People who know me know that I’m not my best self when the seasons change. I’m not talking about weather changes- I love those. (Fall is my favorite). No, I’m talking about the life transitions that happen when spring moves to summer and summer moves to fall. Extra concerts, games, and awards ceremonies get piled onto an already full schedule. The special work that is connected to ending and beginning things has to be seen and done. Routines and expectations have to shift into a new normal.

In short, I struggle when I’m disrupted.

When I choose it, I actually can thrive in change. But when I feel hemmed in and without a choice? I get overwhelmed and drop balls. It’s hard for me to sort through what is most important. It takes a lot for me not just withdraw and give up. Or go to the other end of the spectrum, to not just muscle through with an intensity that shuts down my heart. But, with learning and practice, I am learning.

Our Enneagram Type interacts with change in a four key ways.

Our awakening doesn’t mean we have to ascribe to a particular name of God or join a specific religion. In fact, if Holy Ideas feels like difficult language for you, you may choose the words of Dr David Daniels, who called this layer of Enneagram our Essential Spiritual Qualities. Whatever we call this layer of the work, it is inviting us to open up to something bigger than ourselves, and release into trust.

At some point in our history, our basic trust in the benevolence of the universe was broken. We felt like we had to take control of our lives, and disconnected from the sense that something bigger was holding us. This became a source of deep pain and grief that our egos worked to help us survive. Our mental fixations formed to protect us by creating a blind spot around our Holy Idea, the very aspect of divine Being that is ours to see and bring forward.

There is so much uncertainty in the world about so many things. We are still walking through the domino effects of a global pandemic, witnessing wars that don’t have easy resolutions, watching racial justice struggle to take hold, feeling the frustration of political division, and seeing the effects of climate change. And so much more.

Perhaps we can all agree that this world need some visionary leadership.

Perhaps you are hoping to be one of those leaders, or perhaps you are looking for some good leaders to follow. In either case, Enneagram can help us think about visionary leadership from a different angle.

Any Enneagram Type can be a visionary leader. Any Enneagram Type can struggle to be a visionary leader.

Here are some visionary leadership questions to think about, with one strength and one growing edge for each type.

In that last year several years, cries for racial justice have been loud and hard to ignore. Those of us who are white have been pushed to grapple with our privilege and be thoughtful about how we move forward in justice work. I believe Enneagram can help us on that journey.

Here are some questions each type may want to consider. (Also, since Enneagram work always transcends type, notice if a question from a type other than your dominant strikes a chord.)

One of the most frequently asked questions I get as an Enneagram Coach is, “How can I use Enneagram in my parenting?”

Sometimes behind that question is a desire to type kids, and wondering how to do so well. The answer to that desire is complicated, and perhaps another post for another time. Whether or not we know our kids’ Enneagram Types, though, Enneagram is a useful parenting tool. Why?

The most effective way to use Enneagram in parenting is to observe how our Enneagram Type affects our parenting priorities.

Our Enneagram Type is a lens through which we make decisions, assess meaning, and create preferences. Which means it is at play in our parenting choices quite frequently.

Are you aware of how your Enneagram Type affects your parenting?