109 | Transcending Your Type

Transcend Human
Written By Daryl McMullen
 
 

Date: April 4, 2022

Welcome back to the podcast!!!

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Minute of Transparency: Bruce Wayne & The Batman

Today's Topic: Transcending Your Type

  1. Go back to school

  2. Study yourself

  3. Set some healthy goals

// 1. GO BACK TO SCHOOL

Okay - not literally...I'm not asking you to re-enroll in high school.

For some, this might seem fun - a chance to live that period of your life over again...

For others, the symptoms of PTSD are setting in just thinking about it.

But I'm not talking about going back to high school...

I'm talking about learning - learning more about yourself.

In this case - through Personality Inventories.

Now...we've talked about these on the show before. They come in the form of short little quizzes, tests or inventories you walk through in order to be plopped into a category, a color, a number, a set of numbers, an animal, etc. 

  • Over the years I've taken quite a few of these

    • Some because I was interested

    • Others because it was a team thing at my place of employment - something we all took in order to see how we fit together as a team

  • None of them were rocket science

  • None provided the type of certainty blood work, or a medical assessment would

  • And none of them were as legit as a scientific experiment  that provides 98.9% accuracy

  • Most of these inventories are less than 100 questions and take you no more than 20-30 minutes to complete

  • So you can't expect them to be airtight proof as to who and what you are as a person...

    • Look at it this way - when a Psychologist is tasked with assessing and diagnosing a patient by the court system - they turn to assessments like the MMPI

    • The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)

    • The test is 567 questions long and can take an hour and a half to complete

    • It's intense - and is built to keep people from "gaming the system" - or seeing through the questions and telling the evaluator what you want them to hear

    • But even with this level of sophistication - a Psychologist doesn't use it as the only source of truth. They add this to a list of results from other assessments in order to determine an accurate diagnosis

    • Because it still isn't perfect - it's unable to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt what's going on with a person behind the scenes

  • So if that's true - it's obvious a 20-30 minute online inventory isn't going to be able to diagnose us with 100% accuracy

But here's the funny thing about these inventories:

  • If you take them honestly

  • If you answer the questions based on the way you typically feel, think or behave

  • You will be shocked at the results:

    • As you read through the supplemental information about your type, color, number, etc.

    • It will seem like you completed the MMPI

    • Because the information about you is highly specific and typically very accurate

    • It's as if someone followed you around half your life and asked you thousands of questions in order to put together this personality summary

  • And that's just completing one inventory:

    • Take 5 and you'll be shocked at how they all seem to be saying the same thing - just in different ways

    • The color you are matches the number in the other inventory - that sort of thing...

    • There is a commonality and a cohesiveness that suggests they're on the right track

    • That they've done their research and seem to understand that people can be clumped into categories based on some very real and obvious traits or types

So this is what I mean by: "Go back to school." If you haven't already, I'm suggesting you take some of these inventories in order to know yourself more completely.

And not just in terms of the initial type or category. Because we often read the results and say, "Well duh! I could have told you that!" But it isn't the type that's important - it's the rest of the information that helps us grow - we'll talk more about that later in the episode...

So here is a list of the more common and popular inventories out there:


// 2. STUDY YOURSELF

The next step, assuming you've completed at least one of the inventories above, is to really tune in to what the results are telling you.

If you don't like reading, suck it up, and decide this time you're going to read it all from beginning to end. Maybe even decide that you're going to read additional information on your type.

But whatever you do - don't just stop with, "I know my type now - guess I can be done."

Because after going back to school, the next step is to put in the work - to study yourself.

Now for me - this has happened multiple times and in multiple ways:

  1. As a Middle Schooler:

    • I still remember my parents introducing me to these

    • It was the OSPP 4 Temperaments Test

    • And to this day I can remember the results:

      • My mom and I leaned toward melancholy

      • My dad and brother leaned toward phlegmatic

      • And my sister was straight up choleric

      • Why I remember that, I don't know...

