This article will help the audience to understand what an enneagram type 5w4 is by commenting on it’s basic fear and desire, major personality traits and finally its strengths and weaknesses.
After you enjoy the post below, take a look at ”5 Enneagram 5w4 Anime Characters” too.
What Is An Enneagram Type 5w4?
The enneagram type 5w4 is a combination of mostly dominant personality traits from the type 5 and some traits from type 4 as well. These individuals are known as ‘Philosophers’ too and do not have a problem challenging the status quo especially when it comes to their logic and how they make sense out of the world.
These individuals tend to keep their distance hence they may be considered isolated; in this time they like to remain inside their thoughts and are very perceptive. Innovative is one of the traits that describes type 5w4 enneagrams and they use this ability to determine new ways of looking at how things operate.
They are obsessed with knowledge and they want to figure out how to understand the world especially nowadays when there are so many lines of thought. It is possible they want to possess more and more knowledge so that they can use it to strengthen their own fortress.
What Is The Personality Of Enneagram type 5w4?
Let us take a look at what drives this enneagram and what, at the same time, holds it back from growing to its full potential!
The Basic Fear Of Philosophers.
The fear that eats up these thinkers from the inside is that of being incompetent. They do not want to be useless to their own self or the world. They fear that they will not be able to gain enough knowledge or learn enough skills to be someone who is considered competent in their field.
Type 5w4 enneagrams are scared that they will get left behind and while others are working hard in their fields, contributing to the world and to it’s progress, these individuals will not be able to achieve that level of success or provide that contribution. They will not be known for their specialized skill or area of expertise like others nor will they be appreciated for what knowledge they have created.
This fear is also accompanied by the fear that if they are not competent, they may feel helpless at one stage in life where they cannot do anything for themself or other people. They want to feel empowered and useful and thus be in a position to help others. However, before that they must at least be able to help their own self!
The Basic Desire Of Philosophers – Resource For Thinking?
What is the basic desire of these thinkers? Is it more knowledge? Not really although that also comes in at some point. The basic desire of these philosophers is to be competent and useful. They want to be able to prove themselves somewhere in life. Be named when a certain field is mentioned due to their research or work in it. They want to be useful so that they can actually be of use to the world they live in!
Their basic desire can be achieved through knowledge and that is how they compensate for their fears that we previously discussed. They want to be competent and they feel one of the ways they can achieve that is to overload themself with much knowledge.
Also, they do not let the opportunity of learning new skills go! With the popularity of a certain field rising and their chance of being able to gain some place in it or be a source of knowledge or inspiration for others, they will definitely try to learn something related to it.
What Are The Major Personality Traits Of Type 5w4 Enneagrams?
- Curious
- Introverted
- Enthusiastic Learners
- Guarded
- Focused
Curious
Yes these individuals have that pinching urge that just makes them want to know what is going on. They have the virus of curiosity. They will be dying to learn new things or find out the reason behind a certain phenomena.
Curiosity is what helps them learn which is one of the things that overcomes their fear of being incompetent. They will be motivated by this innate feeling to discover the reasons behind what is going on in their external environment and what are its implications. Sometimes this virus even pushes them to want to know more about the people around them – at least sometimes.
The effects of curiosity on their behaviour are interesting. Once they learn about a new topic they will go all at it! They will try to find out more about it through different sources of knowledge until their thirst is clenched. They will skim through books, talk to people if they have to and surf the internet. Once they are satisfied only then will they be at peace.
Introverts.
Most of these types are introverted because they prefer to go over things in their mind rather than discussing them with a group of people in a brainstorming session. This is probably because of their internal strengths; their minds have strong analytical capabilities that allow them to determine the best solution or identify problems others may not see.
They are more productive when they are working alone and not distracted by others. They can come up with better ideas when they sit alone and reflect on their work or the problems they face.
Introversion is a trait that enables people the time and focus they need to think deeply over things. The type 5w4 requires that because not only do they like to figure out the rationale in something or the logic behind a certain behavior but they want to twist and turn it over in their mind; they want to study it from every angle and see what creative insights they can get out of it. They do not just want to think in an ordinary way – after all they want to be uniquely useful!
Enthusiastic Learners.
Yes these types make great learners and they will be the brightest student of class although a bit quiet may be. They will not let their other traits stop them from questioning anything they find confusing, interacting with others to gain more knowledge or expressing their views. Yes philosophers don’t have an issue with expressing their views even if they are termed ‘iconoclastic’. They believe the world should be understood through logic and rationale rather than largely held beliefs.
Guarded.
These enneagram types can seem somewhat guarded; they are not scared of sharing what they have with people because of the clashing views but they have developed a habit. They are so used to working independently, taking in knowledge and collecting whatever skills they can that they forget to interact enough with people to develop social skills. This makes them end up lacking in this area and hence out of habit and due to lack of skills they prefer to stay in their own realm.
Focused.
The enneagram type 5w4 has the ability and strength of being able to focus. They can prevent other elements in their life or environment from distracting them from their main purpose. They will shut out anything that is disturbing them so that their growing process is not disturbed.
The Strengths & Weaknesses Of A Philosopher!
Here are some things the type 5w4 is known for:
- Work Well Independently
- Pay Attention To Detail
- Creative Thinking & Expression
- Struggle To Be Practical
Work Well Independently
They are not team players but they can work pretty well in isolation – in fact they can be more productive when working alone because they have more time and space to think over matters and figure out what is wrong or provide a great solution.
Pay Attention To Detail.
Due to their focus, appreciation of any type of learning and the desire to grow, these individuals are able to pay attention to the samm things; not only do they enthusiastically understand the intricacies of systems but in their environment they can pick out the small things people miss.
Creative Thinking & Expression.
Not only do they think creatively but the philosopher can creatively express what is going on in their minds!
Struggle To Be Practical!
All that time they spend up in their mind may make them a bit redundant when it comes to the practical world. They learn their knowledge mostly through quiet study and hence do not incorporate the human element into their world of thoughts. They forget that it is not easy working with people; it slows down work too much and even stops it.
Conclusion.
The article developed an understanding of the type 5w4 enneagram for this audience by discussing it’s basic fear and desire. It also commented on its major personality traits in detail and highlighted what strengths and weaknesses the enneagram type has!
Frequently Asked Questions: Enneagram Type 5w4: The Philosopher.
What is meant by 5w4?
It is an enneagram type that consists mostly of traits from enneagram type 5 but also some traits from the type 4.
Why does an enneagram type 5w4 go into stress?
Type 5w4 goes into stress because they might suffer failure or feel extreme competence.
Who should an enneagram type 5w4 marry?
The type 5w4 should marry someone who understands their desire to be competent and gives them the space they need.
References.
