Enneagram Type Indicator & My Results

What is Enneagram?

Don Riso has defined the Enneagram as "a geometric figure that delineates the nine basic personality types of human nature and their complex interrelationships."

The word Enneagram is of Greek origin and refers to a diagram with nine points or lines. "Enneagram" is the name of the system of knowledge as well as its symbol.

The Enneagram is an ancient teaching of mysterious origins which is said to represent every process of creation and renewal. The Enneagram is taught as a technology or system of human development, self-discovery, spiritual growth and self-actualization.

The Enneagram, today, is most often presented as a system of personality types. Each personality type is characterized by specific patterns of thought, speaking style, feelings, emotions, sensations, and belief systems which are universal to the type.

The Enneagram can be extremely useful to everyone as a source of self-knowledge because it acts as a kind of "mirror" to reveal features of our personality that normally are invisible to us. 

For more information check out the following links 
Sources: 
http://www.ennea.com/what_is.htm
http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/faqs.asp#6

To attend an Enneagram test : 
http://www.9types.com/rheti/index.php
http://enneagramquiz.com/quiz.html


My results:

Type 5 with a 6 wing : " The Scientist"
Trifix : 5w6, 1w2, 4w5

The Observer (the Five)
Observers have a need for knowledge and are introverted, curious, analytical, and insightful.
How to Get Along with Me

• Be independent, not clingy.
• Speak in a straightforward and brief manner.
• I need time alone to process my feelings and thoughts.
• Remember that If I seem aloof, distant, or arrogant, it may be that I am feeling uncomfortable.
• Make me feel welcome, but not too intensely, or I might doubt your sincerity.
• If I become irritated when I have to repeat things, it may be because it was such an effort to get my thoughts out in the first place.
• don't come on like a bulldozer.
• Help me to avoid my pet peeves: big parties, other people's loud music, overdone emotions, and intrusions on my privacy.

What I Like About Being a Five

• standing back and viewing life objectively
• coming to a thorough understanding; perceiving causes and effects
• my sense of integrity: doing what I think is right and not being influenced by social pressure
• not being caught up in material possessions and status
• being calm in a crisis

What's Hard About Being a Five

• being slow to put my knowledge and insights out in the world
• feeling bad when I act defensive or like a know-it-all
• being pressured to be with people when I don't want to be
• watching others with better social skills, but less intelligence or technical skill, do better professionally

Fives as Children Often

• spend a lot of time alone reading, making collections, and so on
• have a few special friends rather than many
• are very bright and curious and do well in school
• have independent minds and often question their parents and teachers
• watch events from a detached point of view, gathering information
• assume a poker face in order not to look afraid
• are sensitive; avoid interpersonal conflict
• feel intruded upon and controlled and/or ignored and neglected

Fives as Parents

• are often kind, perceptive, and devoted
• are sometimes authoritarian and demanding
• may expect more intellectual achievement than is developmentally appropriate
• may be intolerant of their children expressing strong emotions

My Enneagram Test Results

What did I learn Today?

Everyday we learn something new. What we learn might be amazing, useful, boring or even useless. Still, everyone learns something new every single day. 

Being an INTP, I don't follow a rigid routine. There are times when I while away time because I don't want to do anything and of course there are times when I work sincerely with massive amount of interest and energy. No matter how I spend my day, I learn something new with each passing day.

'What Did I Learn Today?' comprises of random facts, thoughts and feelings. When I stumble across something interesting I jot it down in my journal. 

Today is October 1,2013.What Did I Learn Today? 

1) The Top 10 most common Phobias : For those of you who want a formal definition for the word "phobia" : According to the American Psychiatric Association, a phobia is an irrational and excessive fear of an object or situation. 

Knowing more than a hundred phobias by name and having a few myself,  I wanted to find out what the most common phobias are. Below is a list of the most common phobias that people all over the world suffer from. 

• Arachnophobia : The fear of spiders
• Ophidiophobia : The fear of snakes
• Acrophobia : The fear of heights
• Agoraphobia: The fear of open spaces or crowded public places
• Cynophobia: The fear of dogs
• Astraphobia: The fear of thunder & lightning
• Nyctophobia: The fear of darkness
• Social phobia : Fear of being evaluated negatively in social situations.
• Pteromerhanophobia: The fear of flying
• Mysophobia : Fear of being contaminated with dirt or germs.

