Type Nine
The Peaceful Mediator

Center of Intelligence: Gut Center
Motivation: To maintain inner and outer peace by avoiding complication and conflict
Core Fears: Conflict, disconnection, being loveless, complication, and complexity

Nines are easy-going, pleasant, conflict-avoidant, agreeable, and passive-aggressive. Nines are motivated to maintain their inner peace and want peace in the world around them. Nines want to feel even-keeled and seek moderation and evenness internally and externally. As gut types, they experience the world instinctively and respond viscerally to their convictions and emotions when they rise to their awareness. Nines do not like to feel anything too intensely, so they tend to keep their passions, opinions, and identities blunted or hidden from themselves and others. Nines engage in self-denial and self-neglect. This avoidance isn't because they don't care for themselves but because they fear disharmony, disconnection, and complication. Their conflict avoidance causes them to anesthetize any state, emotion, or condition threatening their inner peace. Nines adapt interpersonal strategies to avoid conflict and difficulties that create an open, gentle, relaxed, and non-judgmental demeanor.

Avoiding Complication and Confrontation
Nines see themselves as pleasant and friendly and believe this is the most effective way of preventing conflict or complication in their relationships. Nines are afraid of being loveless and believe that confrontation or differentiating too strongly from others will create disconnection. They will be shut out and thus without the comfort they crave. However, their search for comfort and connection is compulsive, and they often amass a sophisticated array of buffering strategies to avoid disruption of their inner and outer comfort. Nines struggle to find their Enneagram type because they readily identify with all states of being and see parts of themselves reflected in all types. This universalism is part of a defense strategy that wants to merge with others to feel safe.

Interestingly, finding their Enneagram type can rouse annoyance or anger. Mistyping is part of a defense strategy designed to obfuscate what is vital, allowing them to avoid self-development unconsciously. Nines are masters of keeping secrets from themselves to avoid action. Nines know they'll have to act once something comes into their awareness. So to prevent from upsetting the proverbial apple cart, they prefer to keep uncomfortable truths out of their awareness.

Repression of Strong Emotion
Having a definitive identity or strong feelings and emotions feels dangerous because it could mean that others may not like or approve of their authentic emotions, thoughts, feelings, desires, or interests. Or, worse yet, for the Nine, might cause others to challenge and rouse the anger they strive to repress. Nines will use a variety of distractions to keep others from arousing strong responses or emotions, including; obfuscating, appearing clueless, not paying attention, compulsive positivity or niceness, confusion, acquiescence, stubbornness, or obstruction. However, the pleasant demeanor of the Nine hides the incredible ability to endure, stoic patience, and formidable determination.

Nines may seem agreeable, but underneath, nothing has changed about their genuine opinions or positions. They know that it's difficult to attack someone who appears benign and unassuming. Being even-tempered, pleasant, and moderate is a defense against potential conflict and a way to keep others from bothering them too much to avoid upsetting their equilibrium.

Of course, Nines experience anger just like everyone else, but their rage is repressed and may be difficult for them to access directly. Some Nines claim to have or rarely become angry, later becoming irate at a restaurant server for an incorrect order or becoming explosive if they can't watch their favorite movie during a holiday. It's safer to become angry about relatively trivial inconveniences rather than acknowledge genuine resentment or anger they may have with people close to them.

Passive Aggression, and Numbing
They are passive-aggressive to help dispel their rage toward others. Forgetfulness, neglect, callousness, dismissal, or nonchalance are passive-aggressive methods used to punish those they believe don't respect them. Respect is just as crucial for Nines as for Eights and Ones. However, because Nines are withdrawn types, they feel guilty or shameful taking up space in the world. Nines, however, have a strong sense of self that they've learned must be kept hidden to avoid conflict.

Nines tow the middle of the road because extremes feel existentially unsafe. Their fear of being disconnected blunts strong exclamations, emotions, passions, or desires. Nines go through life in a conscious sleep state, which helps them stay comfortable and calm. However, this often occurs at the expense of self-development. When Nines wake up and begin to proclaim their space in the world, they are effective and self-possessed. They can become driven, effective and strong but maintain a gentle and calming influence on people in their lives.

Self Neglect and Other-Dismissal
When stressed, Nines become calloused and have trouble feeling much of anything. They utilize substances, food, unessential busy work, or distractions to help them push out anything that could be disruptive or upsetting. Unhealthy Nines become dismissive, obstructive, passive-aggressive, and ineffectual in their interpersonal relationships and begin neglecting others in the same ways they neglect themselves. The repression of their rage has outward effects, and they may be prone to outbursts of anger or emotionality, only to later act as though nothing has happened out of the shame of their extreme reactions.

When Healthy and Balanced
Healthy Nines are both gentle and firm and feel comfortable expressing their needs or opinions, knowing that true friendships or relationships will not disintegrate because of a disagreement. They have a discernible and strong sense of themselves and can be a calming and stabilizing presence to those around them. At their best, Nines are effective mediators because they're able to see all points of view and can acknowledge negative or difficult emotions or situations without going to sleep to avoid being overwhelmed. 

Exemplars: John Goodman, Albert Einstein, Mark Zuckerberg, Beyonce, Serena Williams, Janet Jackson, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Queen Elizabeth II, Jeff Daniels, Mahatma Gandhi, Carl Jung, Woody Harrelson, Josh Hartnett, Julia Child, Biggie Smalls, Sophia Lauren, Audrey Hepburn, Rihanna, Morgan Freeman, Sandra Bullock, Jessica Biel, Jack Johnson, The Weeknd, Tina Turner, Kylie Jenner, Cardi B, Jake Gyllenhaal, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Carrie Underwood, David Beckham, John Legend, Nora Jones, Anna Paquin, Renee Zellweger, Morgan Freeman, Dali Lama, Winnie the Pooh, Khalid, Oscar Ichazo, Alicia Keys, SZA, Peyton Manning, Chris Martin, Ronald Reagan, Jennifer Hudson, Caitlin Jenner, Jhené Aiko, Robert Pattinson, Zoe Kravitz, Toby Maguire, John Wayne, Kevin Spacey, Ina Garten, Gale King, Kate Middleton, Chelsea Clinton, Jeff Bridges, J.R.R. Tolkien