The Back to School Edit

Calling all Enneagram enthusiasts! I’ve been waiting to share this incredible news with you for a while now! It’s Back to School time and a chance for you to officially nerd out.  Next month, I’m partnering with my friends, mentors, and Enneagram legends, Beatrice Chestnut and Uranio Paes, to bring you a front row seat to their upcoming virtual workshop called Master the 27 Enneagram Subtypes! 

So many of you have requested a deeper dive into Enneagram subtypes.  I figured what better way to learn them than directly from Bea, the world’s leading expert in subtypes?  In her classic book, The Complete Enneagram: 27 Paths to Greater Self-knowledge, she gives us a sturdy look at not just nine basic enneagram types, but the three unique instinctual subtypes within each of the nine types.  

Let’s have a quick refresh:

The Enneagram can be broken down into three centers of intelligence: the head, the heart, and the body.  Within each center, or triad, there are nine interconnected personality types.  This we know.  If we peel back the next layer, we discover each of the nine types is actually a triad in itself containing three more definitive subtypes within the type.  So, we know there are actually 27 types as opposed to nine.  The three subtypes within each of the nine types are connected to these three driving animal instincts: self-preservation, social, or sexual (or one-to-one). 

So why are subtypes so important?

I’m glad you asked ;) 

1. Subtypes help clarify type.  Discovering type is often a difficult process.  This is partly because there are only nine types and billions of us so it can feel downright limiting and often reductive to identify our dominant type as there is such variance within type.  If you struggle to identify your dominant type, try on the subtypes within  the types you feel closest describe you.  You may discover a perfect match.

2. Subtypes are more helpful as a growth tool than wings.  Wings are talked about much more than subtypes.  I learned this is because there hasn’t been clear, compelling content written about subtypes readily available.  Also, there is great confusion as The Wisdom of the Enneagram, the Riso/Hudson classic, calls them instinctual variants.   Also, wings tend to be easier to identify.  They are physically on either side of your dominant type.  However,  Beatrice explained that wings are more of a flavoring of type that can shift throughout life.  Subtypes can be used in a deeper way to grow beyond limiting, unconscious behavior.

3. Instinct +  Passion = Subtype.  It’s so important to note the nuance of subtypes within each type.  Like I said earlier, no two subtypes are alike even though there are the same three choices for each type. Instead, they can be explained by a person's predominant driving instinct (self-preservation, social, or sexual) fused with the specific passion, or emotional motivator, of a person’s type.  This creates a distinct character type within each of the nine to really sink your teeth into.  For me, this looks like the self-preservation instinct, as it is my dominant, mixed with envy, the passion of a type four.  

To wrap it up and put a bow on it, I love working with subtypes because quite simply, they help us develop more balance where there is imbalance within our personality.  Join me in this Enneagram learning experience of a lifetime that starts in just a few weeks!  

Will I see you there???

An Enneagram Event You Don't Want to Miss

It’s that time of year again… back to school!  And why should our kids have all the fun?  I’ll take an excuse to fill my learning tank any day.  If you’re like me, today’s your lucky day.  I’ve got an incredible (FREE) learning opportunity for you!  

My friend and partner in Enneagram crime, Tyler Zach, is producing his annual EnneaSummit, right around the corner.  I am thrilled to be a main speaker at this upcoming Virtual Summit on The Enneagram & Mental Health, scheduled for August 13-16, 2024. The theme is “Discover Self-Compassion and Empathy by Understanding Your Mental Health Through the Enneagram.” 

 I’ll be joined by some of my favorite voices in the enneagram/mental health space, Dr. Dan Siegel, Dr. Curt Thompson, Dr. Jerome Lubbe, and many more.  

The Enneagram has quickly gone from catchy to clinical, as I’ve seen more and more therapists integrate it into their work.  I couldn’t be happier about this.  As someone who knew the enneagram years before working as a therapist, it’s always been the lens I look through when relating to and holding space for my clients, each beautifully unique in their own type.  

Therapy is not one-size fits all.  Nor should your journey of healing and self-development be.  I hope you will take this incredible opportunity and run with it.  Whether you are a client, clinician, or curious student ready to go deeper into enneagram exploration, this event is for you.  

One of my very favorite things about the Enneagram is that it’s not a static tool.  It’s wildly dynamic and applicable.  It’s meant to be used in your lives and relationships to develop greater understanding for self and others, in order to develop greater compassion and empathy both intra- and interpersonally.  Like Thic Nhat Hahn said, “The beginning of love is understanding.”  

If you are ready to take your relationship with self and others to a new level, I hope you will sign up for this free event.  Oh, did I mention it’s free? ;)

I had the privilege of teaching about each Enneagram type’s core fear and how they can drive our lives, albeit unconsciously.  It’s wild how much fear wields our behavior and decisions in life.  What if we could wake up to these drivers and right-size them by naming them and learning a new narrative?  I wholeheartedly believe our lives and relationships would flourish.

I can’t wait to learn from the expertise of my friends and colleagues in just a few days.  Will you join me???  Click here for your free pass.