I took 3 personality tests and this is what I learned
In my previous blog post I talked about making aligned decisions (you can read the post here) which was about tuning in to your body to make decisions from a place that is, essentially, the most you.
For that, it is generally very helpful to simply know thyself inside out, the good and the bad and the ugly. Because knowledge is power, right? And being aware of how your beautiful self works gives you the immense power to make changes where you want and to recognise your own behaviour extremely well.
So, while this year has definitely already been a tough one, I decided in the midst of it all to take my self-development serious after reading all the books for the past few years without ever applying any of it. Sound familiar?
Because the thing is - you can read as much as you like, but if you don’t apply it to yourself, practice it in reality and use the tools, you will only ever stay at the surface, scratching a little here and there, and not arrive at the magic of self-knowledge that you crave.
So, that is the place I found myself in this year and so I made it my goal to jump and do the work.
One thing I did was I hired a coach for two sessions. Another thing was I started seeing a counsellor to talk about past and current traumas. And one thing was - I took a few high-rated tests, studied my results and applied the knowledge that I learned.
Do you want to dive deeper in your awareness journey? Then don’t shy away from psychology-based & mystical test!
As humans we want to understand ourselves and these tests are perfect for that because they don’t only show things that we welcome and embrace and enjoy reading about ourselves, but they also reveal our shadow sides which can be confronting, which we don’t want to know about and rather ignore, chuck in a drawer and throw away the key. But those especially are super helpful to know. Know your enemy – even the one inside you.
So, I took the Enneagram test, the Myers Briggs test, and found out my Human Design. The first two are psychology based, Human Design combines astrology, I Ching, Kabbalah and the Chakras.
Enneagram
The enneagram consists of 9 types (1 – Reformer, 2 – Helper, 3 – Achiever, 4 – Individualist, 5 – Investigator, 6 – Loyalist, 7 – Enthusiast, 8 – Challenger, 9 – Peacemaker). One of those types is your main type, then you have one or two wings (one or both types next to your own), and a type that you “move towards” under stress and one that you “move towards” when you grow. The relationship between the types is illustrated in the Enneagram:
Myers Briggs
This test has 16 types. The 16 types are typically referred to by an abbreviation of four letters—the initial letters of each of their four type preferences (except in the case of intuition, which uses the abbreviation "N" to distinguish it from introversion). For instance:
· ESTJ: extraversion (E), sensing (S), thinking (T), judgment (J)
· INFP: introversion (I), intuition (N), feeling (F), perception (P)
These abbreviations are applied to all 16 types.
And then, each type also has a more descriptive name, for example INFJ – Advocate (that’s me!).
Human Design
This is a system that brings together principles of The I Ching, astrology, Kabbalah, Hindu-Brahmin chakra system, and quantum physics. Your Human Design Chart, also called a BodyGraph, is calculated using your birth date, time, and place, to reveal your genetic design.
The first thing you look at in your chart is your Energy Type. There are five main types, and each has different way of bringing in more opportunities and flow into their life. The types are Manifestor, Generating Manifestor, Generator, Projector (that’s me!), Reflector. After the type, you look also at things that are called your “profile”, “authority”, “strategy”, and more.
So? …
Well, the great thing is that I learned not only so, so, so (*laughing hysterically*) MUCH about myself, I also learned so much about my surroundings. So, let me share with you some specific things that I finally truly began to understand from within - because experiential knowledge always goes over book-knowledge.
Everyone thinks differently
Have you ever thought, why does she not understand what I mean? Why does he not think as quickly as I do? How is this not important to them? Well, what I have learned through these tests is that there are just so many different ways to see the world. And I don’t mean religion or diet choice. I logically always knew that “people think differently”, but it is more than that. It is how they perceive the world, it is what motivates them, what worries them and what gives them joy. And – the most important point – all of these different ways of seen and perceiving the world are equal in value. They are just different. Just because you think X and your friend thinks Y, does not make either of you better than the other. It is all just energy, all just a way to be alive.
How do other people think?
Here it gets juicy. Because after you have learned oh, so much about yourself and get a grasp of how this particular test works, what its focus is, what areas of life they cover, how you can apply it and learn from it – you don’t stop there. You can look into the other types and learn exactly those points about the people who surround you. You can ask your friend or partner to take the test as when you get more and more familiar with the other types within one test, you can even estimate which one they might be – that is already extremely useful because you can already dive into their unique way of being. The other great thing about these tests is that many of them also talk about how different types fit together (in friendships, romantic relationships or work environment) and you can learn about how to treat each other based on that, and on the specific types you are.
We are a lot more complex than we realise
Gosh, we humans are so complex and complicated and special! Each of these tests covers a range of areas in your life, a range of conditions – when this happens, this type feels like this, but when that happens, they feel like that, but when this thing happens on top of everything, then this is what this type should do” … We are not just three-dimensional; we are way more than that. We are not just our body or our words or our experiences. We are a unique result of a unique compilation of circumstances in time and space, we have conditions and expectations and fears and worries and so much potential for love (because that is what we are at our core).
We are a lot more regular than we realise
Gosh, we humans are so regular! (You see what I did there?) And I say “regular” in a loving way because you realise that there is a whole group of people which thinks pretty much exactly like you, but they are born into their situation through a very different set of unique circumstances. I made someone who is very dear to me take one of these tests. Ironically he ended up being a 4 under the Enneagram – the Individualist. The type name is quite self-explanatory I think. And one night, my dear one said, “I reluctantly admit that this type description in all its complexities is extremely accurate”. It made me laugh – because his type in particular is concerned with being different. How is this possible? These tests are based on many years of studying, surveys, exploring people and typologies – and there is a community for each type that contributes the same words as you and I to describe their unique experience of being human. Isn’t that magical? We are all connected no matter how complex our psyche.
