poll for the headfucked #1
Enneagram is useful shorthand, whether you love it or hate it. (And if you hate it, at least say WHY, huh?) So, here's some questions from an 8 looking to understand you better. You are welcome to comment anonymously if you prefer.
1) What is your enneagram type? (if you know it)
2) What is your conception of weakness and how do you respond when ( Read more... )
1) What is your enneagram type? (if you know it)
2) What is your conception of weakness and how do you respond when ( Read more... )
i love that everyone was cool with self-defining weakness, and i really agreed with a lot of what was said... it is SUCH a problematic concept, undeniably bound up in all kinds of fucked up thought systems, but it's a key part of my brain-scape, so i'm always curious how others relate to it.
i knew everyone would say they prefer collaboration in crisis. how much crisis have you all been through where you had to collaborate with others? i have to say, quick consensus in times of um, war, is really hard. but that's another post.
here are my answers, though i think the questions sort of implied them already:
1) What is your enneagram type? -- I'm an 8w9
2) What is your conception of weakness and how do you respond when confronted with it? -- From a reactive place, I loathe weakness. It frustrates me and it makes me disrespect people. The kind of weakness that provokes that reaction in me is not (usually...) physical weakness -- it's lack of self-awareness/ability to stand up for who you are and what you believe in. It's not knowing who you are and what you believe in. so i really relate to the point about integrity and about valuing the kind of strength that involves awareness of faults/weaknesses/challenges and commitment to dealing with them.
3) who would you rather be stranded somewhere dangerous with: I would want to be in charge. To be honest. But I could and CAN override that gut feeling, depending on circumstance and of course, how much i trust/believe in the people i'm with. I am really committed to consensus process where appropriate, to collaboration when possible, to remembering i can't possibly hold all the Best Ideas in my single brain and that therefor, whenever working together can happen - it will probably bring about a better result.
4) If you had more confidence in others, would your answer to the previous question change? -- i just answered that i think. my gut instinct is to make difficult decisions myself, and not to trust others to do so. i want to be the one to protect the group. BUT, i am fully aware that this is a learned thing that doesn't reflect the reality of people's capacity to work together/take charge. when you have experienced being let down, not taken care of, abandoned, etc etc etc - it doesn't make you want to put any trust, let alone decision-making that could affect your well-being, in anyone else's hands.
5) Do you imagine that perhaps there is someone extremely Special out there who could change your answer? -- yes. in my extremely miniscule 4-ishness, i imagine there is Someone Special who i could truly and fully collaborate with, even in extreme circumstances. this is some sort of overly-romantic, impossible fantasy, of course. See, people who don't take charge may fantasize about being in charge, but people really feel they have to be/should be don't necessarily relish it. leadership comes "naturally" and as a result is not terribly exciting. i mean, i guess there's a certain thrill to Making Shit Happen sometimes, but not to the assumption of being responsible for it. So, i have a fantasy of being matched and able to collaborate, in life. fancy that.
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