The great psychological traditions of psychoanalysis, behaviorism, and humanism have much to offer to clarify and elaborate Enneagram styles and dynamics. And vice versa the Enneagram shows how these psychological theories show up in nine manifestations. This workshop will sample the contributions of major psychological theorists such as Freud, Jung, Adler, and Horney from the Analytic tradition; classical and [...]

Whenever we identify with idealized aspects of our persona (me), we tend to disidentify with our opposite shadow attributes (notme). For example, if we think of ourselves as being loving and kind, then we don't want to be thought of as being selfish and cruel. To avoid these unacceptable parts of ourselves, we put them in the basement (our [...]

We carry on conversations with ourselves all the time. Sometimes the exchanges are encouraging; sometimes they're discouraging; sometimes they are downright nasty. Critical voices have a different form and function within each Enneagram style. Each type has particular issues to be critical about based on its character structure and idealized self-image. In this workshop we will identify and experience [...]

  We developed our personality styles as strategies to protect us from getting hurt and wounded the way we were when we were young. This workshop will attempt to uncover some of those early sensitivities and the feelings that went along with them. We will explore how a part of us wants to get free from our personality shackles [...]

What can the Enneagram teach us about psychology? And what can psychology tell us about the Enneagram? Jerry Wagner will trace some connections between the Enneagram and Alfred Adler, Carl Jung, and Karen Horney in the psychoanalytic tradition; Harry Stack Sullivan in the interpersonal tradition; Carl Rogers in the humanist tradition; George Kelly, Albert Ellis, Aaron Beck, and Jeffrey [...]

While Threes and Eights, Sixes and Ones, Nines and Five, Fours and Sevens, etc. look alike in some ways, there are underlying differences that make them not alike. Theodore Millon, a personality theorist, describes personality patterns based on whether we seek comfort and satisfaction (positive reinforcement) or attempt to avoid emotional pain and distress (negative reinforcement); whether we seek [...]

Historically we have understood the Enneagram to be part of an ancient spiritual system. Many of the ideas considered elemental in Enneagram work, such as the sacred geometry and meaning of the diagram itself, the three centers, self-observation, presence and self-remembering, were part of a body of knowledge grounded in the roots of the Western tradition, but with many [...]

Each Enneagram style has sweet spots where there is a clarity of vision, an intuitive edge. We look for what we value, what is important to us. Each style also has blind spots, some aspects of ourselves, others, and the world that we overlook but that others see more easily. And each style has hot spots, vulnerabilities that are [...]

The Rosetta Stone provides a way of deciphering some languages that otherwise would not have been understood. The Enneagram presents a system for understanding physical, psychological, and spiritual realities whose relationships might otherwise not have been perceived. While the Rosetta Stone is straightforward in its translation, the Enneagram, having moved from a more tradition-based approach to a community- of [...]

Are you crazy? Adler didn't even like typologies. He argued for the uniqueness of each person -- that's why he called his approach: Individual Psychology. Yes, but he had a rudimentary typology which included three of the Enneagram styles. Also, his notion of style of life fits very well with Enneagram lifestyles. And his application of Vaihinger's philosophy of [...]

The idols of our personality beckon us to security and happiness. But to reach their promised land, we must pledge our unwavering devotion and fealty to them.And should we disobey them and take another route, our most alarming fears will surely be realized. On the other hand, our essence, or genuine self, invites us to a deeper sense of [...]

Whenever we identify with our idealized self-image (I), we tend to dis-identify with our opposite attributes (not-I). For example, if we think of ourselves as being extraordinary and refined, then we don't want to be thought of as being common and rude. Who would, really? To avoid these unacceptable parts of ourselves, we put them in the basement (our [...]

We view the world through our schemas, which are important beliefs about the world and ourselves. Schemas are stable and enduring patterns of thinking that develop during childhood and are elaborated throughout our life. Since we accept these schemas without question, they become self-perpetuating and very resistant to change. To the extent that our schemas represent reality fairly well, [...]