      • But it's stuck with me all these years

  2. Next, as a college and then graduate student:

    • I was introduced to some of the more stringent tests

    • Like the MMPI

    • The Rorschach Inkblot Test

    • Among others

  3. Then when I entered the workforce:

    • I was introduced to these inventories as a team bonding project

    • I still remember doing the Strengths Finder test as a team

    • Insights Discovery

    • And both of the 4 Animal Tests

    • Doing it this way added a new twist:

      • Yes, by taking the inventories, I learned more about myself

      • But in this setting, it was more about the team, and how each member of the team was different

      • It helped us understand how each was wired up and how to work together given our unique differences

  4. As an adult who is trying to be a lifelong learner:

    • This is where the Enneagram fits into my story

    • Now, if it had been as popular then as it is today - I probably would have taken it as a group at one of my previous jobs

    • But for some reason - the Enneagram just hadn't blown up at that point

    • Then one day - out of the blue - it was a thing - and has only gained momentum since then

    • So somewhere in there - I decided to take it on my own

    • I can still remember hearing people say things like:

      • "Well, I am a 9 - so I'm always trying to keep the peace..."

      • Or, "As an 8 I just can't stand sitting around wondering...we need to make a decision and move on..."

    • And that was from random people I had conversations with

    • As I was ramping myself up - my family was getting into it as well:

      • My oldest daughter dove in head first - reading books, blog posts and online articles about it

      • So she became the resident expert

      • Our sounding board for all things Enneagram

      • After a while it became part of our family - a shorthand we all understand

      • It's thrown out there when we talk about how we view the world, how relationships work for us and why we all see and feel things differently

      • We share Instagram posts, TikTok videos and online articles about the various numbers represented

      • And at this point, our close friends have all taken the test so we're able to have those conversations with them

Now, we called this section "Study Yourself" because once you've found out this information about yourself - it's time to dig in, learn more and go beneath the "surfacy" stuff.

Now I'm going focus on the Enneagram for the rest of this episode, but before that I'll at least explain how I made out on the other inventories:

  • LOGB Inventory (John Trent's 4 Animals Inventory)

    • Beaver

  • 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire

    • The Defender (ISFJ-A)

  • Strengths Finder 2.0

    • Strategic | Discipline | Deliberative | Relator | Responsibility

  • Insights Discovery

    • 98% Blue

    • 65% Green

    • 58% Red

    • - the line -

    • 19% Yellow

  • OSPP Four Temperaments Test

    • Melancholy

  • The Make a Difference Personality Profile (Another 4 Animal Test)

    • Camel

Again, all good stuff - but we don't have time to dig into what each of those mean.

I want to focus on the Enneagram - because it's what people in my life are currently focused on and because it's the one I've spent the most time trying to understand.

Now - quick caveat: This might seem like a waste of time - you listening to me talk about my Enneagram Type.

But the point isn't for you to get to know me better. I'm explaining the process using my Type as an illustration:

  • Now this might be super helpful if you, a family member or your spouse is a Type 1

  • But if not - simply listen to the way I explain my Type and then use that same logic to understand your Type better

So here we go: Upon taking the Enneagram I found that I am a Type 1 with a 9 Wing.

Now people who act like they know everything about the Enneagram will tell you, "It's not about the results - it's about whether or not you vibe with the results - whether you believe they are accurate or not."

In other words - they're suggesting that you can probably just read all of the information about each of the numbers and pick the one you resonate with the most.

On some level I get it - but I don't think I 100% agree with it either...

To me that's like saying, "I don't need to take Driver's Ed - I'm just going to watch how people drive and see which style I resonate with."

To me - if there's an inventory - why wouldn't you walk through it and see what the algorithm suggests you are?

Of course - like we said above - it's pretty easy to game a 20-30 minute inventory. So if you aren't willing to be all in and answer honestly - you may be better off reading the descriptions and picking the one you like...

But I digress - back to the explanation...

So the Enneagram has a variety of different champions - websites that sell you their take on it - their spin on the ages-old concept.

But for this episode I'm going to take the bulk of my information from the Enneagram Institute. And according to them a Type 1 has three different names - depending on the subtype.

  1. A straight Type 1 is called The Reformer

  2. Then if you have a Wing 2 you're called The Advocate

  3. And if you have a Wing 9 you're referred to as The Idealist

Now a Wing is just another way of saying - You're a Type 1 - but you lean toward one of the numbers on your left or right. You lean one way more than the other.

