A huge part of what I believe in as a coach is the power to really listen to people and find out their truth. I truly believe that if we all took the time and energy to understand one another a little better, a lot more would be right with the world. This is why I believe in the blending of two approaches–finding a person’s “why” and their “how.”

Introduction to Strengths and Enneagram

What is Clifton Strengths?

Clifton Strengths, previously known as StrengthsFinder, is a highly reliable assessment tool developed by Don Clifton after 50 years of research into what makes individuals successful. The Clifton Strengths assessment is a 144 question assessment that is used to identify top strengths from a list of 34 possible talents, helping people to understand their talent themes, or things they do best that fulfill them.

Understanding the Enneagram

The Enneagram is a framework for 9 different personality types that boil down to differentiation in motivations and desires. The idea is that a person’s core Enneagram type describes 9 different ways in which people see the world.

How Do Strengths and Enneagram Complement Each Other?

Strengths in Relation to Enneagram Types

Finding out your Top 5 Clifton Strengths helps you to understand the 5 tools in your toolbox that you tend to pull out in every interaction. You usually find that most strengths in your top 5 will correlate with the descriptions associated with your core Enneagram type. For example, I’m a Type 3 “The Achiever”, and my top 5 strengths are Futuristic, Strategic, Learner, Activator, Achiever.

Clifton Strengths tells us what’s in our “toolbox”; what are our every day strengths that we rely on to get things done, but that also fills our bucket. The Enneagram framework helps us to understand our reason for being, our desires, motivations, and why we do what we do, say what we say, and make the decisions that we make.

Combining Enneagram Insights with Strengths

Your Enneagram core type tells us more about your desires, motivations, fears, and can be a pretty good indicator of behavior, especially if you know your wing. But the Enneagram is difficult to predict based on a person’s actions alone. While Clifton Strengths, which are the tools you use every day to achieve your goals, are your how, the Enneagram is your why and a person’s “why” is hard to see because it doesn’t manifest in the form of the same actions for everybody.

For example, as a Type 5, my co-worker’s first strength “Strategic” manifests itself as quiet, tactical observation as he uses his Intellection (another top 5 strength of his) to think of a conclusion/solution to move forward. On the other hand, Strategic (Strength #2 for me) manifests itself as energetic brainstorming and open dialogue with others to evaluate new ideas to process them out loud together when finding solutions at work.

Steps to Integrate Your Strengths and Enneagram Type

Identifying Your Strengths

If you haven’t already taken the Clifton Strengths Assessment, contact me at mdamon21@gmail.com for a discounted price or visit Gallup.

Discovering Your Enneagram Type

Take this free Enneagram test (takes about 15 minutes) and do not pay for the report. Your results will be the largest slice in the pie chart and will be identified as the first word (your Core Type as a number, written out) of the results paragraph. If you have trouble interpreting your results, that’s what I’m for, reach out to me and we can schedule a Discovery Session.

Integrating Your Strengths and Enneagram Type

Once we have your results for both assessments, we will have a clearer picture of your why and how! I offer several types of coaching sessions that combine insights from both tools. Can’t wait to show you your unique toolbox and how we can use it to get you where you want to go.

Benefits of Integrating Strengths and Enneagram for Personal Growth

Enhanced Self-Understanding

Knowing both your why and how will help us better be able to determine an action plan to move forward and help you achieve your personal and professional goals. The results from both assessments help you to see a clearer picture in why you think, act, feel, react, communicate, and behave the way you do and how we can harness this to your benefit.

Improved Self-Development

Together, we can work together to help you understand your why through your Enneagram typing and examine your level of health on the Enneagram health scale. From there, a focus on parlaying your “toolbox” through Strengths gives us the tools we need to execute real change.

Strengthened Relationships and Team Dynamics

Once you gain a higher level of reflective self-awareness, you will innately want to have your friends and family take the assessments too! It’s crazy how much we are able to unlock and learn about one another. I, myself, and dozens of others I’ve coached have seen the benefits of this hybrid approach to improving team dynamics and relationships.

