This is a paid piece from Selah Space.
Simplified: The holiday season can be a stressful, overwhelming and even painful time of year. Getting in touch with what you need – especially as it relates to your personality type – can help you find some peace. Here's how the enneagram can help.
Why it matters
- The enneagram is a personality test based around nine different types. Your specific type is also know as your "ego space" or, essentially, your default setting.
- While the ego type is important to know, Selah Space Owner Jada Dobesh encourages people to find their connected "soul space" – one of the numbers connected to your type on the enneagram diagram – during the holiday season.
"Whenever you live in your ego type, you're that much closer to sliding into your stress point," Dobesh said, adding that your soul type can help you get better in touch with what you need.
What are some things I can do specific to my type?
Dobesh said for all nine types, there are ways to get in touch with your soul space first thing in the morning.
Here are her suggestions:
Type One
Nature is key. Spend the first few minutes or more of your day looking out the window or standing outside. Take in the beauty of creation. This will help you move to your Type Seven soul space which helps you to be on the look-out for the best case scenario.
Type Two
Self-centered is your word for the morning. If you are tending to others from the moment your feet hit the floor, you'll feel overwhelmed and under-appreciated. Instead, start the first part of your day focusing on your needs. Ask yourself what you need and want from today. As a bonus, seek out something creative like journaling, coloring, or cooking to tap further into the Type Four soul space.
Type Three
Ritual. Rhythm, Routine. The Three's soul space is the Six which offers you loyalty to your own true self. Commit to a morning ritual specific to the holidays. Maybe some light stretching in the glow of the Christmas tree lights or an advent devotional and a warm cup of tea or coffee. The magic is in doing something you delight in, not necessarily something that will look good on the gram.
Type Four
Cozying up to perfection. Fours may be struggling with more feelings of depression or melancholy than usually this time of year. Move into your One Soul Space by starting your morning by making your bed, cooking up a beautiful breakfast, and having some intentional and slow time. Aim for precision in the way you do things first thing in the morning. This will evoke a sense of delight in the success and the perfection of what you are putting into the world.
Type Five
Move into protection. This time of year, especially if you've got a lot of family plans, can make you want to hide under the covers all day long or dive into a book and never come out. Instead, start your mornings by offering something to others, whether its your partner, children or pets. Protect their morning energy by opening up all of the curtains, brewing the coffee, making them breakfast. It will feel encouraging to push yourself out of your mind in this way.
Type Six
Before you jump into those emails and texts you got about work at 10 p.m., or your mother's seven messages about what to bring for the Christmas dinner she's hosting, protect your peace. Consider a new morning ritual; switch your coffee to tea, or read a novel rather than your morning devotional. Keep the ritual, that will keep your peace. but break up your loyalty to others and your usual routine to feel like you're challenging yourself.
Type Seven
Turn inward before you jump into life. Consider starting the morning with some time of introspection. Meditate or journal, asking yourself how you're feeling about the day, write about your dreams from the night before, or practice a body scan to settle into how you're really feeling in the moment. This sort of embodiment practice can help you move into your soul space Five, by becoming an investigator of yourself.
Type Eight
Your soul space Two is a place where you feel like giving to others because it brings you joy. Start your day with a meditative practice, asking yourself, what do I have within me that I am able to offer the world today? What would I delight in offering? Try this mindset shift in the practice of journaling or meditation. And so do quietly, and alone.
Type Nine
Movement is what you need. Every inch of you is going to want to be cozy, stay in your bed, or drink several cups of coffee on the couch. But by moving to your Three soul space, you're activating within you a desire to bring peace from within yourself and offer it to the world. Start your day with a heart opening yoga practice, or take the dog for a walk and while out and about, practice gratitude for the peace you find yourself connecting with. Collect those little bits of peaceful perfection to share with others throughout the day.
How can I learn more about my enneagram type?
Reach out to Selah Space. If you're not sure where to start, schedule a wellness consult. Or, try a spiritual healing session with Dobesh. From now until the end of the year, she's offering a $25 gift card free to anyone who books a service with her.