Out of the ten phobias listed above,  the only one that I have is Arachnophobia. What are the phobias that you have?

2) Fun Facts about the number 77: I joined Yahoo! Answers recently and I have mixed opinions about it. There are a huge amount of people out there who use the site effectively and I do find a few trolls. 

I came across the following question in YA and being a mathematics graduate I definitely had a few points to give out. 

'Question: What is special about the number 77? '

I wanted to make sure if there were any other facts that I did not know already. On doing some internet searching I came across a few.

The compiled answer is given below.

1) If you add up the first 8 prime numbers you get the number 77 (2+3+5+7+11+13+17+19 = 77).

2) The number 77 is the number associated with Jesus Christ

3) 77 is the product of two consecutive primes ( 7 & 11)

4) 77 is the sum of three squares i.e 4^2+5^2+6^2

5) The smallest number with a persistence of 4: 7×7 = 49; 4×9 = 36; 3×6 = 18; 1×8 = 8.

6) 77 is the largest number that cannot be written as a sum of distinct numbers whose reciprocals add up to 1.

7) Any number having a abcabc numeral pattern is divisible by 77 (replace each letter with a digit. E.g. 123123)

3) The longest word without vowels ( in English) is : TWYNDYLLYNGS.

Twyndyllyngs is an archaic/obsolete word (of Welsh origin) which means 'twins', or, more accurately, it is a version of 'twinlings,' i.e. twins! 

English pronunciation 

singular:TWIN-dⁱling 

plural: TWIN-dⁱlingz 

Welsh pronunciation: T^uhWIN-d^eellings, with the 'double L' pronounced the Welsh way. 

This word is often cited as one of the longest 'no-vowels' words in the English language. However, although the five letters a,e,i,o,u, are always exclusively used as vowels, it should be noted that the letters w and y are also sometimes used to represent vowel sounds. 

Okay, What did you learn today ? 

Comments are welcome. 

30 Lessons I have learned in 3 years of College

I'm done with college. 
I'm turning twenty this month.
The greatest of lessons I have learned in college were not the ones in my syllabus. College taught me more of life lessons than the lessons in my book. Some of these lessons helped me change myself into a better person and the others helped me understand the people around me.

Relationships:


Lesson 1: Do not trust anyone completely . Anyone can turn against you at any point of time. 

Lesson 2: No one is your friend or enemy forever. 

Lesson 3: Do not judge people .Everyone has their own problems. You do not know what they have been through. So never place judgments on what you see and hear. No one wants to be judged.

Lesson 4: Learn to accept people as they are. Everyone has their own shortcomings. No one is perfect. 

Lesson 5: There are always people around you who think you are useless and whatever you do is useless as well.

Lesson 6: Gossip is one of the main reasons why many remain friends.

Lesson 7: Friends leave you for the silliest reasons.

Lesson 8: The people whom you don't like might actually like you and those whom you like might not like you at all.

Lesson 9: Be careful with your words. Being blunt can leave you friendless in a very short span of time. Not everyone is capable of accepting criticisms and many get offended if you give honest opinions. So even if you want to be honest , be careful with your words. 

Lesson 10: A person tries to exert control over only those whom he/she thinks are below his/her standards. (Standards might mean money, intelligence, style or something similar to these)

Lesson 11 : Be thoughtful while expressing emotions in public. For instance , I've seen few people who cry for everything .So, when they cry for something serious , none cares.

Lesson 12 : Do not try to put on a fake image. It is better to be a first rate version of yourself than to be a second rate version of someone else.

Lesson 13: The world does not revolve around you.

Lesson 14: Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.

Lesson 15: You cannot control people; but you can decide how you react to them. 

Teachers & Students:

Lesson 16: Group project is a project where only one person works but the credit is taken by the whole group.If you do not know how to extract work from your team mates you will have to do all the work.

Lesson 17: Not all teachers are capable of teaching well.  You just have to deal with it. 


Lesson 18: Most teachers have preconceived notions about every student and behave based on it. 

Lesson 19: Not all the first bench students are brilliant and not all the last benchers are dumb.

Lesson 20: Almost 99.99% students have cheated in at least one exam(or test). Some are open about it ; the rest are not.

