Personality Type Nine

Nines like to see themselves as peaceful and easygoing people. They want to maintain their inner stability and peace of mind. Consequently, they resist being affected or changed by others or by strong feelings in themselves. Nines therefore detach from their own vitality, passion, and assertion and replace it with strong emotional attachments to important people and to comforting situations. They tend to diffuse their attention (tuning out some may say) and focus instead on their subjective idealizations of their world.

Nines seek harmony and stability. They have a sense of inner peace and want their environment to reflect that. They want to feel part of the world around them and a oneness with it (and with others). To maintain this harmony with their world, Nines must make sure that they do not upset or threaten its peace. Consequently, they opt to accommodate to their world (and to others) in exchange for peace. To do so, they must erase their own wants, their own passion, and their own drives. The price of accommodation is self-effacement.

Average Nines, therefore, see themselves as nobody special. Nines remain modestly camouflaged in the background so as not to inconvenience anyone. They minimize their hopes and expectations so they won't get upset.

Average Nines dislike change and take comfort in tradition and conventions because they bring stability and permanence. They are extremely agreeable and conciliatory. A favourite saying of Nines is "It doesn't matter to me." Nines are uncomfortable expressing their own wants and would keep quiet that risk a conflict. Informing others of their wants or opinions sometimes feels like aggression that may threaten the relationship. It's best not to make a scene; to say yes when they mean no; and not question the status quo. Nines accommodate to avoid conflict. Unfortunately, this behaviour makes Nines easy targets to be taken advantage of by others.

Average Nines live vicariously through others, often identifying with a stronger/more assertive/more passionate person. They idealize the other and/or the union. This connection makes them feel part of a greater whole. Nines have lost their sense of self by erasing their own assertion, but they try to reclaim it through their idealized union with their partner.

Average Nines suppress their wants and minimize their needs. They tune out and disengage from the world. They lose themselves in comforting routines (television, gardening, hobbies). They focus on the feeling of unity with the world or with others. Their attention to the real world becomes unfocussed and vague. They have a hard time dealing with change and try to ignore pressure to do so.

Average Nines don’t want big changes, outside pressure, or strong emotions to disrupt their peace. They ignore, avoid, and sweep problems under the rug. Under this stress, they withdraw into an inner world of fantasy, idealization & peace. Nines try to make a deal with Life: Don’t ask me to change and I won’t ask you to change. Nines can't understand why others would want them to change.

Average Nines accommodate too much to others and no longer develop themselves as individuals. They are neither introspective, or self-questioning. They lack self-awareness and initiative. They are indifferent and feel no sense of urgency. They procrastinate, seeing no reason to be pushed out of their complacency. Despite their pleasant behaviour, they are stubborn and extremely resistant to change.

They must maintain their peaceful world at any price (even if it is only an illusion). Their wishful thinking helps to minimize the importance of problems. They look for solutions that require minimal or no effort. They believe they can get through their problems by tuning them out. Everything will be fine tomorrow. A favourite saying of average Nines is "Let's just get this problem behind us."

They can become fatalistic: nothing can be done to change things. Their apathy and indifference to the needs of others may actually cause conflict and may upset others.

Average Nines are usually unaware that all of the pressure to change has been denied and bottled up deep in their psyches. Sometimes, Nines are unable to keep the anger hidden (from others as well as from themselves) and it comes out in a surprising outburst. Some Nines who can't handle the pressure and anger may have episodes of breaking with reality.

Nines become unhealthy when they repress and deny all problems. They completely dissociate from reality, neglecting their needs and responsibilities.

What leads Nines down the wrong path is when they seek peace by disengaging from their passions and instinct. Nines falsely believe that asserting themselves will cause conflict and disturb the harmony of their world.

Healthy Nines let go of a forced peace. They are patient, humble, honest, optimistic, and uncomplicated. Their quiet strength is reassuring to others. They can easily see and relate to other points of view because they are not attached to any one of them. As a result, they make them good mediators, negotiators, and counsellors.

Healthy Nines shed a great deal of positive attention to others. They are very trusting, receptive, empathic, accepting, and forgiving. There is a natural innocence to Nines - what you see is what you get. They are often attracted to nature and the environment (especially the mystical, magical, and mythical part). This attachment is related to their feelings of a union with the larger world.

At their best, healthy Nines let go of the belief that they are unimportant and unwanted. They become completely aware of their vitality, their energy, their emotions, and those of others. They are fully engaged and alive. They are dynamic, assertive, and open to change. They connect with others and themselves rather that their idealizations. They are fully empowered and independent, in union with themselves at truly at peace.

Every personality type is "powered" by a different motivation. When "worn lightly," this motivation guides our behaviour through general tendencies and attachments. As this motivation becomes stronger, it becomes increasingly important to see ourselves in a certain way and to ensure that others see us that way, too. To accomplish this goal, we emphasize certain behaviours (and disown others) by playing a role. Sometimes we need to manipulate others or even undermine them to force them to see us as we want to be seen. Unfortunately, the more attached we become to our self-image, the less we see ourselves as we really are.

Nines seek autonomy (like Ones and Eights) Read More		Nines are comfortable withdrawing away from the world (like Fours and Fives) Read More
Nines handle problems with a positive outlook approach (like Twos and Sevens) Read More		Nines are attached to the expectations of others (like Threes and Sixes) Read More