Leadership question from the 2022 Enneagram in Organizations Global Survey

What level of improvement have you experienced in each of the above areas using the Enneagram? You can find the answers from the 2022 Enneagram in Organizations Global Survey, conducted online by the Enneagram in Business network and drawing nearly 800 respondents from 49 different countries.

A leader’s personal qualities are just as important as their ability to navigate the task and relationship roles they must demonstrate. In fact, a leader’s personal qualities help them find the right balance. Even more, effective, successful leaders demonstrate credibility, humility, empathy, connectedness and approachability. Leaders who work with the Enneagram particularly benefit in these three areas: becoming more empathic, exhibiting more integrity, and showing more humility.

Empathy

The 2022 Global Survey shows how strongly the Enneagram increases a leader’s empathy (78%).  What is empathy? It’s the ability to both understand and experience the feelings of another person. In other words, you have to feel it yourself, even if you have not had the same experience. Empathy is not the same as identifying with another’s experience because you may not have had that experience. And even if you have had a similar situation in your own life, your reaction to it may not be the same as another person’s. Empathy is also not “putting yourself in someone else’s shoes,” although many people think of empathy this way. To continue with the shoe metaphor, you and the other person may wear entirely different-sized shoes. In psychological terms, “putting yourself in someone else’s shoes” is inviting you to project how you would feel in that situation. But, again, you are not that person.

How does the Enneagram help with empathy?  When we learn our Enneagram types and the other eight versions of being human, a big “ah ha” or insight is that we understand we are wired in nine different ways. This includes how we think, how we act, how we feel and what motivates or “drives” us. The Enneagram also helps us delve deeper into our own patterns, emotional patterns included. When we delve deeper into our own emotional responses, we often discover feelings we didn’t realize we had. As a result, our empathy for ourselves increases, while our empathy for others – without engaging in emotional projection – also increases. In other words, the Enneagram helps us open our hearts more so we can tune into others better. Our mirroring neurons increase so we can feel what another person actually feels. That is empathy!

Integrity

What is integrity and what makes this quality so important for leaders?  Integrity is the quality of being honest and behaving in ways that are aligned with positive ethical values. It is also the state of being whole. Integrity is part of what makes a leader trustworthy.

The 2022 Enneagram in Organizations Global Survey indicated that 65% of the respondents noted that increases in leadership integrity were a major benefit of using the Enneagram. An explanation for this is that working with the Enneagram helps people, leaders included, become more self-honest about their strengths, weaker areas, true motivations, impact on others and more. The Enneagram also helps us be more of who we really are and to be true to that, instead of being as we think we should be. This potential benefit of the Enneagram shows that integrity is not simply something a person has or does not. Integrity is something to both aspire to and part of the journey the Enneagram supports.

Humility

First, it is essential for everyone, including leaders, to understand the nature of humility and to differentiate true humility from false humility. Humility is the ability to accurately view your skills, attributes, talents and flaws while, at the same time, being devoid of arrogance. Accuracy and non-arrogance are essentials! The other issue is false humility, which is purposely devaluing yourself to appear to be humble when, in fact, it is a form of “pridefulness in disguise.”

Each Enneagram type can be unhumble, and this can manifest in nine different ways.

Ones can feel superior to others because they think they are right and continuously self-improving.

Twos can perceive themselves as humble because they focus on others and less on themselves but are prideful (non-humble) about doing this.

Threes often feel better than others because they focus on winning competitions, getting that promotion, etc.

Fours often view themselves in an elevated way by virtue of perceiving themselves as deeper than other people.

Fives can be elitist because they can be unflappable and know so much more than others.

Some Sixes may act humble and some less so, but it is important to not mistake their doubt and uncertainty for humility. As Sixes think through scenarios and possibilities, they often think they are more clever than the rest of us.

Sevens, in general, don’t appear particularly humble because they are so enthralled with their own ideas, although they may actually be more humble than they show us.

Eights and humility are rarely said in the same breath; it’s not that Eights are arrogant, it’s more that being humble can be viewed by Eights as not appearing strong.

Nines can appear humble and self-deprecating, but dig below the surface and Nines can have an attitude of subtle superiority in different ways: Nines don’t get bothered by things that bother others. Nines listen to others and value multiple perspectives where other people don’t. Nines treat others with respect and try to ensure that the rest of us do as well.

So how does the Enneagram increase humility in leaders, as reported by 63% of survey respondents? Learning about the Enneagram and working on development with your type-based understanding, the areas described above become obvious to each of us. And as we work on our development, these aspects of how we put ourselves above others in non-humble ways start to diminish. Leaders become more self-honest and this is where true humility begins. And all of us, leaders being no exception, develop compassion for ourselves and others. Out challenges are human challenges, just nine different versions!

You can see the full results of the 2022 Enneagram in Organizations Global Survey here.

What Type of Leader Are You? by Ginger Lapid-Bogda PhD

You can read more about leadership in my book What Type of Leader Are You?  – a roadmap for becoming an exemplary leader using the Enneagram to develop seven core leadership competencies: Drive for Results, Strive for Self-Mastery, Know the Business; Think and Act Strategically, Become an Excellent Communicator, Lead High-Performing Teams, Make Optimal Decisions, and Take Charge of Change. Purchase here

About Ginger

Ginger Lapid-Bogda PhD, author of nine Enneagram books, is a speaker, consultant, trainer, and coach. She provides certification programs and training tools for business professionals around the world who want to bring the Enneagram into organizations with high-impact business applications. TheEnneagramInBusiness.com | ginger@theenneagraminbusiness.com