Accurately identifying your Enneagram type really does matter, and here’s why. Mistyped people pay attention, although unintentionally, to the wrong things (or misinterpret why they do something) and subsequently pursue a development path that isn’t going to support their growth and transformation. Mistyped people also misunderstand or misinterpret their own impact on others, making it challenging to truly understand and improve human interactions using the insights of the Enneagram.

There are many reasons that contribute to the challenge, but also the beauty, of accurate typing. One of these factors involves overlays on our type. The two overlays that occur most frequently are country (culture) overlays and family overlays. Not every country has a clear Enneagram type, and Enneagram teachers may disagree about the type of a certain country. My assessments come from two sources: my personally having visited the countries multiple times and from discussions with Enneagram professionals who live and work in those countries.

Country: Brazil

If ever there were a Seven country, Brazil is it. Think of Rio de Janeiro, where the Mardi Gras speaks for itself as a Seven event. Everything in Brazil is upbeat and positive, with high energy and more talking than in almost any other country, even Ireland. The Fives in Brazil say that they have been required from the earliest ages to engage and interact, even when they wanted to be alone. The Sevens in Brazil are unstoppable in all kinds of ways; like Sevens just about everywhere, they talk whenever they want to. But in Brazil, they even talk over high-level authority figures. Why? Because Sevens don’t believe in authority, so, why not talk? The intention is so positive, who could get upset? Brazilians, in general, are simply upbeat. In addition, Brazilian Fives talk more than Fives from other countries; Brazilian Fours are less moody and more upbeat; Brazilian Threes can easily be mistaken for Sevens; and Brazilian Sevens have an energy higher than almost any other country unless it is also a type Seven country.

There are other countries that might also be Enneagram Sevens. This information comes more from Enneagram people who live in these countries than from me, although I have been to all of these places and can understand why these might actually be Seven countries. The most obvious one is Italy, most likely a social subtype Seven country. I had heard for years that Italy was a type Two country, and it is possible. But, social subtype Sevens (”sacrifice”) and Twos have similarities and Seven might be a better fit. Italians are high energy (higher than Two energy, actually) and very engaging. Being engaging isn’t the same as being very warm and friendly as is more common in Twos!

Family overlays

Not every family has a strong family overlay, but those that do have had one person in the family system, usually a person in a position of perceived authority, who has had a pervasive influence on all the children in that family, not just one child. That person could be a mother, father, grandparent, uncle, aunt, or even the eldest sibling. If the family overlay is type Seven, the children tend to be more upbeat and interactive or at least believe that they should be this way.

About Ginger

Ginger Lapid-Bogda PhD, author of nine Enneagram books including The Art of Typing, 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