Lesson 21: Every student loves when a class is interrupted

Lesson 22: You do not get punished when you commit a mistake. You get punished when you do not do anything wrong. This applies to general life as well. This is not a standard rule , but this happens a lot of times.

Lesson 23: It is okay to make mistakes. College is where I learnt that no one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. The point is that we must learn from our mistakes and not repeat them.

Lesson 24 : There are a lot of people ( in this case students )  who constantly try to prove that they are superior to everyone else. They are seriously affected by the "comparison" disease. They just can't stop comparing themselves with others in order to feel better.

Lesson 25 : You can be unique ; but if you do not know how to blend with people when required you will be left alone. 

Lesson 26: It is important to have contacts. 

Lesson 27: We regret the things we don't do more than the things we do. 

Lesson 28: You never know how strong you really are until being strong is the only option left. 

Lesson 29: Never let success get to your head and never let failure get to your heart.


Lesson 30. It is actually possible that a college farewell can be one of the most happiest moments in life. College farewell doesn't always means tears and sadness; at least not for me .

Thank you for reading through the post.Comments are welcome.

Top 10 ways to identify an INTP - Part 2

5. They are so eager to start a project but usually leave it unfinished.

The purpose of life as per the view of an INTP is to increase his/her knowledge base. INTPs have a strong drive to understand things that are not yet been decoded by their brains .The reason why INTPs are drawn to complexity is that anything simple is very quickly understood and cannot hold their fascination for long. The downside is that the person will become quickly bored with anything that he/she has successfully analysed to the point of understanding . If the subject, whatever it may be, has nothing left to offer,in the point of an INTP,then he/she loses interest and gets sucked into some other interesting topic. Thus many of the projects started are left incomplete since their satisfaction comes with achieving the goal of understanding and not in completing projects.

4. Proficiency in skills is something they do not care much about. 

Even though INTPs put lots of efforts to increase their knowledge base they do not strive to attain proficiency in any area . They do not involve in any continual practice after understanding a particular concept or learning a skill. Instead , once they have understood something to the point of their satisfaction they move on to the next topic of interest. So in most cases they do not become masters of their fields but have a vast knowledge of concepts in various fields. An INTP is satisfied just by analyzing and understanding a concept and is not much worried about the practical application. 



3. They are afraid of emotions

INTPs know that emotions do not follow any kind of logic and that they can never be fully understood. So they often try to avoid showing or considering emotions. Even though they hold a great interest in the area of emotions and feelings they do not want to be seen as an emotional person. They find it hard to handle emotions. This doesn't mean an INTP can never feel but only think. This means that emotions , for an INTP, is the most mysterious part of himself. AN INTP dislikes disturbance in emotions as he thinks it is far beyond control and emotions are one of INTPs' least developed attributes. It is often said that " you know you are an INTP when you do not understand that you have hurt someone and you wonder what just happened!"

2.They come up with great ideas.

Ideas, theories, possibilities and concepts are of very great significance and interest for an INTP. Ideas - practical, abstract, or even fully based on fantasy - can grab the attention of an INTP. An INTP's mind is well suited for generating new ideas and he can serve as the master brain behind a project. Coming up with different and innovative ideas is a strong plus point of an INTP. It would seem like you can discuss with them about just any topic and they have at least one point to say.


1. They often feel that there are not much people around to personally relate with.

It is actually true that INTPs are one of the rarest personality types and therefore they will obviously feel that there are not much people around to relate themselves with. It doesn't mean they cannot get along with others. They mingle with others very well when it is required. The way of thinking, handling issues, and simply the way their minds work is very different from other personality types. INTJ and ENTP are two personality types that they can quite relate themselves with. 


With this "the top 10 ways to identify an INTP" post is complete. Thank you for reading through the post. Comments are welcome.
Note: These points are purely based on my experiences and I do not generalize the INTP personality type.


Top 10 ways to identify an INTP - Part 1 - Click here to read the first part of the above post

My shopping experience with "purplle.com"

The story behind my first purchase in purplle.com :

Winter has faded away and summer has almost arrived. Scorching rays of the sun have already caused sun burns and my skin has tanned badly.On searching for some remedies to remove the already present tan as well as prevent the harmful effects of sun rays, I learnt that a sunblock is a must. 

