Which Personality Test Is Better: MBTI or Enneagram?

When it comes to understanding ourselves and our relationships, two popular personality tests stand out: the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the Enneagram. Each provides unique insights, but which one offers a better understanding?

Different Perspectives, Different Strengths

MBTI is designed to help us understand how we interact with co-workers, acquaintances, and our professional environments. It focuses on our cognitive preferences, providing a framework for how we perceive and judge the world. The test results are categorized into 16 personality types represented by four-letter codes, making it accessible and easy to understand for many people.

MBTI: Cognitive Preferences and Perceptual Styles

The MBTI is a tool that breaks down one's personality into four cognitive preferences:

Extraversion vs. Introversion: How you direct your energy. Sensory vs. Intuitive: How you process information. Thinking vs. Feeling: How you make decisions. Judging vs. Perceiving: How you approach the outside world.

While the MBTI can be highly beneficial for self-awareness and professional development, it has some limitations. Critics argue that it only tests one side of the mind, leading to lower accuracy. However, C.S. Joseph offers valuable insights into the four sides of the mind, which can complement the MBTI.

Enneagram: Deeper Insights into Unconscious Motivations

In contrast, the Enneagram delves deeper into one's core motivations, fears, and unconscious patterns. It identifies nine distinct personality types, each with its own set of motivations and fears. The Enneagram is often seen as a more profound tool for self-reflection and navigating close relationships.

One of the unique aspects of the Enneagram is its ability to reveal deep personal insights, such as your deepest fears and motivations. This can be both enlightening and challenging. While the MBTI provides a framework for how you perceive and judge the world, the Enneagram offers a window into your inner motivations, making it a powerful tool for personal growth.

Complementary Tools for Comprehensive Understanding

Both the MBTI and Enneagram have their strengths and can offer valuable insights when used together. They work well complementing each other because they offer different perspectives on the human psyche. The MBTI can help you understand how your brain works and how you interact with the world, while the Enneagram delves into your underlying motivations and fears.

MBTI: Accessible and User-Friendly

If you are looking for a more straightforward and accessible tool, the MBTI might be the better choice. The site is easy to navigate, and the results are presented in a clear, user-friendly manner. The MBTI breaks your personality down into four-letter codes, providing a simple and comprehensible overview of your personality type.

Many people use the MBTI as a tool for self-improvement. Rather than trying to change their personality type, they work to balance each trait by getting "50/50" on every trait. This approach helps them understand and accept their various personality traits more fully.

Enneagram: More Muddled but Just as Valuable

The Enneagram, while no less valuable, can be a bit more complex and abstract. It may not be as straightforward as the MBTI, which can make it less user-friendly for some individuals. The Enneagram, with its nine distinct types, each characterized by its own motivations and fears, can provide a more nuanced understanding of oneself. However, it might require more effort to fully grasp and apply the insights it offers.

It's important to remember that neither test is a hard definition of yourself. They are both theories of the mind that can give us a hint to who we are. Both the MBTI and Enneagram offer valuable wisdom and can be extremely helpful in various aspects of life, from personal development to professional growth.