Communication Styles through the Lens of the Enneagram Throughout my career, I have come to understand the power of listening to build effective leadership. Whether that was serving in a leadership role, coaching leaders, or supporting leaders through training. About five years ago, I became a certified Conversational Intelligence coach, which gave me great insight into the neuroscience of conversations – what happens in our brains when we have quality conversations or conversations that get stuck. One fundamental aspect of communication is that understanding resides with the listener. Therefore, to create shared understanding, the speaker needs to have the skills to adjust their communication style so that the listener is receiving the information with the intended meaning. It is not easy to adapt our communication style so that another person receives the information with our intended meaning. However, my recent training as an Enneagram Practitioner has introduced me to a new approach to exploring communication styles. The Enneagram is an ancient framework that examines personality through our core motivations to help explain why we are the way we are. Our core motivation drives how we engage with the world and others to meet our needs. The communication style of each leadership type is in service to the core motivation. With a deeper understanding of what is driving someone’s style, we can adjust our language to meet their needs to create a shared understanding. Credit: www.withinsight.coach Understanding the nine communication styles through the Enneagram framework provides a roadmap to adapt our auto-pilot style to align with the listener. The first step in this process is understanding your style, core motivation and how that influences your communication. With that as a foundation, you can move to understanding other styles and interpersonal communication dynamics. To learn more about the Enneagram and how it can support you as a leader, check out the Minutes with Mary Enneagram Podcast Mini-Series. Episode 20: explores the Enneagram and Communication. To begin your Enneagram journey, explore the resources and services Vista Global offers.
The Enneagram in the Global Context Guest Blog by Jayson Morris, PCC A year ago, one of my former work associates emailed me with a fascinating and daunting proposition. Having just become a certified integral coach, she left her career in international philanthropy to create a new leadership development program for nonprofit leaders in East Africa. A native Kenyan herself, her newfound passion was to prove to funders that a nine-month coaching intervention would catalyze stronger grassroots leaders and build more effective teams. And she wanted to partner with me to kick off their programming with the Enneagram to enhance their self-awareness. Having seen the power of the Enneagram with my coaching clients over the past few years, I was thrilled with the opportunity to work with leaders from some of the global south countries I had served as a nonprofit and philanthropic leader. And I was nervous that I would fail. “The Enneagram works effectively across cultures because it looks inside at our core motivations and fears” is what I had been taught. If you do not focus on behaviors but instead on each person’s inner world, the model and the nine types will hold true. But would they? A year and 90 leaders across three countries later, I can confidently say the Enneagram works across cultures. However, it requires the practitioner to stay curious and avoid the temptation to type others based on behavior. It also necessitates some cultural understanding to help translate aspects of the type to the cultural context. For example, the Type 8, often known as The Challenger for their bold assertiveness, comfort with confrontation, and with anger as an emotion, will look very different in a U.S. context versus in Uganda. The level of overt assertiveness in the Ugandan Type 8 will be more muted than their American counterpart, but they will appear the most assertive type within the Ugandan context. It all came together when a fellow consultant introduced me to Erin Meyer’s Culture Map work. The graphic shows the difference between U.S. and Ugandan culture across seven themes. Photo Credit: Erin Meyer If we zoom in on DISAGREEING, we notice that the U.S. has a significantly more confrontational culture than Uganda. As the type most comfortable with confrontation, the Type 8 American (blue) sits much further on the side of overt confrontation than their Ugandan counterpart (yellow). [Note positioning is not exact but rather is an illustrative comparison). Therefore, how they look and sound in the office will be different, but relative to the other types and to their culture they will be the most comfortable with confrontation. Similarly with all other eight Enneagram types, we must spend time understanding the inner world and the culturally appropriate expressions of motivations and strategies to help people find their type. My favorite moment was conducting a debrief with an Enneagram Type 2 (known as The Helper) who did not like the term ‘seduction’ that is often used in describing one of the strategies certain Type 2s use. ‘Seduction’ in this day and age, particularly in U.S. culture or one that is influenced by U.S. media, has a strong sexual connotation. However, in its purest form, it means “to win over; attract; entice.” When I explained this, she lit up and said: “So you mean that if I come into the office every morning one week and say hello to a colleague, knowing that at the end of the week, I am going to need to ask them for help…” BINGO! We had a good laugh. One of the