This article will highlight how an enneagram type 2 can improve their own self and how. It will also provide a brief introduction to this enneagram type and point out why it is necessary that they work on their personal growth!
How Can An Enneagram Type 2 Self Improve?
An enneagram type 2 can self improve by working on the following:
- Understand your own needs
- Learn to accept help from others
- Analyze their thoughts and feelings
- Your value is more than you think
- Give others space
Now before we look at each area of self improvement for this enneagram type, we will take a brief look at who an enneagram type 2 is, what defines them and why it is necessary for them to work towards self improvement!
Who Is An Enneagram Type 2?
An enneagram type 2 is also known as the Helper because of their desire to help others and make their tasks easier or remove any burden upon them. They are very caring and have great interpersonal skills that allows them to interact with people to help them and understand their situation and needs. Personality traits used to describe type 2s include possessive, demonstrative, helpful and people pleasing.
People with this type are very empathetic and have profound emotional intelligence thus it makes them more approachable and appealing to people who are in need of help and find it difficult to ask. They are friendly, generous and self sacrificing hence they overlook their own needs to fulfill those of others!
However, such closeness with others results in feelings of possessiveness. Also, they force their own self to forgo their feelings and need to make sure they are available to others for help; this may seem pretty good in the short term but they will end up pretty frustrated in the long run and their feelings may erupt like a huge volcano does!
Basic Fear.
Type enneagrams are scared they will be left alone and unloved. They want to belong somewhere especially in someone’s heart. They feel that the only way they can do this is to feel worthy. How do they feel worthy? Well they have this innate core belief that they must be helpful in some way to another person – they must be able to help them get work done, provide the resources they need or be there for them in their difficult times.
This is why such people are often in the pursuit of trying to get close to others to find out how they can be of use to them! They will sometimes be too nosy and may become a source of irritability for others as they wonder why they are always around them!
If you’re facing this, it may be a good idea to seek the help of a therapist or other mental health professional. You can find a therapist at BetterHelp who can help you learn how to cope and address it.
Basic Desire.
The desire of enneagram type 2s stems from their fear that they will be left alone and unloved. Also, they feel they will be worthless not only in their own eyes but those of others too. Hence they want to be able to be in a position that they can help other people and they will strive persistently to do so. They want to be recognized and appreciated for the help they provide and also be loved in return. This is the basic desire of enneagram type 2s that drives them to work hard to become close to others – a bit too close sometimes!
The Evil Side Of Type 2 Enneagrams.
How can someone so loving and caring be so scary and evil? Don’t underestimate type 2 enneagrams – they also have a dark side.
Enneagrams store up a lot of fuel. They are very focused on the needs of others to the extent that they will persistently sideline their own needs! Not only will this create much frustration in them but it will also lead them to feel they are entitled to what others have, especially their time and focus.
They will be clouded by their negative thoughts due to the fact that they deem it right to justify how they feel in terms of being used by others and not appreciated – this will further fuel any negativity they have and they can become violent and aggressive and impulsive.
Such people become manipulative and self serving by reminding others how they helped them in their times of need and hence owe them a lot. The type 2 enneagram becomes very toxic not only for others but their own being. They feed themselves into self pity and victimization even though it is usually themselves who land into such a situation without the other asking for it!
How Can Type 2 Enneagrams Promote Self Improvement?
Understand Your Needs.
It is very important for enneagram type 2s to not only recognize their own needs but fulfill them too. Our body has certain rights over us that we must tend to whether they are related to hunger, thirst, sex, rest or exercise. We must strive to fulfill these needs in the right way to ensure our physical and mental health remains ideal. Oftentimes type 2 enneagrams overlook their own needs and this causes them to deteriorate slowly in both spheres.
The type 2 enneagram must accept the needs that arise in their daily life whenever they do. If they are working and they feel hungry they should take a break and ensure they take care of themself. This will not only allow them to feel comfortable but it will satisfy them mentally – they will feel happy they treat themself well. Such an act will push them to expect more from themselves and not others.
Learn To Accept Help Help From Others.
Sometimes the type 2 enneagram needs to realize that others also have the resources to help them. They are not the only one who seem to have the ability to help others. This thought process will instill a sense of humility and appreciation for others. Furthermore, accepting this reality will allow type 2s to take help from others and they will be able to experience how it feels like to be able to allow others to grow by helping. This in its way is therapeutic!
Analyze Your Thoughts & Feelings.
The type 2 enneagram must be honest to himself! Is he helping the other person because they really need help or because he is looking for a way to feel good about himself and find an opportunity to be in a position of higher status? Helping others indeed makes one feel good about their own self but that should not be the purpose.
Yes it is inevitable that by helping others you will grow mentally, physically and emotionally as well as spiritually but if the intention is to feel good about your own self in an arrogant way then this can actually backfire.
For practice, if an enneagram type 2 feels they are helping someone for a selfish cause they should step back and try to help someone who won’t benefit them in any way. They can take part in charity where no one knows how much they donated and to whom. This will inculcate the spirit of helping for the sake of helping.
Your Value Is More Than You Think!
The type 2 enneagram should not measure their worth on how helpful they are to others. There are many other ways they can see their worth for example the little things they do to improve their own self, the efforts they make to think healthy and eat healthy and how they are improving their skills to eventually contribute to the world. Yes we have the responsibility of contributing to the society we live in but everything happens through a process, step by step and not always simultaneously or in the manner we want!
Give Others Space.
Don’t go looking for people who need help! Even though that is a good thing there needs to be a balance especially for type 2 enneagrams in the habit! Also, give others space. Let them open up when they want to and ensure you are not too nosy! If they need your help they will let you catch on or simply ask.
Conclusion.
This article dived into the topic of how and why type 2 enneagrams need to promote self improvement! It touched upon their general personality, their basic fears and desires as well as how they behave when their bad side is most obvious.
Frequently Asked Questions: Self Improvement In Type 2 Enneagram
Why does enneagram type 2 go into stress?
The type 2 enneagram may go into stress because they feel they are worthless and this feeling may arise because they do not get the chance to help others.
What is the type 2 enneagram known as?
The type 2 enneagram is known as ‘The Helper’.
What is the basic fear of type 2 enneagram?
The basic fear of type 2 enneagram is being unloved and considered of no use by others.
References.
https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/type-2
https://www.crystalknows.com/enneagram/type-2