There’s three types of people when it comes to the Enneagram…

1. Those who have known their number most of their life and let it be a core personality trait (ahem, that’s me 🤣)
2. Those who know their number, but don’t really know much about it
3. Those who have zero clue what the Enneagram is

If you’re among the last group, let me quickly explain what the Enneagram is so you can fully understand the context of this blog post. 

If you’re among the group of people who know what it is, but don’t fully understand why it’s important, you can skip to section two!

And if you’re my people who also makes your number a personality trait, you can skip to section three where I talk about 10 things that Enneagram 3’s need to hear… and the lessons that I’ve  personally learned being one. 

Oh, and even if you aren’t an Enneagram 3, those lessons are still valuable for you, too! 😊

What is the Enneagram?

The Enneagram is a type of personality test and the general idea is that everyone is assigned to one type. For this test, your personality is defined by a number: 1-9. 

As mentioned above, I’m an Enneagram 3 and I’ll explain more about what that means in just a minute!

Each Enneagram type has an associated fear, basic desire and predictable pattern of behavior in times of stress and security.

With the Enneagram, it’s common to find yourself in all nine types, but ONE of them typically stands out the most and that is what determines your basic personality type.

The nine types include:

1. The Reformer (Conscientious and Ethical)
2. The Helper (Supportive and Sincere)
3. The Achiever (Self-Assured and Charismatic)
4. The Individualist (Self-Aware and Reserved)
5. The Investigator (Alert and Curious)
6. The Loyalist (Committed and Reliable)
7. The Enthusiast (Enthusiastic and Spontaneous)
8. The Challenger (Confident and Controlling)
9. The Peacemaker (Calm and Trusting)

Now that you know what the Enneagram is, you might wonder why exactly this matters… 

I believe that for business owners especially knowing your Enneagram is key and here’s why ⬇️

Why Knowing the Enneagram Matters as a Business Owner

Some people prefer to stay away from personality tests because they fear that it will box them into who they are and they won’t feel confident to challenge themselves and get out of their comfort zone. 

While I TOTALLY understand this, I want you to know that knowing your Enneagram, especially as a business owner, can actually empower you even more. 

I’ve personally experienced this and I want you to experience it, too!

When you take the Enneagram test, you essentially learn your strengths and weaknesses, but it’s done in a way that you can actually use those to your advantage, not let them define you.

I  believe that knowing your Enneagram as a business owner helps in 4 main ways:

1. Self Awareness
   First, when you learn your strengths and weaknesses through the Enneagram test, you become more self aware which means you are more in tune with your own tendencies.
   
   For example, I have the tendency to overcommit to work because I’m a natural high achiever. Being aware of this has allowed me to more easily identify and recognize when I’m doing this and then course correct. More on that in a minute!
   
   
2. Work Ethic
   Second, you learn more about the way that you prefer to work.
   
   To help you understand this, here’s an example: have you ever followed someone on Instagram and maybe they share a picture of their desk and it’s cluttered with papers and coffee cups? You might think, “how in the world can they work like that?!?!”
   
   When you see that, it might drive you crazy and you think there’s no way you could get any work done in that environment.
   
   But for them, it might be nothing. As humans, we are wired SO differently and knowing your Enneagram helps you discover things like this about yourself!
   
   
3. Communication 
   Next, knowing your Enneagram helps you improve your communication. When you know your Enneagram, you grow a deeper understanding of your own communication style, so again you can better understand your own tendencies and work to improve those when necessary.
   
   For example, if you're an Enneagram 9 (the Peacemaker), you may tend to avoid conflict and prioritize harmony in your relationships. Understanding this about yourself can help you communicate more effectively by being aware of your tendencies and making adjustments where necessary.
   
   In addition to knowing your own communication style, you can also better understand others. Other people might be more direct and assertive in their communication and instead of taking this personally, you can recognize that their style is simply different than yours!
   
   
4. Motivation
   Lastly, knowing your Enneagram helps you better understand what drives you and what you value most in life. This allows you to design your work in a way that will feel most rewarding to you and make sure that you’re staying in your zones of genius as much as possible!

For example, as a 3 (the Achiever), I’m highly motivated by success and achievement. An Enneagram 4 on the other hand (the Individualist), is likely more motivated by the pursuit of authenticity and meaning.

In addition to knowing what drives you, you can also better identify any blind spots you may have and recognize specific areas of growth.

10 Things Enneagram 3 Small Business Owners Need to Hear (and the lessons I've personally learned being one)

As mentioned earlier, I’m an Enneagram 3 - The Achiever. As a 3, I’m driven, success-oriented, ambitious and highly focused on achieving goals.

While the desire to achieve can be a great asset for a 3, it also causes us to overcommit, overwork, be impatient and struggle to rest or say “no.”

Knowing this about myself and being aware of my tendencies, I’ve learned a few things that I think all fellow Enneagram 3 business owners need to hear. 

You don’t have to serve everyone (aka you’re allowed to say “no.”)
Saying “yes” to everyone and everything can be a big fault for a 3. We love to please and we love for people to view us as successful. But saying “yes” to serving everyone is a straight path to burnout and it’s just not sustainable. 

