The Enneagram Personality Type 9: The Peacemaker
The Enneagram 9 is one of my favorite personality types because they are so easy to be around.
The Nine is the Peacemaker according to Understanding the Enneagram: The Practical Guide to Personality Types (revised edition) by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson.
- Basic Fear: Of loss and separation
- Basic Desire: To have inner stability “peace of mind”
- Enneagram Nine with an Eight-Wing: “The Referee”
- Enneagram Nine with a One-Wing: “The Dreamer”
“Key Motivations: Want to create harmony in their environment, to avoid conflicts and tension, to preserve things as they are, to resist whatever would upset or disturb them.”
No one is easier to hang out with than a 9. Nines are oh so comfortable with anything and everything especially themselves.
Nines will tell you a story while they are taking a bath or sitting on the toilet. They will think nothing of getting naked…not to be confused with the 3 who will also get naked, but the difference is the 9 is getting naked because they are so comfortable with themselves and the 3 is getting naked because they want you to admire their genitals.
They are accepting, trusting, charismatic, excellent story-tellers and great friends. They are in NO and I mean NO hurry to do anything. It may take them 10 years to get a degree or a job or get out of a bad relationship, etc. But that doesn’t mean they are necessarily lazy because once a 9 gets into a work routine they will stay in that routine forever. It’s more that they have problems with inertia aka moving or stopping a routine.
They are the opposite of neurotic. But they are often too willing to go along with others to keep the peace, and are often out of touch with their own desires and needs. In fact it may take them years to figure out their feelings. A close friend of mine is a great example. She is in her late 40s and seeing a psychologist to deal with her issues that she had with her mom when she was a teen…aka she is JUST now dealing with said issues.
In fact I warn people….just because a 9 isn’t acting angry with you, beware….10 years from now they may suddenly realize that they are mad at you for what you have just done and may lash out. They can be tricky because they seem so at peace with everything but they may just be storing up their anger for later.
In fact I told my 9 friend that she was like a thermal wall (since I am simultaneously studying for my architecture exams)…a thermal wall absorbs heat energy and stores it for some time and then slowly releases it later. I like that analogy for the 9.
They can also get complacent and stuck in an effort to minimize disruption.
“At their Best: indomitable and all-embracing, they are able to bring people together and heal conflicts.”
Stay tuned for our continuing 9-part series covering all the enneagram types!