For me - I'm a Type 1 that leans toward the 9 more than the 2:

  • Simple description:

    • The Type 1 is Rational, Idealistic, Principled, Purposeful, Self-Controlled, and Perfectionistic

  • Longer Description:

    • "Ones are conscientious and ethical, with a strong sense of right and wrong. They are teachers, crusaders, and advocates for change: always striving to improve things, but afraid of making a mistake. Well-organized, orderly, and fastidious, they try to maintain high standards, but can slip into being critical and perfectionistic. They typically have problems with resentment and impatience. At their Best: wise, discerning, realistic, and noble. Can be morally heroic."

  • Specifics:

    • Basic Fear: Being corrupt, evil or defective in some way

    • Basic Desire: To be good, to have integrity and to be balanced

    • Direction when healthy: A 1 moves toward 7. You becoming more spontaneous and joyful

    • Direction when unhealthy: A 1 moves toward 4. You can become moody and irrational

Now - what I just walked through is the high level overview - all taken off the Type 1 landing page. It isn't everything on the page - there's more if you're interested.

But that's it. All pretty "surfacy" stuff. The stuff most people react to like this: "Well duh! I already knew that about myself. Tell me something I don't know myself."

And unfortunately this is where most people stop.

But if we stop - we fail to grow - we fail to Transcend Our Type.

We open the door, but choose not to walk through it.

It's like we're okay taking a selfie with a big blowup 1 and posting it on social media so everyone knows. But then forgetting about it an hour later.

But what if we dug deeper?

For me - digging deeper happened in two ways:

  1. Additional study/reading:

    • I got a book on Type 1s for Christmas a few years ago

    • Not a textbook - just a simple book that helped explain more about the type

    • I've also read quite a few articles that explain the world from the a Type 1 perspective

  2. I find all sorts of things on social media - or they're sent to me through social media:

    • Quotes

    • Phrases

    • Mantras

    • Lists

    • Tips & tricks

    • Suggestions

    • etc.

And that's what I want to leave you with in this section - something my daughter sent to me through social media.

I picked this Instagram Post because it did the following:

  1. It helped me understanding myself better

  2. It was the perfect jumping off point - information I could use to take my next "transcendent" steps

The Instagram account is @enneagramwithjb (Jackie Brewster - a certified Enneagram Coach). And the post sent to me was a series she did called:  Levels of Health

For the Type 1 she created 9 slides - each being a level moving from being healthy to unhealthy:

  • To save time I'm not going to read all of them - but I'll do 1, 5 and 9 just so you can see the progression

  • Level 1: The one understands that it is not their responsibility to judge others; instead, they allow people to live according to their own convictions without feeling the need to correct them. Other people's decisions no longer stir their emotions and cause them anxiety and stress because they understand that they are only accountable for their own lives, responses and reactions. This allows them to live their lives with integrity, focusing on what is right and wrong and good or bad for them. They are wise, discerning and hopeful people...

  • Level 5: Ones begin to have a lot of anxiety and fear, worrying that others will think they are bad or wrong if they do anything against the values they have been preaching about. They feel a great deal of stress trying to live up to their own high ideals. They are rigid and structured and often very hard on themselves if they don't meet their expectations. They make a point to stick to whatever they say and don't allow themselves to deviate from it at all. They are organized, punctual and may be irritable and tense.

  • Level 9: Ones realize they have lost control over themselves and are participating in behaviors that they condemn others for. They try to stop this undesirable behavior by punishing themselves or whoever they deem is the problem. If they can't stop the behavior or get away from the situation they may resort to self-mutilation, self-harm, murder or even suicide.

Ouch...and that was just a taste...3 of the 9!

When I read through each of the 9 slides I got a very complete picture of myself. From the good days to the bad days.

What I'm capable of when healthy and how bad things can get when I allow myself to become unhealthy.

And all that from one Instagram post! But that's what I mean by going deeper - diving beneath the surface.

Finding information about yourself that is specific and suggests action.

Only then can we move from taking selfies with our Types - to Transcending Our Types.

// 3. SET SOME HEALTHY GOALS

So now that we've gone back to school, and we've studied ourselves - it's time to set some goals...

Healthy ones of course...

Now this will happen for people in hundreds of different ways - and for hundreds of different reasons:

  • One person might purchase a book that changes their life

  • Another might listen to a podcast episode

  • Maybe we run into someone who helps us chart a new course

  • Or maybe it's the right quote at the right time on social media

For me - a  lightbulb went off when I read the Instagram series on my "Levels of Health." Thank you to my daughter for sending it to me and thank you Jackie Brewster for your insight...