I was checking out a few e-commerce sites to find some good deals on sunblocks .This is when I stumbled upon "purplle.com"

Home screen of purplle.com

A wonderful purple color header that presents the name " Purplle" with a list of few offers and products below the header is the welcome screen.The layout of the website looks decent. Not  flashy , not dull - just decent. A wide range of products are available on this site and the discount ranges from 3% to 25 % . Currently they do not service orders outside of India.

I felt impressed with the site and registered . 

Before placing my order , I wanted to read some reviews and other people's experience  with this site. Surprisingly, what I found was a lot of complaints and only a few people have ever had a good shopping experience with purplle.

Even after reading through the 'worst case scenario' reviews from many other review sites I was tempted to go ahead with my purchase.

Why did I want to buy products in purplle even after reading the negative reviews?
1. Cash-On-delivery option
2. Good discount [ at the time of buying this was the only site that had good deals for sunblocks]
3. Wanted to try out shopping in purplle 

I ordered 3 sunblocks [ each with some 10% - 15% discount] for Rs 541 on 10th March 2013 . The list price was Rs 649 but due to discount the final price I had to pay was Rs 541 inclusive of the Cash on delivery charge. [Shipping is free when your order exceeds Rs 499. ]

Immediately after I placed my order, I received a message saying that I would be receiving a call from the customer care "soon" in order the confirm the order. I was having my mobile with me for a very long time expecting the so called verifying call. Finally, the next day evening ,I got a call from their customer care to verify the order . After confirming my order I asked the customer care person details regarding the shipping and delivery dates . She said that  the products will be delivered within 4 business days and that I would be receiving e-mails regarding the shipping and tracking. 

I received a mail with details on shipping and tracking on 12th of march , just as she said. I received the products on 14th of March 2013. The packing was very cheap but the products were in good condition. 

Conclusions drawn from the first purchase :

1. Good deals for most of the products that they sell

2. Even rarely available products are 'in-stock' 

3. Shipping and delivery time does not exceed 4 business days.

4. Shipping is free when purchased more than Rs 499/- and COD option is available.

5. Virtual Makeover is available [ Though I haven't tried it yet , I did want to mention it]

6. Points that can be used for discount [ not available in C-O-D]

Wonderful experience right? So guess what I would have done for my next online purchase...

Purchase No : 2 

Overjoyed with the discount and the brands available I decided to make my next purchase here. This is where I went wrong. My next order was placed on 18th march 2013 for Rs 697. After the usual procedure of receiving a message and a confirmation call , I was expecting to get an email with the shipping and delivery details the very next day.

Today is 21st March 2013 and I haven't received any mails from purplle till now. My order status is still "verified" and I wonder why the products haven't even been shipped yet. 

My order history page 

I wanted to know why I haven't received any mail from them. I called up their customer care number only to find that it doesn't even exist. So I was left with no option other than sending them an email. No response from purplle till now and  I don't think they are going to respond at all. Even if they do, it won't be today...

I have made up my mind to wait till tomorrow evening for some kind of a response from them. 

(I will add an update to this post in a few days regarding what happened to purchase no 2.)

Points to remember :

1. Don't even try calling the customer care number ... IT DOESN'T EXIST. 
2. Packaging is bad [Even though the products are in good condition]
3. Be prepared to wait , wait and wait till you forget that you have ordered something 

I wonder how they expect to survive in the market with this kind of a lame service. 

Now, you decide for yourself whether you want to go ahead with your purchase at purplle.com

[Update: I received a mail from Purplle customer care today[22/3/2013]. The mail states that the shipping was delayed due to the unavailability of a product .Finally , I asked them to cancel that particular product and ship the rest. Seems they have shipped it and I will be receiving it 3-4 business days. ]

Bubbye :)

Have a happy day !

Top 10 ways to identify an INTP - Part 1

HOW TO IDENTIFY AN INTP ?

This is a bipartite post on how to identify an INTP. 
Written based on my personal experiences , it might not perfectly describe every single INTP out there. Still, every INTP can be related to at least a few points in this list. 

10. They prefer being independent.

INTP s never want to be dependent.They value independence in others as well. They are really strong and believe that they can manage any situation without the help of another person. This doesn't mean that they are arrogant but it is that they do not want to be seen as weak. They can perform well in team works but will be able to give their best when left alone.In general , an INTP interacts with others in a composed manner. Once you become emotionally close with an INTP you'll find that he/she can be extremely affectionate and even clingy at times.