things I most love about the Enneagram is what makes it challenging to facilitate and dangerous for the uneducated to use, but also what makes it a globally powerful tool: it’s not the behaviors you observe that tell you about someone’s type, it’s what’s happening on the inside. It’s the core motivation, fears, and patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting that matter most. Jayson Morris is an executive coach and leadership facilitator working with leaders and rising talent in the corporate, nonprofit and philanthropy space all around the world. He is ICF PCC certified and holds Enneagram Certifications from two world renown Enneagram training institutes – Integrative Enneagram Solutions and Chestnut Paes Enneagram Academy. He also studied with the Enneagram Prison Project and The Narrative Tradition. You can find Jayson at www.linkedin.com/in/jayson-morris/ or at WithInsight Coaching www.withinsight.coach Blog Series: The Enneagram: Connecting Ancient Wisdom to Global Transformation The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram The Enneagram in The Global Context
Discover the Power of the Enneagram: Join Our May Celebration Do you ever feel like you’re operating on autopilot, trapped in patterns and habits that hold you back from being your best self? What if you had a powerful tool to gain deep self-awareness and break free from those limitations? In celebration of World Enneagram Day on May 25, Mary Stelletello, founder of Vista Global and certified Enneagram Coach is excited to partner with Jayson Morris, a certified Enneagram Coach and Founder of WITHINSIGHT Coaching. Together, we will explore the power of the Enneagram to help you learn more about who you are and how you can break free of patterns, to move toward a life that is more purposeful, effective, and fulfilling. The Enneagram is a rich framework for individuals, teams, and organizations, so just one day of celebration is not enough. Therefore, over the month of May 2024, we are offering a variety of opportunities to explore the Enneagram in depth, including blogs, podcasts, and a special Enneagram Personal Discovery Package that includes an individual assessment, live debrief session, and introductory workshop. For those who want to explore further, there will be more workshops offered later this summer. What is the Enneagram? The Enneagram personality-type map offers an expansive journey into the nine core types of individuals and what internally motivates them. Discovering our type can provide realizations of the strengths we take for granted and the challenges that arise from over-utilizing particular strengths and strategies. It can provide insights into why people communicate differently and why they overemphasize thinking, feeling, or action at the expense of the other two types of intelligence. It offers understanding of different views of work/life success, how each type is activated, and the differing ways people react to tension and conflict. This discovery offers opportunities for new ways of engaging with ourselves, our colleagues, and the world at large. We can break free from unconscious ways of doing things and can learn new, more effective alternatives. It creates the possibility that other people’s ways of working are not wrong, just different and perhaps more effective than our own. Exposure to other viewpoints can lead to a newfound curiosity and an openness to tapping into the innate strengths of others for the success of the team. The net result can be new ways of relating to self and others in the workplace, resulting in enhanced effectiveness. Celebrating the Enneagram throughout May To celebrate World Enneagram Day, we have created a line-up of activities to introduce this powerful framework: May 8: Minutes with Mary & Jayson Episode 1: Our Enneagram Journey and an Introduction to the Framework May 15: Minutes with Mary & Jayson Episode 2: The Enneagram and Communication May 21: Minutes with Mary & Jayson Episode 3: The Enneagram and Navigating Conflict May 22 10am PT/1pm ET: 45-minute FREE Discover the Power of the Enneagram webinar This free 45-minute session will provide a deep dive into the Enneagram framework. During the webinar, you will take a free micro test to identify your type and gain insight into all nine types. Learn how the Enneagram can help you move toward a life that is more purposeful, effective, and fulfilling. We are also offering a World Enneagram Day Personal Discovery Package for those who want to take a deep dive in exploring your personal Enneagram type and what it can offer, including: iEQ9 Integrative Enneagram Assessment 45-minute live debrief and coaching session with Mary or Jayson 75-minute Introduction to the Enneagram virtual workshop This package provides the opportunity to discover your Enneagram type along with its associated strengths, challenges, blind spots, and areas for development. Beyond just the assessment and a 20-page report, you will have the opportunity to work with a certified Enneagram coach to confirm your Enneagram type, address questions or aspects of the report that do not resonate, and begin charting your growth path. From there, you will join other Enneagram Explorers for an interactive workshop to deepen your understanding of the framework and learn about all 9 Enneagram Types. During the month of May, we will offer the package for $250, a 50% discount off the regular price! We look forward to seeing you this month! For more information about the Enneagram, check out the Vista Global Blog Series Blog Series The Enneagram: Connecting Ancient Wisdom to Global Transformation The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram
Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram This time of year comes with many emotions. As we transition into autumn, the days are shorter, the weather starts to cool down which may slow down your energy AND it is playoff baseball time which for baseball fans is an exciting time of year! I have been a baseball fan my whole life and started playing the game at age 9. As I watched both final games of the 2023 League series (Houston Astros v. Texas Rangers) and (Philadelphia Phillies v. Arizona Diamondbacks) I saw the teams that were “supposed” to win – including last year’s World Champion- fade away and the teams that both had lost more than 100 games just two years ago, do what was seemingly impossible. So what contributed to the exciting outcome of the Texas Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks going to the World Series? Well many things of course, but in the context of looking at team development and team dynamics, I see the same components that make teams great in the workplace. Moving from good to great team performance In my work as a leadership coach, I have supported teams to identify the “why” is our team stuck and the “how can we be better performing?” Recently, I was introduced to a framework and a process that can unlock the pathways to team greatness. Ginger Lapid-Bogda,PhD an organizational development consultant and coach, uses the Enneagram framework to support teams moving toward greatness. She developed a concept called the “3As”: alignment, attunement and acceleration. Credit: The Enneagram in Business Teams that are able to access the collective wisdom of their three Centers of Intelligence (Head Center, Heart Center and Body Center) move to peak performance. Teams have all three centers just like people. So the key question for teams is “Are we accessing and using the wisdom of all three Centers of Intelligence?” Team Alignment (the collective head center): Aligned teams have a shared understanding of team vision, goals and the team member interdependence to achieve those goals. They know where the team is headed and why each individual team member’s contribution matters to achieving those goals. Team Attunement (the collective heart center): Attuned teams feel deeply connected to other team members’ needs and feelings. There is passion for the work because each team member sees their contribution to the whole and that energy (from the heart) propels the team forward. Team Acceleration (the collective body center): Accelerating teams move forward together in a unified direction because they are aligned with passion and energy because they are attuned. Unaligned or Unattuned teams DO NOT Accelerate. Teams that are aligned but not attuned may be productive but over time they run the risk of burnout. Teams that are attuned but not aligned enjoy being together but collectively productivity may be low as the task focus is unclear. Where do you start with team alignment and attunement? The first step is to determine the team’s dominant Center of Intelligence. I support teams by conducting the Enneagram self-assessment with each team member. Through this assessment, each team member will identify whether their behaviors are driven by the Head Center, Heart Center or Body Center. With the understanding of each team member’s natural inclination, you can determine the team’s collective dominant Center of Intelligence. If your team is over-expressed in the head center, you have clarity on alignment but not enough connection or attunement so there is risk of burnout. That will point your team to doing more work in building relationships and cohesion. If your team is over-expressed in the heart center, you will enjoy collaboration but you won’t have enough clarity on team purpose, goals and deliverables. That will point your team to doing more work in clarifying team purpose, goals and individual tasks. Finally, if your team is over-expressed in the Body Center, you will need to work on both relationship building and clarifying team purpose, goals and deliverables. Let’s Get Back to Baseball! How does this connect us back to the playoffs and the two teams who are playing in the World Series? As I listened to the post-game interviews for the Arizona Diamondbacks, many comments referenced the energy in the clubhouse, the connection between team members (attunement), they also stated that everyone knew what their role was and the little things that mattered (alignment) to move toward the ultimate goal of winning the World Series (acceleration). Time will tell which team has developed the right balance of the “3As” to move to peak performance. Check out my blog series below on the Enneagram, or get in touch if you want to explore how you can move your team toward peak performance or talk about baseball. Blog Series: The Enneagram: Connecting Ancient Wisdom to Global Transformation The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram The Enneagram in The Global Context
