Have you ever wondered why people of the same Enneagram type can still be so different? The answer lies in the concept of Enneagram subtypes.
Discover Your Enneagram Subtypes With These 3 Must-Have Tools
I am SO FREAKING PASSIONATE about telling y’all about subtypes because it will personalize the Enneagram and help you to grow!
If you’re new to this subtypes concept, let me give you the CliffsNotes:
We all adapt to different situations and challenges based on our instinctual preferences.
But you typically rely MORE heavily on one of the instincts than the others. That dominant instinct is your subtype, and it impacts the way your main Enneagram number behaves!
Let’s dive deeper together into your personality with Enneagram subtypes. These subtypes provide a more nuanced understanding of how your core type manifests in your behavior and motivations. If you’re ready to unlock the secrets of your Enneagram subtypes, here are 3 key resources to help you on your journey.
#1: A Video Explaining the Self-Preservation, Sexual, and Social Instincts
#2: Get Your FREE Enneagram Subtypes Guide
If you haven’t heard of Subtypes, I’ve made a little freebie subtypes guide for you to walk you through the basics.
I organized this guide around each type’s core weakness. I think it paints a really clear picture of how you can have the same internal motivations as someone of the same type, but it can look totally different!
For example, take a look at Enneagram 6. Their core weakness is anxiety. But there’s a HUGE variation in how they cope with that fear of the unknown.
A Self-Preservation 6 will cope with anxiety by finding protectors and allies. Being warm, friendly, and likable is a strategy you employ to make sure you feel safe!
But if you’re a Sexual (One-to-One) 6, you cope with fear by NOT giving in to it. Instead, you press in with strength, meeting your fears on the battlefield! This subtype often mistypes as an 8!
#3: Substack Series on the 27 Subtypes
Ready to take it even more next level? Over on my Substack, I’m starting a series of articles about the subtypes. I wrote these for “My Enneagram” book, but there wasn’t room for them, so I’m sharing them on Substack.
I’m going to break it down so clearly that by the end of this series, you’ll be running through the streets yelling, “GUYS! HAVE YOU HEARD ABOUT SUBTYPES?! THEY’RE SO FREAKING COOL AND THEY EXPLAIN SO MUCH!”
Further Resources to Explore the Enneagram
If you’re ready to go deeper into subtypes, countertypes, and mistypes here are curated articles, videos, and tools that expand on the concepts introduced in this beginner’s guide.
Learn the Foundations (Articles + Guides)
- Subtypes Guide — free PDF download for context and awareness to why you do the things that you do
- Subtypes 101: Intro to the world of Enneagram Subtypes — The best kept secret in the Enneagram world (that explains everything, especially if your type doesn’t fit *quite* right)
- Countertypes: Why you keep feeling like the “weird” Enneagram type — How understanding countertypes clears up all that confusion about who you really are
- Subtypes of Types One, Two, and Three
- Subtypes of Types Four, Five, and Six
- Subtypes of Types Seven, Eight, and Nine
- Why You Feel Like the Weird Enneagram Type — how countertypes explain everything.
Watch & Learn (Video)
- Enneagram Subtypes Explained (the key to self-growth) — learn what each instinct looks like, how they differ, and why two people with the same type can seem completely opposite
- Enneagram Mistypes: Find Your Real Type — Bite-sized YouTube Shorts that break down the most common look‑alike Enneagram types so you can find your true number.
- Subtypes, Tritypes, & How To Find Your Main Enneagram Type — The ultimate Enneagram Q&A!
Find Your Type (Quizzes + Typing Tools)
- Free Online Enneagram Test — answer the questions and I’ll email you your results (no carrier pigeons available, unfortunately)
- Typing Guide — download this PDF and follow 4 steps to definitively determine your type
- Enneagram Triads — using the triads to determine your Enneagram number
Go Deeper (Books)
- My Enneagram: A Visual Guide to Find Your Personality Type, Stress Less, and Live Your Dreams
- How to find your Enneagram type—including not one but two quizzes that go way deeper than any cookie-cutter online quiz will go
- How to use the Enneagram to identify your biggest areas of growth
- Tips, tricks, and exercises to setting your goals—and achieving them!
- How the Enneagram can improve communication between you and the closest people in your life
- The Complete Enneagram — Everything I know about subtypes is rooted in this incredible work of Dr. Beatrice Chestnut and her work with the CP Enneagram Academy (co-founded with Uranio Paes)
