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: China (and Hong Kong)

That Hong Kong is a Three culture would be hard to challenge. Some call Hong Kong New York on steroids, and New York City is also a Three culture. In Hong Kong, people work, pray, eat, and shop. And yes, there are an incredible number of people who live there to support the amazing number of high-quality restaurants and shopping malls filled with designer clothing. The pace is fast, the output is high, and their image as the vortex of commercial exchange is unsurpassed. Mainland China is also a Three culture, though of a different nature. Shanghai, for example, has magnificent architecture, both sophisticated and flashy. Most Chinese have a “get-it-done” overlay on top of their own type.

The United States is pretty clearly an Enneagram Three country. The culture is one of “get it done and get it done fast” (results), and how you know and how you are known (image) is critically important to cultivate and preserve. At the same time, the United States is a large country and a case can be made that different regions and even states may also have types. For example, Texas might be aptly described as a Type Eight. California is sometimes viewed as a type Seven, with the Northern and Southern parts of the state likely being different subtypes. However, Most people from the US have a Three overlay on their actual type, so strong is the influence of culture.

A person raised in a type Three country or by parents who adhere to the customs of that country, even if they no longer reside there, may have a type Three overlay on their own type that needs to be explored and understood so their actual type can be identified.

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 Three, the children will all be highly achievement and results-oriented, feeling that they must constantly excel or else they will be perceived as failures.

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