The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation The Enneagram framework refers to nine points of view, also known as Types, or styles that reference a different perspective of the way people think, feel and act in relation to the world, others and themselves. It reveals more than a personality profile, as it goes into the often unconscious core motivations that lie deep within our personality, and helps us to understand why we are the way we are. While each of us have all nine motivations within us, one of these nine is more dominant and serves as the main driver for how we show up in the world. Typing, Not Stereotyping For the Enneagram to have value, it is essential that you identify your core Type/style. This is the starting point to explore and open up the possibility for change and transformation. There is a danger in using a “type-based” system in that it can be easy to stereotype people. Stereotyping implies that one fact about someone leads to making assumptions about many other characteristics. Stereotyping limits our openness and perspective. A person cannot be oversimplified and reduced to their type alone. The Enneagram should be used to inspire compassion for self and others. Deepening our understanding of the perspectives, motivations and behaviors of other Types/styles improves our curiosity, empathy and communication and reduces the likelihood to judge and dismiss other people’s approaches, points of view and styles. Motivations, not behavior One of the key differentiators of the Enneagram framework is that it explores deep-seated core motivations, not only the outwardly observable behaviors. Using the iceberg model, behaviors are visible and above the waterline, but they are driven by the deep, unconscious motivations. Individuals from different Types/styles may display similar surface behaviors while having very different core motivations. For example, two people may both demonstrate the behavior of being unstructured and late to meetings. However, with further exploration, one person might demonstrate this behavior because of the core motivation of an Enneagram Two style, saying yes to too many things, becoming overloaded because they are driven by the desire to be liked and needed. While the other person might demonstrate this same behavior because of the core motivation of an Enneagram Seven style, driven by the desire to keep things interesting and not experience the pain of a boring meeting. If you have ever wondered WHY someone does what they do, the Enneagram offers a pathway for exploring the core motivations of each Type/style. These insights can strengthen your understanding of tensions and possibilities that exist in relationships, teams, and organizations. Check out my blog series below on the Enneagram, or get in touch for coaching on how to begin the journey of moving toward your full potential. Blog Series: The Enneagram: Connecting Ancient Wisdom to Global Transformation The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram The Enneagram in The Global Context
The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways About 6 years ago, I began my training and certification in a coaching framework called Conversational Intelligence®, exploring the neuroscience of conversation and its impact on trust and transformation. Through this training, I learned a bit about the ever evolving science of brain development. When I started the training, there were five areas of the brain. When I completed the certification about 3 years later, another brain area had been identified, the gut brain. As I began my recent coaching certification in the iEQ9 Integrative Enneagram tool, I was intrigued to see that neuroscience has offered evidence to validate the key elements of the Enneagram framework. Early Enneagram theorists argued for the existence of three centers of intelligence (head, heart, gut). Now, neuroscience has proven that we have multiple centers in our brain that influence how our personality develops and how the brain responds to change and pressure. By understanding the brain, we can interpret behavior more accurately and therefore build better strategies to help shift how we behave. This deeper understanding allows coaches to better support clients on their journey of change. For example, an Enneagram Types’ worldview and defense mechanisms are neurological patterns that are formed through developmental experiences in childhood that create a comfort zone. These patterns direct our “focus of attention” to specific aspects of our world and life. This wiring underpins our personality, forming a set of deep beliefs, motivations and filters intended to keep us safe. Growing New Neural Pathways Image Credit: Integrative9.com We also know that the brain is capable of incredible adaptation and change, called neuroplasticity, the ability to rewire, adapt and respond differently within a given situation. This ability to transform allows the brain to grow new neural pathways, which can break through old patterns and defenses to unlock personal development. In coaching, we support clients to make changes (otherwise, they wouldn’t hire a coach)! Often at first, the brain will bring forward a set of defenses and triggers to avoid changing. If a client is more aware of the triggers and defense patterns, understanding the deeply programmed neurological responses, they are more able to pause, take back control from unconscious reaction to move forward with intentional action. Through exploring the Enneagram, clients become more aware of their pathways, assumptions and how they may be limiting themselves.They can step back from the knee-jerk reactions, addressing their shadow areas to move toward a greater integration of their full self. The Enneagram illuminates strategies for clients to stretch and release themselves by exploring “Wings and Lines” to shift to a new level of awareness, grow new neural pathways and establish a more integrated range of behavioral responses. Check out my blog series below on the Enneagram, or get in touch for coaching on how to begin the journey of moving toward your full potential. Blog Series: The Enneagram: Connecting Ancient Wisdom to Global Transformation The Enneagram and Neuroscience: Growing New Neural Pathways The Enneagram: Nine Points of View and Core Motivation Creating a Championship Team with the Enneagram The Enneagram in The Global Context
