Type Five: The Observer
The primary motivation for a type Five is to think, think, and think again! Highly intellectual, methodical in their thought patterns, and very private, type Fives are most comfortable staying in their heads. Fives are intensely interested in not only explaining the world, but in predicting what it will do next- which makes them fantastic scientists, engineers, and professors.
In the levels of development that are part of the Enneatype system, an integrated (healthy) type Five uses their brilliance in a way that allows all aspects of their lives to thrive – social, emotional, and intellectual. An integrated Five moves toward type Eight and uses their well distributed knowledge to lead themselves and sometimes mankind as a whole forward.
At the average level, type Fives allow their intense inner life and need for privacy to result in social isolation. An average Five can create a very lonely existence by seeking only the company of their own mind for companionship. Their sharp intellect can lead to a sense of cynicism that heightens their senses, but also puts others off.
Under stress, when an average type Five starts to disintegrate, they move in the direction of an average type Seven and become scattered and unpredictable. They attempt to stave off their mental anguish by becoming irresponsible and spontaneous in a way that can be self destructive.
Famous Type Fives: William Rhenquist, Stephen Hawking, Helen Keller, Wittgenstein, Arthur Sigmund Freud, Nikola Tesla Charles Darwin, Frederich Nietzsche, David Lynch, Isaac Newton