Why do a psychometric profile?

Do you prefer to be centre-stage, or backstage? Do your friends call you the party animal, or the home-body? Are you a dog-person or a cat-person? Do you have more sociopathic, or more psychopathic tendencies?

Psychometric profiles can range anywhere from “Which Disney princess are you?” to “Is this person a danger to society?”

Although personality-indicators are harder to define than physical ones, we can all agree on two things:

1. People are different. If they weren’t, we wouldn’t have Ryan the accountant and Ryan the firefighter.

2. Some people are similar; gathering themselves in sports teams, clubs and tribes.

So, while you may be as unique as a snowflake, with fingerprints like no one else, there are many who share your eye colour, height, tone of voice and blood type. In the same way, your personality has qualities unique to you, but also qualities we can approximate to larger groups.

How can a psychometric assessment help me?

With better self-awareness, we are better able to develop, grow and moderate our impact on others. A psychometric assessment can act like a mirror, helping you see yourself more clearly. And the more accurately you can see yourself, the easier it is work on yourself.

So which profiling tool is best?

Personally, I like to use the Enneagram. It has a rich, long history, with some mysterious mystical connotations. Since its origin, it’s gained a lot more attention about a century ago, and evolved into an incredibly sophisticated, in-depth human development model to help map out the architecture of the human psyche.

Why do the Enneagram?

It is nuanced

Myers-Briggs is one of the most well-known and widely used psyhometric assessments. It was developed in the 1940’s, and is constructed from four polarising variables: extraversion vs introversion; intuition vs sensing; feeling vs thinking and judging vs perceiving.

These four parameters will score you as one of 16 types. (4×4=16).

The Enneagram, on the other hand, defines the self from three core aspects:
emotions (heart)
thoughts (mind)
and instinct (body).

It then shows us how we orient ourselves towards one of these aspects in 3 different ways. This leads to the formation of 3×3 = 9 primary Enneagram profiles.

But it doesn’t stop there. For each style, there are also wings and instinctual subtypes, leading to a total of 9x3x3=81 different variations.

In recent years, further development of the model (called Tritype Enneagram), could allow for differentiation of the Enneagram primary styles into at least 216 variations!

By comparison, although we work with 4 primary colours, there are millions of variations on these. The Enneagram helps us acknowledge both the “primary colour” of our psychology, while allowing for the diverse variations that your unique culture and upbringing have brought about.

For an SP Enneagram 4 like myself (who tends to value individuality and complexity), this is great news! Telling me that I am one in 216, sounds a lot more appealing (and accurate) than telling me I’m like one in 16!

It asks why

When we think of change, we often get stuck on the superficial questions:
“How do I break that bad habit?”
“What can I do to boost my confidence?”
“Can I hack my productivity?”

We forget that our lives are woven together like an intricate web. Each piece interlocks, supports and is supported by every other piece. If, for instance, I want to get rid of my smoking habit, I need to understand and address the core motivations, fears and desires that support it.

With the Enneagram in the background, it becomes a lot easier to address the root issues. While an Enneagram 3 and an Enneagram 1 both have a propensity to work themselves to the point of burn-out, the core reasons why this happens are vastly different for each.

This level of awareness helps us get to the core drivers quicker, so we can take the best route to support our own development and growth.

It doesn’t restrict you to your number

Many feel that the Myers Briggs restricts them.
“The assessment says that I’m an introvert, but it depends on a lot of things. With my friends, I am very outgoing, but at work I am more quiet and reserved.”
or
“If I did this test as a child, the results would have been completely different!”

The Enneagram, on the other hand, doesn’t simply illuminate who you are, but maps out a path of development.

Although the assessment may score you as a 2, your path of development can lead you to show up more like a well developed, healthy 4, drawing from the 8, the wings of 1 & 3…etc.

In the end, the Enneagram acts more like a map than a profiling tool.
It shows you: “You are here”, so that you can see “How to get there”.

Instead of labelling you a triangle, the complexity of the Enneagram offers you the opportunity to expand from triangle to a pyramid to geodesic dome. It is entirely possible to stay true to yourself, and transcend yourself.

Where can I get the assessment?

Book an Enneagram coaching session with me. I will then send you a code to do your Enneagram assessment, and debrief the results with you in a 1-hour online call.

I’d love to partner with you on this great journey of growth!