Building Trust in Teams (and Losing it) with Each of the Enneagram Types

 The article below will help you learn in-depth about the Enneagram and how it can help you build trust within your team.

The enneagram is a system that describes nine different personality types, each with its own strengths, weaknesses, and motivations. By knowing your Enneagram type, you can learn more about yourself and how you relate to others. You can also understand how different types may build or lose trust in teams, depending on their behaviors and attitudes. Here are some tips for each type:

Type 1: The Improver

You want to do things right and make the world a better place. To build trust with you, others should follow the rules and respect your standards. To lose trust in you, they should criticize your values, take away your control, or ignore your details.

Type 2: The Helper

You want to be loved and appreciated for your kindness. To build trust with you, others should acknowledge your help and express gratitude. To lose trust with you, they should take you for granted, neglect your feelings, or disregard your needs.

Type 3: The Performer

You want to be successful and admired for your achievements. To build trust with you, others should recognize your goals and support your ambition. To lose trust in you, they should question your abilities, undermine your accomplishments, or dismiss your aspirations.

Type 4: The Original

You want to be unique and authentic. To build trust with you, others should respect your creativity and show genuine interest in your emotions. To lose trust in you, they should criticize your individuality, dismiss your feelings, or minimize your ideas.

Type 5: The Investigator

You want to understand the world and yourself. To build trust with you, others should value your expertise and insights and provide space for solitude and reflection. To lose trust with you, they should invade your privacy, demand too much interaction, or disregard your knowledge and boundaries.

Type 6: The Loyalist

You want to be secure and supported by others. To build trust with you, others should be reliable and supportive and provide reassurance in uncertain situations. To lose trust with you, they should break promises, create insecurity through inconsistency, or fail to address your concerns or provide reassurance.

Type 7: The Enthusiast

You want to be happy and enjoy life. To build trust with you, others should embrace your enthusiasm and creativity and encourage your exploration of new ideas and experiences. To lose trust in you, they should constrain your spontaneity, dampen your excitement, or dismiss your dreams as impractical.

Type 8: The Challenger

You want to be powerful and in control. To build trust with you, others should be straightforward and honest and acknowledge your assertiveness and confidence. To lose trust with you, they should attempt to manipulate or overpower you, challenge your sense of control, betray your trust, or exploit your vulnerability.

Type 9: The Peacemaker

You want to be at peace and avoid conflict. To build trust with you, others should promote harmony and inclusivity and allow you to express your opinions without fear of conflict. To lose trust in you, they should create unnecessary conflict, ignore your input, or fail to appreciate your efforts to maintain harmony.

I hope this helps you rewrite your description in a more unique, simple, and attractive way. If you want to learn more about the Enneagram and how it can help you in your personal and professional lives, you can check out these articles: What are the 9 Enneagram Personality Types?.

Build team trust with the Enneagram in real life.

Below is a small, true story from my life that I witnessed. While on business at the dealership, I discovered a conflict between the CEO and the sales staff. I thought for a long time about this case and decided to use the Enneagram to resolve disagreements in the work of my subordinates.

The CEO was a Type Six who always worried about the worst-case scenarios. The sales guy was a Type Three who always wanted to move fast and impress others. They didn't trust each other at all.

I decided to introduce them to the Enneagram. I didn't tell them about the conflict; I just told them they might find it interesting. They agreed to take the test and learn about their types. They were surprised by the results.

I then asked them to switch places and see the world through each other's eyes. They realized that they had different ways of thinking and acting and that they were not trying to sabotage each other. They learned to appreciate each other's strengths and weaknesses.

The CEO agreed to give the sales guy more freedom and flexibility, while the sales guy agreed to give the CEO more feedback and reassurance. They started to work together as a team instead of as rivals. The trust had been restored. And things started to move. Isn't it wonderful?