I will be the first to admit that when I first encountered the enneagram I dismissed it as somewhere between a horoscope and just another personality test. Over time though, I’ve learnt more about it and seen it for what I believe it is - an extremely rich tool for self-awareness (and awareness of others when dealing with team and interpersonal dynamics).
The true origins of the Enneagram are somewhat ambiguous, but any theory you see today is an amalgam of different influences. The Armenian philosopher and spiritual teacher George Gurdjieff is credited with bringing together some of the underpinning knowledge in the late 1800s and early 1900s. But that work has been built on by a series of psychiatrists, psychologists and spiritual teachers.
In a coaching context we can see the enneagram as a model for human understanding and development. The model is built around 9 archetypal personalities with the theory that we each contain all of these archetypes but are likely to have one dominant type. The 9 types are represented in the enneagram symbol (pictured below) and there is extensive writing around how different types evolve, interact with one another etc.
In contrast to other tools used for personality typing, the enneagram focuses heavily on core fears and desires that we may have formed throughout life and which may drive a lot of our behaviour. For example, I see 3 as my dominant type - 3’s have a core fear around worthlessness and so typically strive to achieve in order to be ‘of worth’. By contrast, 2’s fear being unloved by others so will often fall into the role of helper in order to curry favour. You can see detailed descriptions of all types here.
Where these core fears come from and how they develop is hard to pinpoint but likely the result of development throughout childhood.
The Enneagram is a really rich tool for self-awareness and for understanding others with whom you have important relationships e.g. a cofounder or fellow member of a team. It can be used to facilitate individual growth, and to build empathy and improve relationships with others.
One word of warning - I have seen folks get very attached to the narrative of their dominant type and to use that as an excuse for bad behaviour - that is NOT the intent of working with the Enneagram.
As with all tools of this kind, the map is not the territory - the Enneagram is one useful map for the territory of you.
You can take the RHETI test here for a small fee. The results of the test won’t simply be an answer telling you your type but will provide relative scores across types and information on how to interpret the results. Ultimately, figuring out which type is your dominant one is a journey of self-discovery and the test results are just a starting point.