9. They learn at their own pace . You cannot push an INTP to do something which they do not want to .

They focus on things that interests them and can become completely absorbed in such activities. Capable of learning new things in a fairly short period of time , they are good - both in understanding as well as coming up with innovative ideas. They work in sporadic bursts of energy and not on some rigid routine. This means you cannot force an INTP to do something unless he/she wants to do it.

8. They do not like being the center of attraction.

Being in the spotlight is something an INTP loves and hates simultaneously. When an INTP wants to present his/her idea they expect complete attention but once the speech is over , he/she will always look to move into a position that doesn't grab a lot of attention .Too long in the spotlight,an INTP starts to feel embarrassed and self conscious. 


7. They enjoy solitude

INTPs are thoughtful and analytical. Due to this ,they seem detached and are often found daydreaming. They get lost in their own world thinking of ideas or analyzing situations. Relatively easy going and reserved ,INTPs become outspoken when someone opposes their idea or point of view. INTPs are blunt and to the point. They observe things from a detached position and enjoy solitude.


6. They are intensely logical characters

Logical and analytical are two words that can almost describe how an INTP's mind works. INTPs have trouble dealing with emotional individuals. Every problem has a logical solution - this is what an INTP believes. They are good at  evaluating and finding flaws. Flattery and compliments arouse suspicion in their minds. They work untiringly at issues related to logic and once they arrive at a solution they skip the practical application and move on to solve the next issue.
Briefly, INTPs are obsessed with logic.


Top 10 ways to identify an INTP- Part 2  - Click on this link to read the next part of the above post

What does being an INTP mean ?

Welcome !

Let me start with the basic idea of personality types based on MBTI [Myers Briggs Type Indicator] and what they mean. 

The MBTI test puts forward 16 personality types , each with specific characteristics and it states that everyone in the world would fall into one of these 16 categories. Though it might not be 100 % accurate for everyone , it does a very good job of describing why a person is who he is.

Note: I do not know whether the test scientifically correct . I am by no means an expert on this subject. I just felt like sharing this information and that is why I am writing this post. 

How did I discover my MBTI Personality :

I had always felt that I never fit in with the crowd . My energy drains whenever I'm socializing and I need a lot of time for myself in order to gain back my energy. It is not that I hate people but I prefer being alone. Even though I expect logical explanations and tend to solve problems by logic I have always been fascinated by abstract ideas and concepts rather than the practical working of the ideas. I wanted to make sure that I wasn't some weird person and I wanted a logical explanation for my behavior.

So I researched a bit on this topic and found that I AM INTROVERTED. Finally , I got an explanation for my social behavior but it never answered the questions regarding my traits.

That is when I came across this MBTI personality test. Being really curious I attended the test and the result ... INTP is my personality type. Still wanting to make sure the result was correct I tried a few more versions of this test on other websites. Every single version of this test displayed the same answer. 

Oh yeah! I am an INTP 

Links to MBTI Test :

Those of you who wish to discover your personality types click on one of the links below to write the test .

http://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test

The above link has 84 questions and may take quite a long time to finish but it is worth the time and effort.

www.41q.com/type.41q?p=24581080

www.blogthings.com/howrareisyourpersonalityquiz/

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp


Finally,

INTP  : Introverted , Intuitive , Thinking ,Perceiving

Briefly , an INTP can be described as someone who seeks for logical explanations ; interested more in ideas and thoughts ; quiet , flexible and analytical. 

I am not going to give a detailed explanation on the personality profile of an INTP since there are lots of websites out there doing it. You can use the links below to learn more 

http://www.personalitypage.com/high-level.html
http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/the-16-mbti-types.asp
http://www.personalitydesk.com

Reading a few forums and blogs gives me an impression that many INTPs feel bad about being one and they wish they could be someone else. I have a great news for those people to start feeling great about themselves.

"Hey INTPs !

Be proud that we are a rare personality type. A survey says that INTP is one of the rarest personality types especially for women. 

Stats : 

• 3% of the general population

• 5% of men

• 2% of women

are INTPs. "

Stats info taken from : http://www.personalitydesk.com/intp

Thank you for reading my post!
If you have found out your personality type by following the links in this post or you already know yours , do let me know by commenting :)

Have a nice day!