Resource Page for MBTI & Enneagram

Welcome to My Personality Workshop Landing Page!

Once you get to know Carolyn and me, we are Personality Test Junkies: From Strengthsfinders to Love Languages, we do them all. Yet, our personal favorites are the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the Enneagram. In fact, I can predict an eerie number of things about you simply using your test scores:  From who you tend to date to how you manage your time and money! I can even statistically predict which vocations your personality gravitates towards as well as the top five fights you tend to have with your spouse! Thus, you can understand why our staff often uses this for pre-marriage counseling!

Now, a lot of people have had bad encounters with personality tests like these. There are a lot of wanna-be-experts who use tests like these in weird or horoscope-ish ways. Some Christians even oppose the Enneagram (because it has some cultic roots.) But, the modern Enneagram tool is fundamentally different than it was a hundred years ago. And all the books and websites I’ve referenced below take a science-based approach to these subjects.

But What’s the Difference between the MBTI and the Enneagram?

Well… In some ways they’re very similar in that they are both science based behavioral metrics. But MBTI tends to measure NATURE and Enneagram measures NURTURE. I.e., the Enneagram is more of a “mine-field map” to your triggers. And MBTI is more of a user manual to your “intrinsic preferences for living life.”

MBTI has 16 personality types! (64 subtypes) & Enneagram has 9 types (each with nine health levels – creating upwards of 81 subtypes). Enneagram is probably better at measuring a person’s response to stress and triggers. And MBTI has been proven to be more accurate at predicting vocational preferences and time management.

At the end of the day, I love that I can speak “both languages.” My preference is the MBTI as it tends to be less confrontational — not to mention — less mystical stuff for unstable people to twist. But I always tell people: Dive into both and see which helps you more.

If you want a quick overview of MBTI, check this out: MBTI- 8 Preferences Explained

And if you want a quick overview of Enneagram, check this out:

For those who like to learn through online courses, check out these two by Enneagram teacher Beth McCord, who teaches from a Christian perspective. 

• Discovering You: https://www.yourenneagramcoach.com/a/21465/yMDHRt4C

A 14 video course to give you an overview of the Enneagram.

• Exploring You: https://www.yourenneagramcoach.com/a/21466/yMDHRt4C

Five video sessions that go into depth around your specific Enneatype, intended to help you grow in self-awareness and health within your number.

So, How Do I Take a Test?

For the ENNEAGRAM Type Assessment: https://assessment.yourenneagramcoach.com

Estimated Time:         11-22 min       (depending on how well you know yourself)

Note: The test is free but you will be required to submit your email. Be sure to write down or take a screen-shot of your results and percentages at the end! Also keep in mind, these free online tests are usually only 50-80% reliable at best. So, if you have an extra ten minutes, please consider doing a secondary “confirmation test” (see optional tests below). A solid test score makes this process much more fun and rewarding.

Tips: Don’t think of these questions in terms of “right or wrong” but rather, your gut-tendency. Consider taking the test with a spouse / close friend who truly knows you and can help you if you feel stuck. Some of the questions can seem rather complex: (For Eg.) One question will ask: “I fear being in conflict, experiencing relational tension, being loveless, separate, uncomfortable, unimportant, overlooked, shut out, or in any inharmonious relationship?” (Strong Agree / Somewhat agree / Somewhat Disagree / Strongly Disagree). The question lists 9 criteria. So, to simplify your decision, simply count the total number of adjectives (9) and then tally up how many seem to represent you. If the answer is 5 out of 9 (more than 50%) then pick “somewhat agree.” If less than 50%, then “somewhat disagree.”

For the “MEYERS BRIGGS” (JUNG) type assessment:

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp

Estimated Time:         8-15 min         (depending on how well you know yourself)

Note: Similar to the above-mentioned test, be sure to write down or take a screen-shot of your results and percentages at the end! Also keep in mind, these free online tests are usually only 50-80% reliable at best. The real “M.B.T.I.” is a paid test that usually requires an additional face-to-face consultation (See options below). So, if you have an extra ten minutes, please consider doing a secondary “confirmation test.” A solid test score makes this process much more fun and rewarding.

Tips: Please answer the questions according to your ‘base nature.’ Don’t answer what you wish you were, or what you think you should be or what the “Christian” or “right” thing to do is.  There are no right or wrong answers for this test.  Answer by what your ‘base’ nature prefers.  IE… if the question asks “you’re at a party, do you prefer to talk to everyone or sit in a corner and connect with 1-2 people the whole night?”  Don’t answer based on what you should do as a leader… or as a Christian… or what your mom taught you to do… but what is your base nature that you prefer?  What would energize you? 