As a business owner, I understand that you want to serve people and you want people to choose you over the competition.

But I can promise you that when you start saying “no” to people and projects that truly aren’t a good fit, you will thrive even more in your business and experience even more success that’s more aligned.

And trust me – I know that as a 3, saying “no” feels like the HARDEST thing to do! But it’s also the most empowering thing you can do for yourself. 

You are not responsible for fulfilling everyone’s needs… even though it might feel like you are. It’s not your job to please everyone (spoiler alert: that’s not even really possible). 

When you start saying no, you regain your power as a professional and you’re then able to say YES to things that actually light you up and matter the most to you!

You can hire help and outsource certain parts of your business.
I used to believe that in order for things to be done well, I had to be the one to do them. As a 3, it’s hard for me to hand things off, especially in the realm of business. But I quickly learned that if I wanted to also thrive in my personal life, I absolutely had to hire help and outsource certain parts of my business.

The truth is that I’m not meant to do everything and there are people out there who can do certain things WAY better than I can. When I realized this and started embracing it, I was able to experience a sense of relief and peace because I could truly enjoy all parts of my life again!

Prioritizing rest is non-negotiable.
Enneagram 3’s are doer’s which means that even when we aren’t supposed to be working… we’re thinking about working. This can be a huge challenge when it comes to creating a work/life balance, because we often also value family and our personal life, but we sometimes struggle to truly be present in those moments. 

As a 3, I’ve learned that prioritizing rest is a non-negotiable in order to recharge. Constantly “doing” is another recipe for burnout, so I’m constantly reminding myself to pause, rest and come back tomorrow when I’m fresh.

It’s okay to take your time.
As achievers and doers, 3’s tend to be a bit impatient. This trait isn’t necessarily something I’m proud of and is something I really have to work at, both professionally and personally.

I’ve learned that slowing down and taking my time doesn’t make me any less successful and people actually appreciate me more because of this.

Schedule a day with nothing scheduled.
Enneagram 3’s tend to fill their calendar to the brim leaving almost no time to do well… nothing. As people who love to achieve and perform, we often feel like we always need to be doing something productive. 

If we aren’t working in the business, we’re tempted to do a project around the house or fill our time with things that still make us feel like we are achieving. 

To overcome this, I’ve started scheduling a day for NOTHING! Yes, you read that correctly – I actually have to schedule a day with nothing scheduled. 😅 It’s just how our brain works.

In addition to scheduling days with nothing, I’ve also intentionally designed my business so that I can take more time off when my kids have school breaks. This allows me to fulfill my value of being present with my family and not feel distracted by my work.

Release the pressure.
As achievers, 3’s are constantly putting a TON of pressure on themselves. The pressure to succeed, to perform, to do well and to create results. 

It’s honestly exhausting and when you’re aware of this tendency, you can allow yourself to let  go. We often trick ourselves into believing that people around us are putting pressure on us, when in reality it’s often US who are stressing ourselves out the most. 

Stop trying to impress.
As silly as it might sound, 3’s really care about their public image. We want people to affirm our work and see us as successful, high achieving individuals.

Because of this, we often want to impress people with what we can do and we crave praise. When we don’t receive that, it often makes us feel like we’ve done something wrong or haven’t done something well. 

This is also why we continue to say “yes” because we want people to like us. But again, this is such an exhausting cycle. When you stop trying to impress people and simply live out your real values, that’s when you can experience more joy in your life and work.

Stop overpromising.
Are you seeing a theme here?! 😅

The constant “yes” that 3’s say leads to a cycle of overcommitting and feeling stressed and overwhelmed. At the root of this, we simply don’t want to let people down. Ultimately, it’s people pleasing of sorts. 

We tend to put others before ourselves and while sometimes that can be an honorable tait, it often leads to regret and resentment that makes us super unhappy. 

When you stop overpromising, you can move into a place of true excitement about everything that you do say yes too!

Being with people is life-giving.
Lastly, 3’s often want to be alone and work by themselves because sometimes it feels like additional people can get in the way of our productivity. 

This is a scary reality for 3’s because it can lead to isolation and believing that again, we’re supposed to do everything. 

Knowing this about myself, I’ve actively put myself in environments where I surround myself with more of the right people and by doing so I’ve realized that makes me even more successful. 

Being surrounded by others is not a waste of time and it’s not a detriment to my work or YOURS. We were made to be in community with others and it’s so important to recognize that!

My hope for you is that you now understand why knowing your enneagram matters as a business owner and that you feel encouraged to learn your number and embrace it!

And if you’re a fellow Enneagram 3 reading this, I want you to ultimately walk away with this: don’t put so much pressure on yourself to achieve this list perfectly either. 

None of these things are “bad” – it’s simply how you’re wired and honestly, people love you for it. You won’t get all of these things right every single time, but you CAN work on them to create a life as a 3 WITHOUT all of the attached pressure of achieving. 

(I’m talking to myself here, too!)

Overall, your Enneagram doesn’t have to define you, but instead it can EMPOWER you to grow even more in your personal and professional life!

Your designer friend always,