THE ROAD BACK TO YOU summary

Chapter 1: Dating back to antiquity,

The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile What is in it for me? Self-discovery, without the therapy bills. We live in an age where self-care and self-reflection are highly valued. However, it can be hard to know where to begin when setting out on your self-seeking quest.

Should you turn to religion or a therapist, meditation or literature? Well, the Enneagram, a diagram that can help you reflect on your personality, is the perfect place to start. In this summary, you will discover the history of the Enneagram, as well as learn the various personality types represented by each of its nine points, and how these types interact with one another. How will that help you become more aware of your emotions and behavior patterns?

The answer is simple, you can only work on your flaws and shortcomings if you recognize them and understand why you act the way you do. With the help of the Enneagram, you will soon be thinking more analytically and making better life choices as a result. In this summary, you will also learn how your personality type can help you identify your perfect job role, what makes perfectionists so imperfect, and that your entire personality type can change in stressful situations. This is The Road Back to You, by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile.

Chapter 1 Dating back to antiquity, the Enneagram is a nine-point diagram used for self-knowledge. What comes to mind when you hear the word Enneagram? If you immediately imagine a five-pointed symbol being set aflame in some Wiccan ceremony, then you have made a forgivable blunder. That is the pentagram.

The Enneagram, in contrast, has nine points and nothing to do with the occult. Like the pentagram however, it does have roots in ancient history. The Enneagram of personality types is an outgrowth of ancient Christian theology. Its precise origins are unknown, but some people believe it can be traced back to Evagrius Ponticus, a fourth-century Christian monk and theologian, who is also often credited with having created the concept of the seven deadly sins.

But Christianity is not the only religion to include the Enneagram. Judaism, Sufism, and Taoism feature similar nine-pointed diagrams used for spiritual guidance. These traditions of ancient wisdom were brought together in the 1970s by the Bolivian philosopher, Oscar Ichazo, to form the modern Enneagram structure. Later, it was imported to America by one of Ichazo's pupils at the Arica School in Chile, an American psychologist named Claudio Naranjo.

Naranjo, in turn, taught the Enneagram to his students in California, one of whom was Father Robert Ochs. As a Catholic, Jesuit priest, and educator, Ochs spread the spiritual teachings of the Enneagram to fellow clergy, other spiritual leaders, and his own congregation. So, what is the Enneagram exactly? Well, its name comes from Greek, ennea, means nine, and gram, means drawing or figure.

And its nine-pointed geometric design is used as an aid to self-knowledge. In total, there are nine personality types, and each of the Enneagram's nine points corresponds to one. Each of these is linked to a number on the diagram, which can tell us more about how we see the world, as well as how we feel and behave. Each personality type is also linked to other numbers across the diagram, which can help us understand how we act in various situations, such as when under stress.

Finally, every personality type has two adjacent numbers, known as wing numbers, both of which may further influence your type. At this point, you might be thinking, okay, but how does this help me? Well, the whole point of the Enneagram is to help you reflect on flaws in your character, so you can consciously move toward personal enlightenment. Not only that, you can also use it to better understand the behavior of family and friends.

By empathizing with their outlook on life, you will be able to communicate much more effectively. In the next section, we will look at the first six personality types.

Chapter 2: The Enneagram's first six

The Enneagram's first six personality types fall under the gut triad and the heart triad. The nine points of the Enneagram can be grouped into three distinct categories or triads. These are the gut, the heart, and the head. Let us take a closer look at the gut first.

The common motivation linking the personality types in the gut triad is anger. Take Type 8, the Challenger. The Challenger will always be the first to speak out when she sees wrongdoing. They are natural ringleaders because of their blunt and forceful nature.

Their weakness is an inability to show vulnerability, which holds them back from forming really meaningful relationships. Often, they demonstrate anger by seeking out verbal or physical conflict. Type 9, the Peacemaker, is the polar opposite. They will avoid conflict at all costs.

Always able to see both sides of an argument, the amiable Peacemaker is a natural mediator. However, since they never want to upset others, they suppress their own anxieties and frustrations, which results in their not asking for and therefore not getting what they need from relationships. The third type in the gut triad is Type 1, the Perfectionist. As the name suggests, perfectionists are self-disciplined, moral, and concerned with detail.

Improving themselves and the world is their prime concern. They tend to view everything as either right or wrong, black or white. When other people break the rules or abandon their responsibility, perfectionists become angry. This anger is internalized as resentment.

The three personality types in the heart triad are defined by their feelings and emotions. Just look at Type 2, the Helper. The Helper is an incredibly caring character, motivated by the desire to feel needed by others. They are self-sacrificing.

On the downside, helpers tend to let relationships define them, avoid expressing their own needs, and feel that they are owed something by others for the care they show. In general, they attend to everyone's feelings but their own. Type 3 is the Performer. This type sets big goals and gets great satisfaction from achieving them.

The more successful, productive, and efficient they are, the greater their sense of self-worth. The negative side for performers is self-delusion and an inability to own up to their own mistakes. Performers struggle to identify emotions in themselves and others and are highly conscious of their image. Completing the heart triad is Type 4, the Romantic.

Romantics are naturally very in tune with all the beauty and tragedy in the world and can appreciate the full spectrum of human experience. Their weakness is a tendency to isolate themselves from others, which can lead to melancholy, unpredictability, and self-absorption.