Typology

How does your Enneagram type affect your decision making?  Each Enneagram type has different motivations and makes decisions in different ways.  So, when faced with making a decision, sometimes we need to go against the grain of how we normally do things in order to figure out what is the next right thing. In today’s episode, author Emily P. Freeman joins Ian to offer recommendations on decision making based on each Enneagram Type and the Centers of Intelligence.   

Addiction is a compulsion to continue doing something despite harmful consequences. And if we look at addiction through the lens of the Enneagram, we can view the passion of each Enneagram type as an addiction. The Enneagram helps bring to awareness what these unconscious addictions and compulsions are so we can start to unwind the influence and power they have over our lives. So, today we talk about each Enneagram type’s compulsion and what recovery (or sobriety) for that type looks like.

The Enneagram is a transformational tool for self-awareness and self-knowledge.  It helps uncover the most unconscious parts of who we are.  But how? Once you identify your Enneagram type, what’s the next step?  On today’s episode of Typology, Ian shares his top 25 Enneagram resources for discovering the why behind what you do and taking the next steps toward becoming your authentic self.

How do we use the Enneagram to honor our differences? When we truly understand the Enneagram we see that one type is not better than another. Each type is different and that difference enriches us. In today’s show, we invited Rabbi Evan Moffic to join us again to talk about how a lack of appreciation of differences, can foster an environment of antisemitism and discrimination of all types, and what we can do to begin to unwind or reverse the momentum of antisemitism and all forms of discrimination. 

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself, “What if the story I tell myself and others about who I am and who I'm becoming isn't true?”  As children, we all construct stories, or narratives, to help make sense of our environment. When you understand the false story around which you have organized your life, you're able to identify your false story, decouple yourself from it and begin to live the truth of your new story.

Last week, Scott and Ian talked about how the Enneagram can help you in the workplace. This week, they continue the conversation highlighting the way the Enneagram feeds emotional intelligence, fosters empathy and compassion, increases productivity, and ultimately leads to better bottom line results and a happier place to work.

How does knowing a person’s personality style help you in leadership development? In today’s episode, Scott Allender shares how he has used the Enneagram in team building and leadership development. He explains how the Enneagram helps provide insight into how the different people on your team function in the workplace, how you can support them in different phases in their career, and more...

In Part 2 of our conversation with singer/songwriter Amy Grant, we continue to explore stances to hone in on whether or not she’s actually an Enneagram Nine. Discussing the differences between types in the gut triad and how they each relate to anger and focusing on a few key instinctual responses helps Amy find her type. Listen through to the end as Amy shares a special song with us before her interview ends.

What if you’re stuck and haven’t yet figured out your type? Today’s guest, singer/songwriter Amy Grant struggled to find her type too.  So, we tackled the struggle from a different angle…using stances.  In fact, one of the quickest ways to identify your Enneagram type is to first look at the different social styles, or stances, of the types rather than focus on each type individually.  Tune in to learn about the three stances and find out how you move in the world.

In order to make sense of our lives in early childhood, we develop narratives that explain our life experiences. We often choose specific incidents that we string together into the plot we now live.  But, have you ever stopped to ask yourself if the story you are living is true? Today, Ian and singer/songwriter Ryan Stevenson, tackle the concept of owning your narrative and challenge whether the interpretations of your own story are in fact true.

In order to truly use the Enneagram to better understand our own personality, it is important to have an understanding of, not just the unconscious motivations, but also the impact that subtypes and wings have on each type. In part two of our conversation with CNN Political Analyst, Kirsten Powers, we dive into the role subtypes and wings play in determining your type.

Let’s face it…there’s a deep complexity to the Enneagram.  Yes, for some, it is extremely easy to nail down their type.  But for others…well, it’s more complicated.  We can’t determine our type by our behaviors.  We really have to dig down into what’s driving those behaviors. When our guest, author and CNN political analyst, Kirsten Powers, reached out about her uncertainty in typing herself as a One or an Eight, we had to help her land on something.

In today’s episode, Enneagram Four and author of “Get Weird: Discover the Surprising Secret to Making a Difference,” CJ Casciotta joins us to talk about becoming more comfortable in your own unique self and how using your innate ability to be creative can lead to success in your personal and professional life.   No matter what you sort of weird you gravitate toward, the reason you're here on Earth is to bring something new that wasn't there before.  

On today’s episode, Ian sits down with friend and author, Amy Julia Becker, to talk about how admitting her own needs, and learning to accept herself as beautiful and broken, vulnerable, needy and gifted has been a huge life lesson in perfectionism.

This week we're taking a break to spend time with our families over the holidays and hope you are doing the same. Enjoy this replay of one of our most downloaded episodes. Annie F. Downs discusses how she stopped running from pain and is learning to share more of her true self through her own path to transformation.