• You are currently viewing our forum as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community, you will have access to additional post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), view blogs, respond to polls, upload content, and access many other special features. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free, so please join our community today! Just click here to register. You should turn your Ad Blocker off for this site or certain features may not work properly. If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us by clicking here.

Competency types tend to hate reactive types

Julius_Van_Der_Beak

Two-Headed Boy
Joined
Jul 24, 2008
Messages
19,602
MBTI Type
INTP
Enneagram
5w6
Instinctual Variant
sp/so
You're aware that 7 is a core competency type, right?

OP says that they are not core-competency, nor core reactive, but positive outlook. I'm not too familiar with this at any rate, so I'm just going by what the OP said. I see nothing in the link referring to these categories, by the way.

And I meant that it probably does describe the personality better than an 8. I can also see how that would be "positive outlook."
 

rav3n

.
Joined
Aug 6, 2010
Messages
11,655
OP says that they are not core-competency, nor core reactive, but positive outlook. I'm not too familiar with this at any rate, so I'm just going by what the OP said. I see nothing in the link referring to these categories, by the way.

And I meant that it probably does describe the personality better than an 8. I can also see how that would be "positive outlook."
You're right. For some reason I linked the core competency aspect to head types of 5, 6, 7 and core reactive types to gut types of 8, 9 and 1. My error.
 

chickpea

perfect person
Joined
Sep 12, 2009
Messages
5,729
MBTI Type
INFP
Enneagram
4w5
Instinctual Variant
sp/sx
I don't relate to the OP's description of how 4s are supposed to act. Most of my reactivity is internal, and is only shared with people I feel very comfortable with. I very rarely have emotional outbursts in public. That's a common misconception about 4s, especially 4w5s.
 

PimpinMcBoltage

New member
Joined
Nov 24, 2012
Messages
155
Enneagram
8
I think the reactivity is mostly a constant internal state of the need to be hyper aware of the nature of things around you, and the general mentality that you will never be secure unless you are aware of them. The reaction mostly comes from the general focus to preemptively rid yourself of such an issue in the first place. It is more of a mentality, and as such most things probably don't really warrant such an a thing. It sounds like you are describing a particularly manic 6.

I'm sorry if it's vague, I'm trying to figure out the real issue behind the reactive type, but I get all sorts of ways it could apply to other types to.

Besides I'm probably more reactive in that way than most 8/4's at least. I can be pretty explosively mean, with a quick temper and a great deal of frustration when I'm getting bullshit.
 

SD45T-2

Senior Jr.
Joined
Feb 18, 2012
Messages
4,235
MBTI Type
ESTJ
Enneagram
1w2
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
I dislike dealing with reactive types at work, I think. They don't understand that being aggressive or demanding is often counterproductive way to resolve these kinds of problems. It lowers my respect for someone, and does not increase it. And being demanding and just talking anxiously and not listening to what I am saying does not help communication, which is frequently a contributor to further problems down the line.

 

Elfboy

Certified Sausage Smoker
Joined
Nov 26, 2008
Messages
9,625
MBTI Type
ENFP
Enneagram
5w4
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
it's probably the 1 fix, but yeah, I look down on reactive types, at least ones who have poor self control, explode on people or resort to constant testing.

Positive outlook types, though...to be perfectly honest, I do tend to find *some* representatives of this triad can't face reality, which I personally tend to look down on. I know the feeling has been mutual. I know that's not the question, but I kind of wonder if we tend to look down on others who manage conflicts differently (not just competency vs reactive types)?
guilty as charged, and it makes perfect sense you would look down on it (I'm frustrated by it myself).
 

Elfboy

Certified Sausage Smoker
Joined
Nov 26, 2008
Messages
9,625
MBTI Type
ENFP
Enneagram
5w4
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
You're aware that 7 is a core competency type, right?

no. it isn't.

competency: 1, 3, 5
reactive: 4, 6, 8
positive outlook: 2, 7, 9
 

miss fortune

not to be trusted
Joined
Oct 4, 2007
Messages
20,589
Enneagram
827
Instinctual Variant
sp/so
I never scream at people... it doesn't work and it undermines all of the other work that I do, so there's no point to it really :shrug:

I WILL rant to my supervisors about shit that needs to be fixed, but I don't do that unless I have a solution ready that will fix the situation. Yeah, I'll get mad and I may speak very quickly and use a lot of hand gestures, but it's because I'm displeased with someone else's incompetence and want the permission to fix the situation or the equipment that I need to do so. One of my supervisors is a competence type (type 1) and has told me several times that he appreciates my honesty and willingness to tackle sticky problems and that I DO care about fixing them. He's shown enough trust to give me quite a bit of power over the organization and planning of the area I work in most frequently even though people several pay grades up usually make those decisions. :shrug:

Not to mention that I was raised by a 1 and a 5, both competency types, and they still seem to love me AND like me as well :)

So no, no hatred felt. Anger is more like a hammer anyways... if you know how to swing it properly and when to do so it can make a wonderful difference :yes:
 

Chad of the OttomanEmpire

Give me a fourth dot.
Joined
Jun 9, 2013
Messages
1,053
MBTI Type
NeTi
Enneagram
478
Instinctual Variant
sx/so
None of these types operate in a vacuum, as a 'pure' reactive type or a 'pure' competency type.
I think this is right. I'm pretty much as "purely" reactive as they come, and I honestly didn't think I was "reactive enough" to be triple reactive (meaning I'm not generally a hyperreactive maniac as my tritype seems to get portrayed). There are mitigating circumstances for each type, and we've all got access to each triad--positive, competency, and reactive.