OPTIONAL “Confirmation” Tests:

The Goal: See if your top Type score comes out the same. (A small shift is common)

Estimated Time:         8-15 min

For Enneagram:  https://www.truity.com/test/enneagram-personality-test

For Meyers-Briggs (Jung): http://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test

What about Your Favorite Books for MBTI?

Type Talk,  The 16 personality types that determine how we live, love & work.  (by Kroeger & Thuesen)
This is a great intro to Myers-Briggs.  It’s an easy read and fun.  A MUST OWN. 

Type Talk at Work:  How the 16 personality types determine your success on the job.  (by Otto Kroeger & Janet Thuesen) 

Just Your Type: Create the Relationship You’ve always wanted using the secrets of Personality Type (by Paul D. Tieger & Barbara Barron-Tieger)
This book is a game changer as it puts together ALL personality types into relationships.  There isn’t a wrong personality type to marry!  BUT, it helps identify your top 10 challenges (or fights) and the 10 things you need to do for your spouse.  It’s so helpful!!! 

Do What You Are:  Discover the Perfect Career for you through secrets of Personality Type. (by Paul D. Tieger & Barbara Barron-Tieger).
This is helpful because it takes every personality type & every career type & helps you navigate what you you need in a job setting, or in a particular career. For example, if you went into a law career, this will help you discover if you’d thrive as a professor, as a trial attorney, a researcher, paralegal, etc.

Nurture by Nature:  Understand Your Child’s Personality Type – And Become a Better Parent (by Paul D. Tieger & Barbara Barron-Tieger)
This is such a helpful book in parenting.  It does not provide a test for children, but it teaches you to observe traits in your kids.  Most parenting conflict is around temperament & personality issues so it’s really insightful to study your kids and learn how to work with each of your kids, understanding them individually.  We taught our kids MBTI from an early age and it helped them interact with friends & as siblings. 

Please Understand Me II:  Temperament, Character, Intelligence (by Kiersey/Bates)

The MBTI is broken down into 16 personality types and 4 temperament types.  This book is super helpful in understanding these subtypes that are drivers within the personality (SP, SJ, NT, NF).

What are your Favorite Enneagram Books?

Personality Types: Using the Enneagram for Self-Discovery: by Don Richard Riso with Russ Hudson – This is considered by many to be one of the authoritative works on the subject – outlining 81 health levels of the 9 types.

The Path Between Us: An Enneagram Journey to Healthy Relationships by Suzanne Stabile
Learning the Enneagram can have a powerful impact on our relationships by helping us to better understand and relate to those around us. Are you a six who can’t understand why the four in your life feels the way he does? Stabile gives practical and insightful advice to each number about how to best understand and relate to those with other Enneagram numbers in your life.

The Complete Enneagram: 27 Paths to Greater Self-Knowledge by Beatrice Chesnut
For those looking to do a deeper dive into the Enneagram and understand its nuances, this book is one of the most highly respected. It’s deep, complex, and fascinating. Chesnut uses the Enneagram concept of stances to break down the nine types even further into 27 subtypes, bringing even further clarity to those looking to better understand their Enneatype. 

Bringing out the Best in Everyone you Coach: Use the Enneagram System for Exceptional Results by Ginger Lapid-Bogda, Ph.D.
For leaders who are looking to apply the Enneagram in their workplaces or with teams, Enneagram and leadership expert Lapid-Bogda shows how to use the Enneagram in combination with coaching to pull out the best in those around them.

The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile
The perfect book for people new to the Enneagram. Easy-to-read, practical, and beautifully written, Cron & Stabile clearly present from a Christian perspective what the Enneagram is, explains its core concepts, and helps the reader see the powerful impact using it can have on their personal growth and in their relationships.

What if I want an Enneagram or MBTI Coach?

Stephanie Gutierrez is one of our pastors at Substance and is a life coach and certified Enneagram coach. She put together many of the above-mentioned enneagram resources. Here is her life coaching website:  https://www.drawingfromthewellcoaching.com

Also, another dynamic leader at Substance is Annie Purdue Olson – She is certified in both MBTI and Enneagram (not to mention Strengths Finder!) https://www.leadingbettertogether.com/about/

Peter Haas is the Lead Pastor of Substance Church – an international multisite church based in Minneapolis. Peter is also a dj-turntablist who produces & tours with Substance Variant. He writes comedy books on spirituality: “Pharisectomy: How to Remove Your Inner Pharisee and Other Religiously Transmitted Diseases” (2012) and Broken Escalators (2015). See www.SubstanceChurch.com – @peterhaas1 (twitter & instagram)

Substance Church – Downtown Minneapolis Campus

Click to visit one of Substance’s Church live services, or see our documentary film-style services on Youtube. To watch our worship vides, see Substance Input Output.