I’ve been seeing it all over social media accounts that I follow. I’ve been hearing about it from Podcasts I regularly listen to. I’ve wondered what it means when people hashtag 3×5. What is this enneagram thing? And is there anything to be gained from it?

Enneagram Overview

I’m going to give you the most simplistic version of what an enneagram is ever. I’m not an expert, and there are LOADS of people out there that are and have spent considerable amount of time developing content around enneagrams, so if you have a true interest in delving more into this topic, I’d take to the internets. 🙂 But, the way that I understand it is that enneagrams are just another personality type. There are nine different enneagrams, aptly labeled 1 through 9. Most people fit into a dominant personality type with sub-personality types, thus the 3×6 or 5×4 classification.

As with all personality typology, the enneagram seeks to help you understand that specific types strengths and weaknesses, allowing for self-awareness, self-development, and self-understanding.

What’s Your Enneagram?

There are loads of online quizzes to help you figure out what’s your Enneagram. I took five different quizzes – FIVE! And they all said something slightly different. I’m not sure if that means I’m a hard personality to type? I’m not sure why on five different quizzes, each of them came up with a different dominate type. As I read the characterisitics of them, I can definitely see myself in parts of each one, but not 100% one of them.

Here are my primary three numbers that seem to resonate the most:

Type 1 personalities:

I’ve seen this one also called the “perfectionist,” which sounds more like me than the reformer. Things about this personality type that resonate with me: high standards for self, ethical/moral, organized. Liking order and creating clarity, and that bad characteristic of impatient. Hello. I’m the most impatient person I know, sadly.

I also read somewhere that Type 1’s are also commonly in the military, law, forensics, finance and academia career fields. Guilty as charged.

The next number that kept coming up on these tests was Type 6:

There are some things about “The Loyalist” that resonant heavily with me: most loyal, build a network of trust, reliable, responsible, self-reliant, anxious. But there are other things about a Type 6 that are not really me….like the fostering cooperation and maintaining connections.

And the third number that really came up quite a bit as being high for me was the Type 8 enneagram:

Ohhhh there is so much of this that sounds like me too: protective of their people, the need to be in control and a fear of being controlled, assertiveness, straight-talking, and confrontational. The tough exterior to protect their hearts – ohhh, so me.

What does all of this mean? Can you be multiple personality types? Help me out – those of you that have spent time figuring out your enneagram!