What is an Enneagram Type 8 (The Protector)? People with an Enneagram Type 8 personality tend to be self-confident, powerful, and assertive in their behavior. They love engaging in debates and are skilled at making difficult decisions. They are fiercely independent and dislike being reliant on others.
How Rare are Enneagram 8s? In a Truity study of more than 54,000 respondents, Type Eights were found to make up approximately 15% of the population. Eight is a much more common type among men, representing only 12% of women compared to 18% of men.
ENTJ, ESTJ.
Like Threes, the Enneagram 8 is characterized by a strong masculine essence, suggesting that Eights are more likely to be Thinking (T) types.
When caught in their unhealthy pattern, Eights can be overpowering and insensitive to others and aggressive about taking what they impulsively desire. They ignore the impact of their bullying behavior on others even as they deny their own vulnerability.
8's are rare in this world, and evolution-wise, that's probably a smart thing. A small number is essential, and too many would be problematic. 8's are strong and generally crave power within whatever setting they live in.
The Enneagram Eight – Injustice
These types are not afraid of confrontation, and they typically have no problem raising their voices – especially in defense of others. Eights are most angered by injustice or oppression. They despise people who oppress underdogs or manipulate others for their own means.
Negative Traits of Type 8
Confrontational, insensitive, manipulative, controlling, possessive, intimidating, rebellious.
So, what type is the Enneagram Eight the most compatible with? The truth is that any type can be compatible with an Eight — as long as both partners are devoted to deeply caring, understanding and working toward shared goals together.
Sixes and Eights are aggressive, although only the Eight is an entirely aggressive personality. Sixes react both to their fears and to other people and constantly oscillate from one state to another, from Level to Level. They are ambivalent and passive-aggressive, evasive, and contradictory.
Eights need someone who can keep them on their toes because they enjoy a challenge and they are often intelligent, so a strong mental connection is important to people of this type. Enneagram Eights may try to run the show in their relationships, and they can have a hard time admitting when they're wrong.
Which Enneagram type is Elon Musk? Elon Musk is an Enneagram Five personality type with a Six wing. Enneagram Fives belong to the head centre, along with Sixes and Sevens, and they naturally make decisions based on analysis.
You're driven and ambitious
A key trait of every Enneagram 8 female is goal-setting. You set targets for yourself and you work hard to reach them. Both at work and at home, you believe in making your own luck. No one else is going to give it to you, you have to go out and get it!
Emotions like sadness and fear make Eights feel vulnerable and weak. As they want to avoid feeling or showing weakness, Eights use denial as a defence mechanism to help not show weakness to others. Some Eights are aware of when these feelings are occurring, but will very rarely choose to show these feelings to others.
Famous Type Eight leaders include: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Oscar Schindler, Martin Luther King, Jr., Barbara Walters, Ernest Hemingway, Aretha Franklin, and Susan Sarandon. Enneagram Type Eights are charismatic individuals who lead through strength, stability, and control.
When healthy, type eights are caring, positive, playful, truthful, straightforward, generous, and supportive. Eights excel at taking the initiative and want to be in charge to be free to choose the course of action they feel is right.
The Enneagram Eight Dark Side:
They provoke and confront people, believing that people are out to manipulate or control them. Because of their harsh, ruthless nature, they tend to gather enemies wherever they go. They believe it's a dog-eat-dog world, and they want to be the top dog who doesn't depend on anyone.
Enneagram 8—What happens? Of all numbers, 8s are usually the most outwardly angry and/or aggressive when they've been hurt. Betrayal is a core fear, so trauma cuts deep. Black and white thinking may be more obvious, and the desire to cut people off is strong.
At their best, Eights exercise their gift of leadership in a benevolent and magnanimous manner. They display extraordinary courage, protecting all those around them who need their help, and do so in a way that is encouraging rather than dictatorial; others trust them and want them to lead.
Eights are self-confident, strong, and assertive. Protective, resourceful, straight-talking, and decisive, but can also be ego-centric and domineering. Eights feel they must control their environment, especially people, sometimes becoming confrontational and intimidating.
Type 8: Sex is about big energy and feeling in control.
They have a lust for life, and when you do too, this makes them feel alive.
Type 8s when dealing with sadness
Type 8s deal with sadness through denial so as to appear strong and invulnerable to the people around them. This also helps 8s to project the 'confidence' that they can take on any challenge by denying that they possess any vulnerability, such as sadness.
According to this table, Enneagrams type 2, 8 and 5 are the least usual within the population. Enneagrams 2 only form the 8.5% of the population, enneagrams 8 take the 6.3% of it and enneagram type 5 only form the 4.8% of the population, which makes them the rarest enneagram type of all.
They tend to be more controlling and domineering when they feel vulnerable, and trust issues are quite common in their relationships.
Type 8: The Protective Challenger
Type Eights present themselves as assertive, strong and independent, but their rough exteriors are disguising their Core Fear of being weak, powerless, underestimated, humiliated, vulnerable, or at the mercy of injustice.