There is no one-size fits all approach to anything in life
Now, this is the logical consequence of the points above. The beauty of the various ways of being and experiencing being alive means that, well, there is not one tip that fits all. And as much as I would love everyone to meditate and even when I write that in my posts sometimes, I know deep in my heart that it won’t fit everyone. And that is fine. Have you ever worked in a place where every staff was expected to be the same and work in the same way? It doesn’t work. By limiting yourself to one or two types, you miss out on aaaaallll the other juicy traits and strengths of the other types. Multiculturalism and multitypalism (I just made that up. I don’t think it works as a word) strengthens a community. And that said – ONE SIZE hats never fit me. My head is literally too small.
Why I do certain things that I do
I mean, this is the really cool stuff. As humans why like to get to know ourselves and understand ourselves and understand why this is bugging me or why this is so hard for me, or similar, and of course, this can also go into more positive spheres. It even goes into childhood traumas, the best environments for you to thrive, things you fear, things you desire, … So, having done those three tests, I actually learned so much more about myself which in itself increased my general awareness of my own behaviour. And when we are aware of something we have the chance to enhance it or change it. Because, let’s be honest, there are many things that I do that I don’t want to be doing! Things that I copied from others, things I learned from my parents, or things that have simply become habits. And beyond that, the tests also lay out complex environmental factors, different stages of health and so on which actually allows you to see where you are at and – again – how to become more yourself and be kind to and accepting of yourself.
What have i learned about myself specifically?
Oh, emotions …
I have learned that my emotions are generally stronger than those of others, that I can react impulsively and tend to go through emotional waves. And beyond that I learned how to deal with that (for the most part!). From the Enneagram I learned that I need to watch out for things that I want to get done right away. Both done by others for myself but also by myself – even if I don’t want to do the thing. For example, a dirty kitchen used to fa-reak me out! And often I would angry-clean out of an impulse, thinking deep down that this needed to be done right now, and perhaps I even blamed my partner in my thoughts. But I stopped doing that. I learned (and am still in the process of learning) to leave things undone, at least until my emotional wave has passed and I can return to the task with a fresh pair of eyes. Then I often am happy – or at least not unhappy – to do it which saves me like a loooooot of time and energy. This is a theme that also re-occurred in my Human Design. I am a Projector with an emotional authority.
My shiny object syndrome
I also learned that my shiny object syndrome, my general enthusiasm and urge for newness and distraction is a way of refusing to feel negative feelings. At first I thought, “who wants to feel negative feelings anyway?” and “Well, I don’t have anything negative to feel”. But boy, was I wrong. This particular point kept circulating in my head for a while and then, a few months later, I began taking sessions with a counsellor. That’s when I started to hit rock bottom and undig a whole lot of nasty stuff that, yes, I had covered up with beautiful and fun distractions. I still don’t like feeling negative things and I am not fond of dwelling in negative emotions, but I have learned a lot by allowing them, too (every now and then). So, taking these tests has actually helped me realise that I have a lot of trauma to work through if I really wanted to free myself and become the real master of my own life. It has even allowed me to meet people who are A LOT like me (ever felt alone? This is a great starting point to find more like-minded people).
How to just be myself
I have also learned about the beauty to just let myself be and allow and accept all weirdness about myself and equally understand that this is also very important for everyone else around me. I allow myself to just be. To just be myself. And to become more unapologetic about what I do and why I do it and how I do it.
How I took the tests and what happened!
First, I took the Enneagram test (I am a 7 – Enthusiast) and studied my results and started implementing ideas. And soon it made me realise some nuances within me that don’t fit the “norm”. (By the way, everyone obviously has those nuances, but they are different for everyone). And that got me thinking. It got me thinking about something.
If I don’t fit the norm, why am I trying to make myself fit the norm and make myself fit life, and not make my life fit me?
That was such an interesting insight. Around that time, I also booked myself in for a coaching session with a wonderful coach and I realised a few things that had been going wrong in my life. Or, no, wait. Not “wrong”; I just had gotten off my path. I began to explore more what I want to do with my life, and how I want to live and feel – which is when I began to realise that I wanted to get out of my 9-5 job and work for myself again. I have known this for years, but internal and external fears had led me into an office job.
So, around the time when it became clearer that I wanted to offer coaching (among other things), I took the Myers Briggs test and I couldn’t help myself but burst into laughter five minutes into exploring my type (Advocate/INFJ), where it said: “Advocates may see helping others as their purpose in life” and “People with the Advocate personality type enjoy finding the perfect solution for someone they care about. This strength makes them excellent counselors and advisors”. So, this time, taking such a test even confirmed my own recent self-discovery. How awesome is that? To have your own dream confirmed in this way?
So, I began to really embrace the idea of beginning to work as a coach and offer other offerings, too. So, I began making the decision to peel myself out of the life I had created for myself, to uncondition myself from beliefs and let old fears go. Which is when I came across Human Design and I began to explore my type there (3/5 Projector). There it says, “Projectors are the great guides and they are here to help the other types manage their energy. Energetically Projectors absorb and take in the other in a very focused way. They are here to be recognized and to recognize the potential in those around them.” Wow. I just read this as a sign that I was on the right path and using my own experience, knowledge and insight
So, having gone through this journey this year of diving a little deeper myself, using these three psychology-based & mystical personality tests may have just encouraged me to follow my dreams and find my true purpose.
