Last week I finished reading a book about the enneagram: The Road Back to You* by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile. This book talks about your “why” in why you tend to do things. This is a different way to approaching personality types because in our personality types we learn how we act, but don’t always look at our reasons for why we act that way in the first place.

The word personality comes from the Greek word persona; which means mask. Not until I read this word did I think about my personality being a mask for me. But, there are times when I make excuses for myself because of my personality. I like to hide behind the tendencies of order to defend why I need to spend extra time organizing things. I also say I’m trying to better myself by letting things go and not getting in a hurry to straighten things. This has been a crazy cycle.

Then, I was presented with the enneagram.

I was in the middle of co-teaching a book, The Dream of You* by Jo Saxton, when a friend in the class told me I really needed to read up on the enneagram. Saxton’s book talks about living the life you were made to live; the way God intended for you to live. She mentions the idea of trying to be too perfectionistic in our lives and needing to let go of that tendency. She also states that we can still have that tendency, we just can not let it master our lives.

Back to the enneagram. I’m type 1: the perfectionistic; reformer. That’s right. I want to better the world around me. I see where things aren’t quite right and I find it’s my duty to make it right again. I tend to take on causes (think recycling), I try to make others better (think through my writing and speaking), and I have a hard time being open and transparent with others. Yes, it actually said that in the book. So, I knew it was on to something since my book, Being Transparent with Yourself, God, and Others* was probably written more for me than for anyone else.

So, where did reading this new book leave me? I saw how my personality fit into my “type”. It made me see why I have feelings I do have, as I’ve not really thought about feelings with my personality. I was able to see how my kids and husband each felt based on their types. Looking through the lens of another person’s perspective can give cause for patience and understanding. I was also able to see where my weaknesses were as well as my tendency to sin. Pretty fascinating.

Should you read this book? I think it would be worth your while. I never see anything wrong with trying to understand ourselves and others more. It tends to cause me to love others even more for their unique personalities. Seeing their weaknesses as well as their strengths shows me how best to love them and when I need to have more patience with them. It also will make you more aware of your weaknesses and will allow you to move forward in your spiritual journey.

Let’s take a moment and learn more about ourselves and the others that God created.

© 2019 Susan M. Sims

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