Now more than ever, people want to engage in meaningful and fulfilling work. This post will look at enneagram type 5 careers that will provide a sense of purpose. Below is more than a generic listing of job titles; you’ll find ideas for finding and creating work that you enjoy as an enneagram five.
The purpose of connecting the dots between your enneagram type and a career is NOT to narrow you into a specific field or niche but to help you understand what motivates you as a person and how to connect that with work that you’ll find fulfilling.
The enneagram is useful for discovering your personality type and the core motivations that shape you. It is also useful for helping you find a career path that will be meaningful and fulfilling.
Your career is an opportunity to make a difference, serve others, and find joy in your work. The enneagram career guide is specifically designed to help you understand how your unique personality can intersect with the work you’re passionate about.
Understanding Enneagram Type 5 Personalities And How It Can Impact Their Career
An enneagram five can be private yet have a very active mind. They are observant, like to understand how the world works, and are knowledgeable. An enneagram five can be intense, perceptive secretive, and even innovative.
The nine enneagram numbers are divided into three categories of expression: Action, Feeling, and Thinking. An enneagram five is situated within the thinking center. They are objective thinkers and very perceptive. They are curious about various subjects and can be knowledgeable in various subjects. Because of this, fives typically are hungry for understanding, long to be capable, and will pursue developing new skills.
The core desire of a five is to be competent.
The message a five wants to hear is, “Your capable, but it’s ok to ask for help.”
The gifts of an Enneagram Five include:
- Perceptive: Fives offer objective, in-depth and insightful observations of situations and information. They can hold complex problems and data.
- Curious: Their interests and intellectual ideals enable Fives to explore and build expertise in various fields, topics, and theories.
- Unsentimental: Fives approach life in an unsentimental way and can put emotions aside when needed.
- Self-Sufficient: The independent Five will protect their autonomy and privacy. They prefer to ask little of others and can minimize their own needs.
- Inventive: Fives’ unconventional ideas and depth of knowledge enable them to be inventive, visionary, and pioneering. (Integrative9.com)
Considering these traits, an enneagram five is commonly referred to as the “observer” or “specialist”. Therefore, enneagram type five careers that provide an opportunity to explore ideas, develop new skills, have alone time, and share their insights will allow them to naturally lean into their giftings and personality traits.
If you’re not quite sure which number you are, please check out the post: Four Free And Accurate Enneagram Tests to help you identify your type. If necessary, take a little more time to discover your type and then come back to read more about what careers would be a good fit for you.
Famous Enneagram Type 5’s & Their Career
Below is a list provided by The Enneagram Institute of famous people who could be considered enneagram fives. While they may share similar motivations and characteristics, their careers are various and in a wide range of work.
Famous Enneagram Fives: Siddartha Gautama Buddha, Albert Einstein, Oliver Sacks, John Nash, Stephen Hawking, Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Georgia O’Keeffe, Salvador Dali, Alberto Giacometti, Emily Dickinson, Friedrich Nietzsche, Agatha Christie, James Joyce, Jean-Paul Sartre, Susan Sontag, Stephen King, Ursula K. LeGuin, Clive Barker, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Jane Goodall, A.H. Almaas, Eckhart Tolle, Meredith Monk, Glenn Gould, John Cage, Kurt Cobain, David Byrne, Peter Gabriel, Laurie Anderson, Jane Siberry, Trent Reznor, Thom York, Alfred Hitchcock, Marlene Dietrich, Stanley Kubrick, David Cronenberg, Werner Herzog, Tim Burton, David Lynch, David Fincher, Jodie Foster, Gary Larson, Annie Liebovitz, Bobby Fischer, Julian Assange
Famous Enneagram Type 5 Careers: Philosophy, Physics, Politics, Writer, Philanthropy, Business, Entertainment, Musicians, Actors, Artist
The spectrum of work represented by the list of type fives above varies tremendously. Therefore, concerning enneagram type 5 careers, I believe the best question is, “How can an enneagram five allow their giftings and healthy motivations to influence work they believe is meaningful.
Key Motivations That Should Influence Enneagram Type 5 Careers
How To Motivate An Enneagram Five
Enneagram type 5 careers are motiving if the work is:
- Solving complex, important problems
- Productive and worthwhile
- Pioneering new ideas
- Open to new ways of doing things
- Challenging others toward change
Understanding Why Some Careers May Be Draining To You As An Enneagram 5
When a person experiences stress or fatigue in a job, it is often related to activities that are draining to the individual. While there are almost always some aspects of work that a person will favor less than others, it is important to identify which parts of your job are energizing and which parts are draining.
