3, 6, and 9 – The Adapting Energetic Types. We call them mutable, adaptors, or shifters, because in three different ways they adapt or adjust to their environment, and to the people around them. When someone with the 9 pattern adapts, they are seeking harmony and comfort. They will try to get the people around them to be in harmony, which may involve changing themselves as well as affecting the expression of the others…

One of the most difficult parts of teaching the Enneagram is typing people. I believe it works best when it is a joint effort between the student and the instructor or mentor. But however it is done, it is hard. Recognizing the energy of each type can help…

The core types 3, 6, and 9 have mutable or adapting energy. The externalizing types 2, 7, and 8 have outward moving energy. The internalizing types 1, 4, and 5 have inward moving energy.