparative Overview
Continue reading
Personality assessment
The 16 MBTI Personality Types: A Detailed Overview
MBTI categorizes people into 16 distinct personality types based on four key dichotomies. They shape how people interact with the world.
Continue reading
Cognitive ability
Understanding Cognitive Ability Assessments: Unlocking Mental Potential
Cognitive ability assessments are tools that measure the intellectual capacity, such as reasoning, attention, memory, and learning.
Continue reading
Coaching
The Role of Assessment in Coaching: Unlocking Potential through Insight
One of the primary benefits of using assessments in coaching is that they promote self-awareness. Assessments provide objective, data-driven insights
Continue reading
Personality assessment
Unlocking Self-Awareness with the Enneagram Test: A Path to Personal Growth and Understanding
Explore the Enneagram test, a powerful tool for self-awareness, personal growth, and improving relationships through understanding motivators and behaviors.
Continue reading
Personality assessment
Understanding the DISC Personality Assessment: A Pathway to Better Communication and Teamwork
Discover how the DISC personality assessment improves communication, enhances teamwork, and strengthens relationships by understanding behavior styles.
Continue reading
Personality assessment
The Importance and Value of the MBTI Assessment: A Tool for Self-Awareness and Team Dynamics
Discover the importance and value of the MBTI assessment in fostering self-awareness, improving communication, and enhancing team dynamics.
Continue reading
Talent Management
Understanding Generation Z: Engaging the Restless Workforce
Generation Z, born roughly between 1997 and 2012, is entering the workforce with a unique set of expectations and challenges. Companies seeking to engage and retain Gen Z talent need to understand what drives this generation.
Continue reading
Talent management
Why do employees stay at your company
Talent Management, embodied in attracting, retaining, and motivating superior employees is a critical issue as it is amongst the top concerns for modern cor ...
Continue reading
Career
Unlocking Career Success with ASSESS Career Orientation: A Comprehensive Approach
Choosing the right career is one of the most significant decisions you will make in life. It shapes not only your professional trajectory but also impacts y ...
Continue reading
Assessment
What is an Assessment Center?
The term assessment center has been widely used in the fields of industrial psychology and human resources management for more than 50 years ...
Continue reading
Assessment
Personality Psychology & Job Performance
Personality psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on defining and explaining personality as well as identifying individual differences between p ...
Continue reading
Leadership
Chameleon Leader: Situational leadership model
Leadership theory has been studied for many years. There are many different theories that define leadership from different perspectives, all expressing thei ...
Continue reading
Career
Understanding your core values as a human
You place great emphasis on understanding the values that shape your thoughts and lifestyle. Your quest for finding meaning in life drives you to seek align ...
Continue reading
Tools
Can Values Be Measured Using Assessment Tools?
The question of whether values can be accurately measured through assessment tools has been a topic of debate in psychological, organizational, and educatio ...
Continue reading
Phsycometrics
Understanding the different types of psychometric testing categories
Psychometric testing has become a valuable tool in various fields, including recruitment, personal development, and career orientation
Continue reading
Talent
Talent abiligy post pandemic
While many businesses have withstood the economic shock brought on by Covid19, nonetheless making amendments within the organization’s practices and strateg ...
Continue reading
Products
The role of ASSESS OCM in recruitment and professional development
In today’s fast-evolving workplace, organizations are continuously seeking ways to optimize their talent management processes. One of the most effective too ...
Continue reading
Psychometric, Assessment
How to Prepare for a Psychometric Assessment
Psychometric assessments are becoming a common part of the recruitment process and personal development programs. These tests measure a variety of cognitive ...
Continue reading
Psychometric, Assessment
What is a Psychometric Assessment Test?
Psychometric assessment tests have become an essential tool for businesses, educational institutions, and individuals seeking to understand personality trai ...
Continue reading
Organizational
360˚ feedback
Pulse surveys
Development index
Employee engagement
Individual Development
Career Orientation
Motivation
Focus
Important
Home
Blogs
Products
Solutions