Because an enneagram five is motivated by a desire to be competent and thorough, if they are doing work that they feel causes them to compromise this core longing, it will not be fulfilling to them.
How To Demotivate An Enneagram Five
Enneagram type 5 careers are uninspiring if:
- They feel misunderstood
- They believe it is insignificant
- Their ideas are ignored
- It lacks time for privacy and processing thoughts
- There is no room for new ideas
If you are enneagram five, assess your current role and look for opportunities you may be overlooking to use your unique giftings and talents. If you still are unsure or feel stuck, try the following two suggestions.
How much is a frustrating work environment costing you? Could your life be more fulfilling if you had a clear path toward meaningful work?
Are you wasting time and stress because you’re unsure what to do next? A confusing, tired, boring career may already cost you a great deal.
The Enneagram Career Guide is an interactive workbook that uses the lens of the enneagram to help you create alignment between your motivations and the work you do.
Two Ways To Address Your Career If You Unhappy As An Enneagram 5
- Consider if there is room in your current work to fulfill some of the motivations listed above. If not, speak to your employer about how you might be able to help in those areas.
- Consider if you are engaged in a field of work that you believe is important and meaningful. If not, begin a journey of identifying career paths that you will believe will be fulfilling.
If you believe it is time to make a change, use the Enneagram Career Guide For Type Five to help navigate toward meaningful work.
The Enneagram Career Guide will help you:
- Become aware of thoughts that are limiting you and replace them.
- Identify what motivates you.
- Consider if your current work is meaningful to you and helpful to others.
- Use The new information about yourself to enhance your career.
What Is Included In The Career Guide?
- 35-page downloadable workbook
- Explanation of type
- Key motivations of type
- Demotivators of type
- Evaluation of current career path
- Connecting your key motivations with career options
- Next steps
FAQs About The Enneagram Type 5 Career Guide
Will you mail me a physical copy of the Career Guide?
The Career Guide is delivered by email as a PDF file. It is yours to keep and use as often as needed.
What is your refund policy?
Because our products are digital goods delivered via Internet download, refund requests made after you have downloaded our product are handled on a case by case basis and are issued at our sole discretion. Refund requests, if any, must be made within ten (10) days of your original purchase.
Do you have career guides available for other types?
Yes, you can view all available career guides by clicking HERE.
How do I pay for the career guide?
After you select the guides using the purchase button, select checkout. You will then be taken to the checkout page. On the checkout page, you can choose your payment method. Enter your information and finalize by selecting the purchase button.
Healthy Enneagram Type 5 Careers Conclusion
Healthy Enneagram Type 5 Careers should not be limited to a specific field or title. A career choice for an enneagram five should be based on their freedom to inspire by sharing new ideas and concepts. Fives thrive in an environment where their need for space is understood and they can drive positive change by solving complex problems.
To emphasize one last time, I chose not to include a specific list of enneagram type 5 careers to consider because I believe it is limiting. As an enneagram 5 myself, I have spent most of my career in a field that others have categorized as something I would not enjoy. Also, I often find career suggestions for my enneagram type unappealing.
To Summarize:
- Identify what motivates you
- Assess if there is room in your current job to capitalize on your key motivations and giftings
- Evaluate if you are in a field that you believe is important
- Consider if the work you are doing is meaningful to you and helpful to others
I hope this post helps you find enneagram type 5 careers and options that you’ll enjoy and serve others well in.
Connecting your passion with the work you enjoy should not be so difficult.
Download the guide specifically created to help direct enneagram type 5 careers! Create a clear path toward work you love, which is helpful to others too!
The Goal of the Enneagram Career Guide is to help you:
1. Become aware of thoughts that are limiting you and replace them.
2. Identify what motivates you.
3. Consider if your work is meaningful to you and helpful to others.
4. Use the new information about yourself to enhance your career.
Too often, we use the wrong lens when examining Enneagram Type 5 careers and opportunities.
We say things like:
“I’m stuck here,”
“It’s too late to change,”
“I blew it (I’m a loser).”
“There are no opportunities out there for me.”
“I don’t need to network.”
“I can’t risk losing the money I make now.”
“I’ll be doing this forever.”
These are all limiting thoughts and do not have to be true for your life.
You can change, overcome, learn new skills, adjust, and create alignment.
You can connect the dots between your giftings and your career.
Using the guide to help you align your passion with your work is a worthwhile endeavor and know that I am cheering for you.
