The Personality Juggle

Welcome to this new space. 

Not exactly new. Just a little adjustment, more like shifting sofas in the living area. 

Or like bringing new wall hangings.

But still. Welcome. Let's get all cozy here😝.

So, here we go...

I have never been so keen on personalities except when I am keen on mine. It has been a life's journey into where I stand at now. You can bet it has not been easy, just as it has been so long.

Oh yes, I am  having you read something that has never interested you as well? For all one knows, feel free to leave it right where you see the next full-stop. 

See what we did there? You ought to have stopped. But well, we are here.

I have been there, done that! You are not iconic at that. And yes, all that is moral support platitude. I'd be better than you, so sit down, keep scrolling or better still just read with a ready response of how trash this post is. Well, that's not new to me either.

Let's go on...

I am not  sure where along my life's journey I became so interested in personalities but that has to be just now after turning some floors up twenty years. I have not had any intention of being a psychologist, yet, here I am writing as though I am game at it. Yes, I might be game at being psycho. Haha. But never psychologist. I would be interested in mind reading though if that falls in their scope. Oh, well. I will try that next time.

Here I am getting too excited over stuff that people think is too childish to be all over about. I no longer consider it childish or naive, in case I forget to mention that by the end of this chatter. 

I am over-excited about learning a new-to-me way of personality typing. Sorry to those I have left in the league of not minding what their personalities are. It is what it is guys! 

In Swahili we'd say,"maskini akipata matako hulia mbwata." That describes me right now though not in the entirety of the proverb's meaning, just the 'maana ya juu'.

By now I am quite sure the word Enneagram has crossed some media you view and you have some knowledge or are well acquainted with the term. I mean, for the one who is in the dark; Ennaegram comes into play when typing personalities of persons. There are several ways to delve into personalities and having Enneagram types is one of the ways. Its been there its only become pre-eminent with phsychologists and priests voicing  it out more. My favourite of the people who have talked about it are Tom La Hue and Fr. Richard Rohr. You could check them out sometime.

Why I picked this way of typing and not the rest is quite simple:- it's easier to understand than the rest. It is goes favourably in its depth, at least for me. I did not feel like someone is trying to guess who I am. But I was stone sure that this person knows me too well and just as the Samaritan woman went back bearing news of a person who knew her too well (Jesus) , here I am about Enneagram. 

I say it's easier and depicts the characteristics of persons quite well that you feel you relate to the core except when you are a type 9 and don't want to be constrained in a box while you know you have lived your life being the rest but you.

 

If I fail to commend those who took their time to compile characteristics in videos and studies in articles, I would be biting the hand that feeds me (correct the phrase in your head,kindly). This particular blog has actually been birthed after listening and reading tonnes and tonnes of material on personalities by people who have more knowledge and have probably attained degrees and PhD's in such aligned courses. It might not be tonnes, just quite a number.  

I still indulge because there's no better way to describe and predict most of human behaviour, thought and action than through knowing what their system looks like, deeply. I might be on my way to mind reading, I wouldn't mind😁.

Quite frankly, I was very disturbed at first by the idea of being locked in a certain box. 

For a person who doesn't like their actions and anything being predictable, you will probably relate. How could one even dare have me pegged into a small piece of land while I know I can reach the whole world, right?

I would never have liked to be limited. I think this is what we have come to believe, most of us, after being told "you can do anything, as long as you set your mind on it". For my Christian friends you might relate it to, 'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me! '

While that is true. We may have had those meanings misconstrued and have them draw us farther from self discovery. 

So,  being able to move from one personality type to another is no problem. But not wanting to be related to a specific is the biggest of our challenges. It makes it even harder for us to deal with ourselves as we have no form of identity.

Just a quick question, which I know may elicit more discussion but; why would you quickly identify yourself with a religion and not identify yourself for who you are? All I am asking is, why is it so quick for me to blurt right out that I am a Christian and not feel comfortable identifying myself with who I am? Like, what defines me after being a Christian? Or even before I became Christian who was I? Are we either born our religion or not?It is not the case. Is it that our career or not? The real question is who are we? Apart from our names, tribes, political inclinations- who are you? Your 'self'.

I have been at that place and point. I have also come to appreciate the voicing of matters relating to racism and police brutality, that is happening at the moment and I think it's a very good thing. That is part of identity and knowing where one is at. You would be surprised that it is because one's personality or a group of people with the same personality driven towards justice that we have the conversations that we are now having.

Of good things, I also think personalities to be good things. Me being in favour of one doesn't mean I dislike the others. I may just have had preference of one to another.  As always, choose what makes you happy. The Ennaegram makes me happy and so gassed up, so, your way...

From a book I am reading that talks more about the subject, I had no better conviction that knowing my personality should have been the first thing I did or my parents did before being exposed to the world. Knowing 'self' brings so much light that you can better work on who you are than when you were in your own darkness. 

Most of us would like to be better brothers, sisters, Muslims, Christians, friends,relatives, whatever it is for you reading this. I may identify much with religion cause I definitely want to be better, so, why not seek a way to it? John Calvin says, “without knowledge of self there is no knowledge of God.” That is how bad it can turn out for us. We can live our whole lives trying to know God but if we've not known ourselves our trials will be futile.

So there you have it! You would not know how to be better without knowing you.

With such an introduction, I was hoping you would follow through these written thoughts in the next couple of weeks as we get to dig deeper into personalities in the Enneagram. I am no professional and none of my thoughts are tested, they are just out of excitement, a fun way of looking at things and wondering on how different we are, yet all human. 

My first recommendation to you would be taking the test, the Enneagram personality test then go to a book, 'The Road Back to You' by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile and follow for new content here.  

In foresight, we can have fun over the next series of reads, if this Enneagram thing still interests you.

Ciao.