After reading through the continuum of 9 levels of health I decided to pull out one thing I could work on from each level.

So here they are: Moving from Level 1 (Healthy) to Level 9 (Unhealthy)

Level 1: Lean into your wise and discerning nature - allowing other people to be themselves
Level 2: Listen to your Superego and allow it to keep you from making poor decisions
Level 3: Continue to seek your purpose and teach by actions not just words
Level 4: There is nothing wrong with striving to be better - but don't demand that others do the same
Level 5: Set lofty goals but don't demand perfection of yourself or the world around you
Level 6: Do NOT hold other people to the standards you have for yourself - accept them the way they are
Level 7: Be transparent - allowing yourself to be wrong and to accept responsibility for it without feeling condemned
Level 8: Recognize when your behavior is in conflict with your morals and values and course correct
Level 9: Don't demonize yourself when you're off track. Course correct and keep moving forward

Now that's a lot to work on - and a bit overwhelming if I assumed I could force these 9 things on myself every single day.

It actually feeds into one of my core weaknesses - which is perfectionism...

But what if I pulled one or two of these out, wrote them on a sticky note and memorized them for a week or two? Kept them top of mind and really stewed on them.

Then, at some point moved on to the next 2?

Or maybe when I'm having an exceptionally bad day - feeling a little unhealthy - I pull out the entire list - and identify the two that speak directly into my state of mind that day?

And finally, what if I did a bit more research into my Type 1 Triad:

  • We didn't talk about these - but I mentioned it in a round about way

  • The Triad is the triangle formed from your Type. So for a Type 1 - the Triad Triangle is made up of 1, 4 and 7

    • When a  Type 1 is healthy - we are able to take on the the positive traits of a Type 7

    • And when a Type 1 is unhealthy - we start taking on the negative traits of a Type 4

Talking through both of these would add another 20 minutes to this episode - so I'll just leave it at that for now.

Just know that for me as a Type 1 - I need to study the Healthy Type 7 and the Unhealthy Type 4 in order to fully understand my tendencies.

Let's Land the Plane:

As I was working through the content this week I had an epiphany...

The question that came to my mind was this: How does my Enneagram Type impact the Transcend Human Podcast?

  • In other words - does being a Type 1 make the content relevant only to Type 1s?

  • Is the content created in such a way that only another Type 1 would resonate with it?

  • In other words - would a Type 7 listen to the podcast and feel like they're listening to an alien from another planet?

  • Or is it because I'm a Type 1 that I'm even able to present this content in a logical way?

  • Am I using my perfectionism, and attention to detail to fill these episodes with content that a large percentage of the population can understand?

Again - this hit me like a ton of bricks this week. One of those "mind blown" scenarios where you just sit there, reeling from the implications.

Because answering the question one way or the other could help make the podcast more relevant in the future.

  • By adding something I've missed - being a Type 1

  • Or by removing things that are barriers for other Types

But at the end of the day that's something I'll need to wrestle with on my own.

For you - this week - try the following things:

  1. Go back to school:

    • If you have never taken a personality inventory before - try one this week! I recommend starting with the Enneagram

    • Or if you did some a long time ago - brush them off and remind yourself what your results were

  2. Study yourself:

    • Take your results and dig a bit deeper

    • Find some things about yourself that you didn't know

  3. Set some healthy goals:

    • Take the things you've learned about yourself

    • Like who you are when you're healthy

    • And what you can become when you're unhealthy

    • And set some goals for yourself

    • What can you do this week to keep yourself moving in the right direction?

And that's a wrap.

Thank you so much for joining us again this week. If you have a free minute this week we'd love for you to:

  1. Subscribe to the podcast - doesn't matter how, or with what platform - just put Transcend Human in your library

  2. Then give us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts

These are the two things that seem to help the most in the podcasting ecosystem.

Again - thanks for being here - hope you are excited to dive into your Types this week!

Next week we're going to look at First World Problems - and how we can Transcend them.

Until then, have a great week and keep Transcending Human!

Daryl McMullen
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110 | Transcending First World Problems
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108 | Transcending Meaning