Burnout and the Enneagram

Burn out for Enneagram One

How burnout can happen:

It can be exhausting to constantly focus on errors, mistakes and things that are wrong or untidy – even though your intention is to correct and improve things in some way. It can also put you into a negative, judgmental mindset. If this is you, it’s possible that you’re in the habit of setting impossible standards of excellence which are close to perfection and yet you strive hard to achieve them. All of this requires a lot of serious work and attention to detail. When a strong self-critic is added into the mix, it can create a perfect ‘stress storm’ that could eventually lead to burnout.

Strategies to avoid burnout:

A typical development theme for Enneagram One relates to ‘self-acceptance’. You may be in the habit of focusing too much on mistakes – your own and other people’s – along with things that don’t quite work out the way you intended. Be careful not to be too hard on yourself, or on others. None of us is perfect, so mistakes will happen. The important thing is to learn from them, decide how you’ll do things differently in the future and then move on. Far better to have a ‘learning conversation’ with yourself and others, than a harsh, critical, condemning one.

You might benefit from focusing on principles, values, and guidelines, wherever possible, rather than hard, rigid ‘rules’. Often, there are many ‘correct’ ways of doing things, and increasing your flexibility in this regard could ease your burden to some extent.

Allocating time in your schedule for enjoyable activities may help you to relax and ease any tension you might be feeling. Mindfulness practices and breathing exercises can also help in this regard, as can gentle stretching and spending time in nature.

Take some time to reflect on your real strengths and the contribution you truly make to people and the world around you – this isn’t about being arrogant – it’s about being realistic! Remember to acknowledge others as well, for the great things they do. You might want to consider starting a daily ‘gratitude journal’ where you write down whatever you’re grateful for that day.

Read more about Burnout for Enneagram 2, Enneagram 3, Enneagram 4, Enneagram 5

Learn about the Five Lens Enneagram model