A fascination of mine is the enneagram. Are you familiar? You may be thinking it is another one of those cliche “personality tests”, but to me, this one is different. I have taken countless personality tests and received results like “you are an ESFJ” or “your highest personality patterns are conscientiousness and extraversion.” Awesome, but what do they mean? For some reason, the enneagram resonates more with me and seems to go more in-depth in terms of describing behaviors, habits & tendencies. After finding out the types of the Caliber Crew, I have seen the behaviors and thinking patterns listed in the type descriptions demonstrated by my coworkers in real-time. 

With myself being fairly new to the Caliber team and the fact that our team is continuously expanding, I thought it would be the perfect time to have everyone take the test so we can understand each other better. 

So here’s how it works: you take the test and are given a number or “type.” The numbers range from 1-9. Each type has a basic fear and a basic desire that drives our actions and reactions to the world around us. Although a little of ourselves exist within each type, you will identify most strongly with one type- aka your dominant type or number.

 

Caliber’s Enneagram Types:

Jamie & Mandy

Type 1: The Reformer

Basic Fear: of being corrupt/evil, defective 

Basic Desire: to be good, to have integrity, to be balanced  

Ones are conscientious and ethical, with a strong sense of right and wrong. They are teachers, crusaders, and advocates for change: always striving to improve things, but afraid of making a mistake. Well-organized and very attentive to detail, they try to maintain high standards, but can slip into being critical and perfectionistic. They typically have problems with resentment and impatience.  

 

Brad, Jake, Kelly, Lindsey & Marisa

Type 2: The Helper

Basic Fear: of being unwanted, unworthy of being loved  

Basic Desire: to feel loved

Twos are empathetic, sincere, and warm-hearted. They are friendly, generous, and self-sacrificing, but can also be sentimental, flattering, and people-pleasing. They are well-meaning and driven to be close to others, but can slip into doing things for others before themselves in order to be needed. They typically have problems with possessiveness and with acknowledging their own needs. 

Being generous and going out of their way for others makes Twos feel like they are living out the most meaningful life. The love and concern they feel—and the genuine good they do—warms their hearts and makes them feel worthwhile. Twos are most interested in what they feel to be the “really, really good” things in life—love, closeness, sharing, family, and friendship. 

 

Sarah

Type 3: The Achiever

Basic Fear: of being worthless

Basic Desire: to feel valuable and worthy

Threes are self-assured, attractive, and charming. Ambitious, competent, and energetic, they can also be status-conscious and highly driven for advancement. They are diplomatic and poised, but can also be overly concerned with their image and what others think of them. They typically have problems with workaholism and competitiveness. 

 

Kinley

Type 4: The Individualist

Basic Fear: conforming; that they have no identity or personal significance

Basic Desire: to find themselves and their significance (to create an identity)

Fours are self-aware, sensitive, and reserved. They are emotionally honest, creative, and personal, but can also be moody and self-conscious. Withholding themselves from others due to feeling vulnerable and defective, they can also feel disdainful and exempt from ordinary ways of living. They typically have problems with melancholy, self-indulgence, and self-pity. 

 

Elle

Type 7: The Enthusiast

Basic Fear: of being deprived and in pain 

Basic Desire: to be satisfied and content- to have their needs fulfilled 

Sevens are extroverted, optimistic, versatile, and spontaneous. Playful, high-spirited, and practical, they can also misapply their many talents, becoming over-extended, scattered, and undisciplined. They constantly seek new and exciting experiences, but can become distracted and exhausted by staying on the go. They typically have problems with impatience and impulsiveness. 

 

Casey

Type 8: The Challenger

Basic Fear: of being harmed and controlled by others

Basic Desire: to protect themselves (to be in control of their own life & destiny)

Eights are self-confident, strong, and assertive. Protective, resourceful, straight-talking, and decisive, but can also be ego-centric and domineering. Eights feel they must control their environment, especially people, sometimes becoming confrontational and intimidating. Eights typically have problems with their tempers and with allowing themselves to be vulnerable. 

 

Tyler

Type 9: The Peacemaker

Basic Fear: of loss & separation

Basic Desire: to have inner stability and “peace of mind”

Nines are accepting, trusting, and stable. They are usually creative, optimistic, and supportive, but can also be too willing to go along with others to keep the peace. They want everything to go smoothly and be without conflict, but they can also tend to be complacent, simplifying problems and minimizing anything upsetting. They typically have problems with inertia and stubbornness. 

 

If you are interested in finding out more, I encourage you to go through each type & description and guess what you think you might be here. Then, take the test and see if you are correct or where you fall. It is fascinating and I already notice myself reframing how I approach conversations with different people in my life if I know what enneagram number they are. 

 

I asked some of my Caliber teammates for their feedback on whether or not they feel like the numbers represent our teammates:

Graphic designer Elle says “I think Mandy is a true One. As our Senior Designer, Mandy’s strengths are just as stated – attention to detail, and maintains high standards- also hitting on that perfectionist characteristic. Her specialty is brand and identity and she brings the heat with every project she gets handed her way! Plus – a true to the core “rule follower” 😉 haha.” 

Our Administrative Assistant Lindsey was not surprised that our Creative Director Jake was an enneagram Two. “He is always offering his help to his teammates, no matter the task and has a positive attitude that rubs off on all of us here at Caliber!”

 

So it looks like I’m not the only one at Caliber that is intrigued by the enneagram! I encourage you to look into it for yourself or your office. It is a unique tool that our Caliber team has already found super valuable.