If you’d like to learn more, head to our Free Resources page for books to read on both tools or email me at mdamon21@gmail.com to schedule a session.

FAQs

1. What are the main differences between Clifton Strengths and Enneagram? Clifton Strengths focuses on identifying your natural talents, or your “how” while Enneagram helps to determine your “why” or motivations for doing things.
2. Can I be more than one Enneagram type? Everyone is a mix of several types because we are all unique! But one dominant Core Type will arise for you that feels more correct than the others when it boils down to it.
3. How can understanding my Strengths and Enneagram type help my career? Definitely. I use both of these tools in my coaching and in the workplace. Both tools provides you with data to increase your level of self-awareness, allowing you to better be attuned to what you like to do and together, we can assess if you are using your Strengths in productive ways to honor that.
4. How accurate are Clifton Strengths and Enneagram assessments? While no assessment tool is 100% accurate, both Clifton Strengths and Enneagram have been widely used and recognized for their validity and reliability.
5. Where can I take the Clifton Strengths and Enneagram assessments? You can take the Clifton Strengths assessment on Gallup.I recommend you take the free Enneagram assessment here.

Welcome to People Hacking 101! The first time I learned about the Enneagram, I thought to myself “wow, you’ve finally figured out how others think!” Honestly, it was one of the biggest “aha!” moments of my entire life. It reminded me of when we were kids and heard things like “not everyone thinks like you!” Very difficult as a kiddo to understand how you even think, let alone anyone else. Forget it! Even as an adult, people are often a puzzle.

Introduction to Enneagram

The Enneagram: A Brief History

The Enneagram has a long and complicated history and when I went down that rabbit hole a few years ago, it was wild what I found. The Enneagram has roots stretching back to the desert fathers of early Christianity, the Sufis of Islam, and even further back. There were even traces back to early medicinal practices!

Of course, personality theory has been around a long time because people have always wanted ways to characterize and therefore be able to accurately predict others’ behavior. While this is not 100% possible, the Enneagram does provide us with a window into how different people operate and that is very helpful on multiple fronts.  But its modern interpretation owes much to the work of Oscar Ichazo and Claudio Naranjo in the mid 20th century.

Unpacking the Enneagram System

Understanding the 9 core types of the Enneagram system is like understanding how you and everyone else around you thinks. Understanding your enneagram core type helps you to identify your own motivations and desires; basically why you do what you do, say what you say, and react the way you react. Everything we do is centered around our “why”. The Enneagram tells you a person’s “why”.

Basically the Enneagram is a system made up of 9 Core Types that are set up in a circle format (which is important to understand later). These types are interconnected, which will help you to understand where each type “goes” during stress and during periods of growth. Each of the 9 represents a different “why” or core motivation that a person has. Keeping in mind that everyone is truly a blend of many, this isn’t a rigid personality type but a touchpoint to help you to understand the CORE of why you do what you do.

The Nine Enneagram Types

Each Enneagram type, numbered one through nine, has its own set of distinct characteristics, motivations, and ways of perceiving the world.

Type 1: The Perfectionist

Ones are moral and ethical, principles and purposeful, and always strive for perfection. They are concerned with doing things the right way. Responsibility, strong values, acute attention to detail, and a clear sense of duty are all accurate descriptions for a type one.

Type 2: The Helper

Type twos derive their self-worth from uplifting and supporting others. They want to be loved and appreciated, especially for the contributions they bring to their loved ones’ lives. They are empathetic, friendly, affable, people-pleasing, generous, well-meaning, warm, sincere, nurturing, and approachable people.

Type 3: The Achiever

Threes are all about success. They want to achieve in whatever arena success looks like in their environment. They are productivity masters, often multi-tasking to achieve their ambitious goals. Goal-oriented, ambitious, driven, charismatic, energetic, and poised are all accurate descriptions of a Type 3.

Type 4: The Individualist

Type Fours are all about being unique. They want to express their individuality and are passionate, creative, introspective, self-aware, compassionate, and open-minded “idea synthesizers” who are often quirky and endearing.