Also if I'm being really reactive....I don't have time to sit there and think "I'm gonna test this person." I don't think I test people unless I'm unconscious of the fact that I do. I think I need examples.
I've heard a lot of 6s say the same thing! And, as a co-reactive type, I kind of agree. The times I've "tested" people, it wasn't a conscious policy of choice. It just happens instinctively and you get sulky if someone doesn't pass the "test" that you subconsciously put out (or I do).

4's don't even seem reactive to me. Any 4 I know...just gets overwhelmed and I leave the alone. Then they're fine. I can't see a 4 doing those things.:huh:
Fours are a reactive type, but a withdrawn type as well. A lot of them report that it goes on inside.

I personally can get weird on folks, but it tends to happen through my sx-first instinct--meaning you don't see it unless you get close to me and do something to trigger the responses. I've been pretty sane in most realms, however.

I dislike dealing with reactive types at work, I think. They don't understand that being aggressive or demanding is often counterproductive way to resolve these kinds of problems. It lowers my respect for someone, and does not increase it. And being demanding and just talking anxiously and not listening to what I am saying does not help communication, which is frequently a contributor to further problems down the line.
You must work with some crappy reactive types! I'm inclined to agree with everything you just said--I am usually able to keep my shit together at work unless something major happens (work generally being uneventful, I'm not certain I've ever had this experience). Usually, I'm the one to calm others down, actually. I'm more like a competency type at work--again, none of us exist in a triadal vacuum.

I don't relate to the OP's description of how 4s are supposed to act. Most of my reactivity is internal, and is only shared with people I feel very comfortable with. I very rarely have emotional outbursts in public. That's a common misconception about 4s, especially 4w5s.
A lot of 4s say this, and I don't particularly relate to the OP's wording, myself. I think he's just being dramatic with it. Unlike many 4w5s, I actually HAVE had mega-embarrassing public outbursts of rage (never at work). Yet there are still times when I have the "freeze" response and I actually wish I could be MORE reactive. So, it's a mixed bag.

Anyway, in enneagram terms, "reactive" doesn't necessarily mean getting torqued out. It means having some sort of emotional response (and this might be largely internal for any of the types) to a perceived problem and wanting others to get as excited as you are about it. Reactive types can consequently push for responses, but this doesn't necessarily mean getting "in your face" about it. There are many ways to get a response from someone, and having a big emotional outburst is only ONE way.

it's probably the 1 fix, but yeah, I look down on reactive types, at least ones who have poor self control, explode on people or resort to constant testing.

guilty as charged, and it makes perfect sense you would look down on it (I'm frustrated by it myself).
LOL. And I've been known to laugh at people who torque out publicly and have been frustrated by my occasional bad temper myself.
 

Elfboy

Certified Sausage Smoker
Joined
Nov 26, 2008
Messages
9,625
MBTI Type
ENFP
Enneagram
5w4
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I don't relate to the OP's description of how 4s are supposed to act. Most of my reactivity is internal, and is only shared with people I feel very comfortable with. I very rarely have emotional outbursts in public. That's a common misconception about 4s, especially 4w5s.

imo, 2s are far more externally reactive than 4s. the less mature (or disintegrated) 2s will often resort to all manner of emotional antics and sensational outbursts in order to manipulate.

4 reactiveness is more of an internal "you don't know me! how dare you judge me!" disintegrated 4s can become more histrionic and drama queen-y like 2s, but these tendencies are less prevalent in the average levels than they are for 2s.
 
B

brainheart

Guest
imo, 2s are far more externally reactive than 4s. the less mature (or disintegrated) 2s will often resort to all manner of emotional antics and sensational outbursts in order to manipulate.

4 reactiveness is more of an internal "you don't know me! how dare you judge me!" disintegrated 4s can become more histrionic and drama queen-y like 2s, but these tendencies are less prevalent in the average levels than they are for 2s.

Yes. It takes some serious disintegration for me to get externally reactive, and I feel like a different person. My external reactivity has a definite two-ish feel to it. I get oddly manipulative and duplicitous and take on a sort of femme fatale quality. I'll do things for people or shower them with gifts and then get irritated by their lack of appreciation and lay on the guilt trips. I get really needy and dependent on the love of others. It's disturbing, because it's a total 180 from the usual me.
 

Azure Flame

Permabanned
Joined
Aug 26, 2010
Messages
2,317
MBTI Type
ESTP
Enneagram
8w7
I think the only thing "reactive" about reactive types is that they want a reaction out of others to test authenticity and honesty. In my experience, 4's and 8's both test to see if you can handle their intensity by acting crazy, while 6's seem to test your certainty and stability by being... testy, like promising things then revoking them, and making you think they're on your side one second, then flipping on you the next (I want to pull my hair out when this happens. I promise myself I will punch the next 6 in the face who does this, but its just too unexpected for me to react in time).

I will immediately drop anyone who pisses me off once.

But then again I feel like every personality does in some way or another.

Reactivity in the sense of getting in the last word is just insecurity and power play at work, which seems to be a universal trait of extroversion and thinking your personal power is threatened.
 

Such Irony

Honor Thy Inferior
Joined
Jul 23, 2010
Messages
5,059
MBTI Type
INtp
Enneagram
5w6
Instinctual Variant
sp/so
I don't hate reactive types but sometimes I'm bewildered by them. In my mind they seem to overreact to something insignificant in the overall scheme of things. I'm not sure how to respond to their overreaction. I try to reason with them and it seems to make things worse.
 
Top