The Enneagram Harmony Triads S.3 E.38

Listen to this episode to learn how the Enneagram Harmony Triads can help you find balance in your life.

Show notes:

Episode Summary:

Have you been following our Enneagram for Educators series? In today’s episode, we’re going to wrap up the series and bring our knowledge and understanding full circle so that you can access the best of the Enneagram and use it for both personal development and to improve relationships with your family, friends and even your students. Ramp up your knowledge and learn more about how to apply the Enneagram in your life in today’s episode.

In this episode:

Please note that this is not a word-for-word transcript. If you would like to hear all of the discussion and the examples, listen to the podcast. The notes below are highlights of the information we share in this episode.

This is the fifth episode in our Enneagram series. In previous episodes, we’ve shared the three types of wisdom in our discussion of the head, heart, and gut instinct types. We’ve also discussed each of the nine Enneagram types including their basic fears and motivations. If you haven’t listened to those episodes, you will want to go back and listen to those. Today we are exciting to bring some of this information together as we discuss the harmony Triads.

What is the Enneagram Harmony Triad?

Even if you have studied the Enneagram, you’ve probably never heard of the Harmony Triads. This is part of the Enneagram model that we were trained to teach and that we think is very helpful in finding balance in our lives.

You may heard of the wings and arrows model of the Enneagram, or you have heard of people saying, “I am a 3 wing 4”, or something like that. Basically, the wings are the numbers on either side of your main type- so if you are a two, your wings would be one and three. Those types influence your main type and you may have characteristics of one of those types. This is one model of the Enneagram that is commonly taught.

We’re not going to go into wings and arrows, because we prefer the Harmony Triads model.

The Harmony Triads model gives you three types, your main type and two others. You can tap into the intelligences of each of the three types.

Most of us focus on one type of intelligence- we lead with our head, or heart or gut. Growth can come from accessing all types of intelligence. Who doesn’t want to be smarter?

If you want more about this- see episode 17 Get Out of Your Head about the three types of intelligence.

Think of the Enneagram types as a baseball team. We all have our own baseball team. You have nine players on your team (the 9 Enneagram types). The star of the team, your MVP, is your main Enneagram type. The key supporting players are your two other Harmony Triad numbers.

The three Harmony Triads are Types 8, 5, and 2, types 9, 3, and 6 and types I, 4, and 7. You can see them in the triangles connecting the numbers in the image below. Each triad has one head type, one gut type, and one heart type. Accessing all three types of wisdom helps you to be stronger and when you are balanced and in harmony, you can be the best version of your unique self. Your baseball team is using the best strengths of its players, which makes it a winning team!

Enneagram map — The Enneagram Harmony Triads

How the Harmony Triads work:

We’ve talked about the Enneagram as a tool for personal growth. This is where the Harmony Triads really come into play. This is one of the ways you can apply your knowledge of the Enneagram to improve things in your life.

We all talk about finding balance, and having harmony and being our unique selves in the best possible way. Isn’t that what we all want? The Harmony Triad helps with this.

Let’s look at examples of the 8, 5, 2 Triad.

Type 8

8s have great confidence and leadership. They lead with their gut instinct. On their edge, they can be demanding, controlling and act without thinking.
8s can access the heart intelligence of the 2. This can remind them that people matter- you can’t just bulldoze through everyone. The 2 energy also encourages them to work for the betterment of others in things that matter so they can use their strong sense of justice for good.
The type 5 energy comes into play when the 8 needs to think through things more carefully. Instinctual decisions can often be good, but sometimes you need to think through the consequences. 8s can benefit from accessing the knowledge and wisdom of others.

Type 5

Fives have great knowledge and wisdom. It is easy for 5s to overthink and get stuck in their head and struggle to make decisions. They can also be self-contained and very cautious with relationships.
The type 8 energy gives 5s the confidence to more forward and trust their knowledge. This increases their potential to bring the best of what they know into the world and act on it.
The 2 energy reminds fives to connect with their feelings. It can help 5s to improve personal relationships and become kinder and more caring to others.

Type 2

2s are heart centered and focused on helping others. They are kind and caring, and self-sacrificing which can be exhausting. On their edge, they can be resentful.
2s who tap into their type 8 energies can become effective leaders. They can use their helpful ways for the good of an organization. They can see a need and then fill it.
2s can use their type 5 to love learning and access information. The 5 energy helps 2s to analyze and systematize that information.

