Welcome to the ninth and final post in our series on the Enneagram's connecting lines. So far, we've looked at the Resource Points for Types 1 through 8. Now we're wrapping up with Type 9. As a reminder, "Resource Points" is the language we're using because it moves us away from thinking of one line as the good one and the other as the bad one, and toward the idea that both territories hold answers to the problems of our home type.
To understand what 9s are drawing on when they move along their lines, it helps to first understand what's happening at home.
Type 9 and the Body Triad
As members of the Body Triad, 9s are concerned with autonomy and control. This can be hard to see, as they opt for passive methods of exerting control. They're prone to becoming immovable, or tuning out what they don't want to acknowledge. When 9s feel pushed around by others, they may defiantly "sit down in the middle of the road." They're known as affable/easygoing folks, and this can indeed be true, until somebody ticks them off.
What keeps 9s from fulfillment is the belief that moving on their own agenda causes conflict, and severs important connections. This notion can cause so much internal dissonance that they choose (unconsciously) to forget their own desires altogether.
The result is that, when asked what they want, 9s often report they don't even know. Once personal agenda is set aside, it fades into the deepest recesses of awareness.
In other words, the easygoing calm we see on the outside can sit on top of desires that have been set aside for so long that they're hard to find on the inside.
Movement Along the Lines: Waking Up to Instincts, Fear, and Anger
For 9s, movement along the lines is about waking up to their instincts, their fear, and their anger. Strong emotions like fear and anger help 9s identify what's important to them. Then they can finally take a stand.
They need to realize that even if pursuing their own agenda does cause conflict, the conflict may actually improve (rather than deteriorate) their connections with others.
All of this becomes possible when 9s access their Resource Points.
Making Conscious Movement
As we discussed in the intro, what makes the lines useful is conscious movement, rather than something that just happens to us. For 9s, the way to achieve conscious movement along the inner lines is to be awake to one's own patterns, and to observe when automatic habit takes over.
Through self-observation, 9s learn to "repeatedly unhook their attention" from the opinions and positions of others. That word repeatedly matters. The attention gets hooked again and again, and the practice is to keep noticing it and unhooking it, each time it happens.
When they are awake to themselves and present in the moment, they get the best of their Resource Points.
Point 6
Here, 9s find some urgency that can wake them up, and motivate them to tune back into themselves. The idea that maybe things aren't so "chill" can help 9s overcome inertia.
Remember that 9s are prone to tuning out what they don't want to acknowledge. Point 6 is where that tuning out gets interrupted. When they draw on their resources at point 6, 9s find their inner peace suddenly disturbed, and this isn't bad. It can be the exact jolt they need, to notice they've been in "cruise-control" mode.
Point 3
Here, 9s find the drive and assertiveness to move their agendas forward in the world. They learn how to shine, instead of putting themselves in the background.
Remember that 9s believe moving on their own agenda causes conflict, and severs important connections. Point 3 is where that belief loses some of its hold. Drawing on their resources at point 3, 9s take ownership of their talents and exceptional skills. They can move forward with confidence, and push their own agenda free of guilt.
When Jolts and Confidence Get Complicated
Generally speaking, point 3 is the growth point for 9s, and tends to light up when they're feeling expansive. Point 6 is the stress point, and tends to light up when they're feeling contracted. But because each Resource Point holds a full range, neither one is automatically a smooth ride (or automatically a rough one). Remember, we're not sorting these into "good" and "bad."
At point 6, the urgency can show up in less conscious ways. It can feel like plain anxiety, and the instinct can be to retreat back into cruise-control as quickly as possible, rather than noticing what the fear is pointing to. Or the fear and anger can come up, but get pushed right back down, because acknowledging them still feels like a threat to important connections. When 9s are awake and present, though, point 6 is what we described above: urgency that wakes them up, and motivates them to tune back into themselves.
At point 3, the drive can go sideways too. Guilt can creep right back in, since pushing their own agenda still feels like it might cost them connection. Or the forward motion can turn into a new way of tuning out, with busyness filling the space where their own desires should be, rather than coming from those desires. With conscious movement, point 3 is where 9s find the drive and assertiveness to move their agendas forward, and learn how to shine.
This is exactly why conscious movement matters so much. Both points hold the full range, and self-observation is what helps 9s draw on the healthier end of each.
Waking Up and Standing Up: Two Resources, One Pattern
Taken together, the two Resource Points address the two sides of the pattern we started with. Point 6 offers a jolt of urgency that helps 9s overcome inertia, and wake up to what they feel and what matters to them. Point 3 offers drive, assertiveness, and ownership of their talents, so they can take a stand without guilt. Neither asks a 9 to give up their peace, and neither is a "reward" or a "punishment." They're two territories where 9s can find what their home type has a hard time granting itself.
Questions to Sit With
If you're a 9, or you love one, here are a few questions drawn from everything above:
What do I actually want, right now?
Am I in cruise-control mode, and what might I be tuning out?
What would it be like to move forward on my own agenda, free of guilt?
The Takeaway for Type 9
It's possible to be peaceful, easygoing, AND be assertive and productive, with a sharp eye for oncoming difficulties. If you'd like to explore Type 9 growth themes more deeply, check out our monthly support groups held on the first Saturday of each month, or our next monthly workshop. You can learn more and register here.
Wrapping Up the Series
That brings us to the end of our tour through the Resource Points for all nine types. Whatever your type, the invitation is the same: be awake to your own patterns, notice when automatic habit takes over, and make conscious movement along your lines. Both Resource Points hold answers to the problems of your home type.
Use your resources, people!