Type 5: The Investigator

Type Fives love to observe. They are cautious to express opinions without gathering ALL of the information first. They are curious learners by heart, making them great researchers and are focused on gaining knowledge. They non-conformists who are analytical and objective. Fives are motivated by their desire to be capable and confident.

Type 6: The Loyalist

Type Sixes are loyal, trustworthy, and dependable. They seek security and are often prepared for anything. Vigilant, logical, organized, and detail-oriented, they are excellent team players.

Type 7: The Enthusiast

Sevens want to get the most that they can out of life. They are the definition of YOLO. Open-minded, adventurous, free-spirited, and optimistic, sevens are well-connected and love experiencing new things. They avoid as best they can feeling pain and deprivation.

Type 8: The Challenger

Eights are confident, independent, and decisive. They are strong advocates who enjoy challenges and are passionate in their convictions. Driven by their need to protect themselves and their loved ones from being taken advantage of, eights often act as the guardians in their social and family circles.

Type 9: The Peacemaker

Nines tend to be easy-going, peace-making, and get along easily with everyone. Their magic power lies in their ability to see things from all 8 of the other perspectives. They are non-judgmental, supportive, adaptable, and great at mediating conflict. They strive to create harmony, peace, and comfort.

Enneagram Types and Inner Motivations

Uncovering Inner Motivations

Figuring out your Enneagram core type helps put you on a path leading to greater self-awareness, compassion, and personal growth. It’s important to understand that while we do see some behaviors tied to our core types, behaviors are more often expressed through our wings.

How Each Type Relates to Their Inner Motivations

Each Enneagram type has a unique way of interacting with their inner motivations. This is the basic definition of the core type–your “why” or desires and motivations. For example, Type 3s, the Achievers, are often driven by an innate need to feel valuable, while Type 9s, the Peacemakers, are motivated by a desire for internal and external peace.

Enneagram and Relationships

How Enneagram Types Impact Interpersonal Relationships

The role that the Enneagram plays in improving your relationships is remarkable. It was definitely an “aha!” moment for me when I had my whole family take it! I love understanding more about how people handle conflicts, react in different situations, process information, communicate, and work with other people. It gives you a greater appreciation for your interactions with people in your life.

Conclusion

I love coaching with the Enneagram because it helps us unveil truths about the way we think and how others around us do the same. It unlocks true empathy, and helps you to communicate and resolve conflict in a more unified, and humanistic way. Knowing your Enneagram Core Type is invaluable not only for your relationships, but always for your personal development. By combining your “why” (Enneagram) with your “how” (Clifton Strengths Top5), we can get a complete picture of who you and what makes you tick. E-mail me at mdamon21@gmail.com and let’s get started!

FAQs

1. What is the Enneagram?
   • The Enneagram is a system of personality typing that describes patterns in how people conceptualize the world, think, and ultimately it reflects a person’s “why”.
2. How can the Enneagram help me understand my motivations?
   • Each Enneagram type is linked to specific motivations, fears, and desires. By identifying your type, you can better understand what drives your actions and decisions.
3. How does knowing my Enneagram type affect my relationships?
   • Oh wow, it definitely helps a ton. This has been one of the biggest areas that has helped me in my life with the Enneagram framework. If you know how people think, you understand why they say and do what they say and do, which might be for a different reason than what you/your core type would say or do. This helps you to resolve conflict because you have a true understanding allowing you to empathize.
4. Are the Enneagram types rigid categories?
   • No, everyone is a mix but one core type usually dominates. For example, I am a type 3 and that truly is my “why” but I have a strong Type 1 backup so I exude a lot of those traits in certain situations (and these tie into my Clifton Strengths as well which is why I like coaching both together!) This provides insight into the basics of a person’s desires, which helps us to understand their tendencies and how a person who thinks like them might act based on what we know about how that type thinks.
5. Can my Enneagram type change over time?
   • Your Enneagram type stays the same throughout your life but depending on your experiences and what situation you are in, your behaviors will mirror your wing more closely than your core type. This means that you may lean on one wing or the other (for instance, I am a type 3 so my wings are either 2 or 4) depending on which traits you need/feel comfortable using at that time.