Examples of the 1, 4, 7 Harmony Triad:

Type 1

Type 1 is conscientious and good. 1s like to do things the right way. They may have perfectionist tendencies, and hold themselves to a high standard. They sometimes take that to extreme by demanding everyone else meet their impossible standards.
Tapping into their 4 energy reminds 1s to be connect with the heart, to build relationships and have empathy- not tear down those who don’t meet their high expectations.
Ones on their edge can overwork, becoming intense and overly serious. They need to tap into some of their 7 and bring the joy! They need to relax and have fun and be social and remember that the work will be there later. They can lose the harshness but still keep their strength of good work that is well done.

Type 4

4s are creative, tuned into emotions and have strong empathy.
On their edge, fours can be self-absorbed or overly intense. The 7 helps them to stay in positive, fun energy. 4s hold on tightly to emotions, and 7 energy relaxes them.
1 energy helps 4s to become more focused and productive. They aren’t wallowing in feelings and become effective workers and creative problem solvers. 4s at their best are unique and inspiring!

Type 7

7s bring joy and positivity to the world. They love to experience all life has to offer. On their edge they can become unproductive, unreliable, or undisciplined.
The type 1 energy helps 7s to be productive and visionary leaders. They have great ideas and can apply them.
7s are often very social, and tapping into their type 4 energy makes them sensitive and caring friends and colleagues. Rather than ignoring their negative emotions, tapping into the 4 energy helps 7s to face and feel all of their feelings. They can learn that it is okay to feel their feelings and that they are better for it.

Examples of the 3, 6, 9, Harmony Triad.

Type 3

Type 3s are super achievers with a strong control of their image. Threes get things done! At their edge they can be workaholics who strive to impress others.
Accessing the energy of the 9 reminds 3s to slow down and relax, a message they often need to hear.
Tapping into their 6 energy helps 3s to examine their actions and connect with their rationale side. When they do this, they can see why they are making the choices they make and decide if they are making choices that best serve them.

Type 6

6’s are loyal and faithful. They are excellent workers and great problem solvers. On their edge, they may become overly fearful and anxious.
Accessing the energy of the 3 or 9 will get 6s out of their head and out of over-thinking.
When 6s tap into 3 energy, they become very productive and accomplish a lot. Their sense of dedication makes them great leaders.
When 6s tap into their 9, they can relax and have fun. They can become very social and enjoy life, which relaxes their fears and anxiety.

Type 9

9s are friendly, social and relaxed. They are great mediators and want to avoid conflict at all cost. On their edge, they can become stubborn and passive, preferring to avoid interactions if there is the threat of conflict. They can numb themselves to avoid dealing with anything that causes disharmony.
Tapping into 3 energy helps 9s to be their best. They can become efficient, productive workers. The heart centered three also helps them to be warm and considerate to others.
Accessing their 6 energy helps 9s to become great problem solvers. Rather than ignoring problems, they can actively work to prevent them or deal with them in a positive manner.

All of these examples are typical of ways that the Harmony Triad can help us to be at our best. The more you get to know and understand the Enneagram, the more you can apply it in your own life.

We realize that we have barely scratched the surface of the Enneagram, and there is so much more to learn. We’re considering a weekend Enneagram retreat where we would take the time to explore and discuss the Enneagram with a group of educators. And of course we plan to have fun too! We haven’t made any specific plans, but we are looking at a northern Chicago suburb retreat center as a location. If you are at all interested, drop us a note and let us know if you would like more information.

Recap:

The Enneagram Harmony Triads helps us to find balance and harmony and be our unique selves in the best possible way. Accessing the best of your three Harmony numbers will help you to live your best work life, and home life so, you can live your best life.

Related Episodes/Blog Posts:

Inspired Together Teachers podcast:

Episode 17 Get Out of Your Head

Episode 34 The Enneagram for Educators

Episode 35 The Enneagram for Educators Types 8, 9, and 1

Episode 36 The Enneagram for Educators Types 2, 3, and 4

Episode 37 The Enneagram for Educators Types 5, 6, and 7

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