To learn more about this series, as well as how the survey was conducted, please read this post.

 Type Eight

 Commonly known as The Asserter, The Challenger, The Protector, The Leader

The Need to Be Against

Basic Fear: Of being harmed or controlled by others

Basic Desire: To protect themselves (to be in control of their own life and destiny)

Key Motivations: Want to be self-reliant, to prove their strength and resist weakness, to be important in their world, to dominate the environment, and to stay in control of their situation.

Eights want to be self-reliant and strong. They hate feeling weak or dependent and avoid it at all costs. They are self-confident, resourceful, and assertive. They like to test boundaries and often believe rules were made to be broken. They are passionate about justice and truth. Eights are able to use their strengths to improve others' lives. They can be heroic, empowering, and inspiring. Straight-talking and decisive, they can also be egocentric and domineering. Because of their need to control their environment, especially people, they can become confrontational and intimidating. They can have difficulty admitting mistakes. Eights typically have problems with their tempers and with allowing themselves to be vulnerable.

At their best: direct, authoritative, loyal, energetic, confident, protective, self-confident

At their worst: controlling, rebellious, insensitive, domineering, self-centered, skeptical, aggressive

Read this profile for a complete description of Type Eight.

Type Eight Bloggers*^

Jes Kast-Keat, Dianna Anderson, Margaret Felice, Krista Dalton, Kamille Scellick, Christena Cleveland, The Blah Blah Blahger, Suzannah Paul

*these are bloggers who identify as type eight; it does not indicate they have participated in the Enneagram and Blogging survey

^Most analysis of Eights centers on their love of pushback and sticking it to the man; most of the responses from survey participants aligned with this view. However, there's much diversity within this type, according to their more dominant wing. Though I tried to accommodate for some of this, 8w9s might not relate as well to profile.

Typical Topics:

• Justice

• Feminism

• Intersection of faith and culture

• Faith and spirituality

• Church and theology

• Relationships (parenting, marriage, friendship, dating, etc.)

• Identity

• General life

• Fashion

• Ethics

• Food and hospitality

• Reconciliation

• Media and cultural criticism

• Books

Why did you start blogging?

While reasons for starting a blog ranged from building a platform to sharing stories with family, many Type Eights reported starting their blog because they:

• felt compelled to write- blogging gives them an outlet and pushes them to create content

• noticed people positively responded to their critiques of culture/media/the church

• enjoyed the process of written storytelling

Respondents had mixed reactions about blogging. For some, it's been a valuable outlet, allowing them to express themselves and explore new content. It may have opened up the door toward publishing or channeled their activism toward positive change. However, some respondents question whether blogging is the best medium for justice and reconciliation work. The posts closest to their heart and work may not get much blog traffic, which makes them wonder whether their time would be better spent elsewhere.

Do you have any goals related to blogging?

Besides building a platform or working toward publication, Eights want to help those who are marginalized. They love to use their voice and power on behalf of those who are weak and marginalized; they view their blogs as a tool to empower, open eyes, and raise awareness. They want to be truth-tellers in any number of contexts and also be true to themselves. They want their work to challenge and inspire. They want to help people ask difficult questions.

They want to build up the community around them, as it is, not as it may be ideally. Those who are Christian reported wanting to expand the Kingdom of God. Some Eights reported wanting to use their blogs as launching pad toward other opportunities, including monetizing their sites, speaking, teaching classes, and writing ebooks or books.

What do you like about blogging?

• Immediacy

• Discussions with readers- learning from and sharing with them

• Provides space to work out their views in a public, extroverted way

• Attention

• People seeking their opinion and listening to what they have to say

• Ability to advocate for others

• Creative outlet

• Intellectual engagement

• Allows them to hone their craft as writers, especially in learning how to effectively spark conversation

• Helping people think about situations/positions/beliefs from another angle

• Encouraging others

• Friendships/community but...

• Eights also want to empower readers to spend less time on their blogs and more time actively engaged in their real life communities

• Breaking down stereotypes and getting to the core of the matter

What do you not like about blogging?

Respondents didn't like how sensitive people can be and reported some people take blog posts too seriously, as it's a short-form medium, not a dissertation. They don't like when readers misinterpret their words or misunderstand their hearts.  The discipline of critique can be demonized within the blog world, to which Eights take offense. Eights love what Richard Rohr calls "confrontational intimacy." Eights push back as a way of making contact but they don't always understand that their delight in verbal sparring may be received as aggressive, mean, or below the belt. They want to advocate for others but may step on others or be closed off to other arguments in their quest to do so.

Because Eights want to prove their strength and not be controlled by others, they might have a hard time identifying their brand. They don't want to be boxed in, even by themselves. They don't like the inherent social ladder or the middle school dramas that seem to accompany the blog community. One respondent reported she didn't like the "hidden factor of blogging- how we truly only know a certain part of someone, not the whole."  She wanted to be able to look in to her readers' eyes and know their stories. For an Eight, this might be a way of knowing where they stand and gauging whether they have the power in the situation.

Eights don't like how certain voices are prized above others based on their privilege, such as when a male blogger writes something women have been saying for years and the post goes viral or people can't praise it enough. This may make them feel weak or remind them of how much justice work still needs to be done and how they do not have the desired control/power they seek. (Reminder: Eights don't want power to rule, necessarily. They don't want to someone else to dominate them or those who are marginalized.)

What are your strengths as a blogger?

Many of the respondents noted their posts are direct and concise. They tend to write quickly and are able to connect different ideas that people wouldn't normally think to connect. They are able to be discreet. They write tight analysis. Several respondents were proud of their discipline to the craft of writing and noted how this has helped them grow.

Eights don't write for the crowd and this frees them up to say the things others won't. They'll stick it to the Man and do what they can to set captives free. They'll do anything to help those who are weak and marginalized. Eights are passionate about their causes, beliefs, and the people for whom they feel responsible and this definitely comes out in their writing. They're typically not afraid of radio silence or negative feedback. In fact, some Eights relish the opportunity to respond to negative feedback. (See "confrontational intimacy" above.) They know their voice and what they have to offer. They are true to themselves.

What are your greatest struggles/temptations as a blogger?

The Eight's greatest struggle is their shamelessness. Out of their fear of being controlled, some Eights are no holds barred when it comes to how they react. They can easily become mean and dismissive. They may not realize or care if their directness intimidates others. They might have difficulty paying attention to other writers. Eights want to protect themselves and be in control of their destiny at all times, which can make attention in the blog world a difficult beast. They might love the attention when their posts are read but get thrown off by having "fans," as fans can be fickle or can tap in to their difficulty with vulnerability.

Eights might not always know when their voice is not needed in the conversation. They might be tempted to write something just to get attention. They are quick to jump in, to advocate, to opine on whatever today's problem might be. When anger drives their response, they may regret it. Healthy Eights understand they don't need to weigh in on every conversation, nor does anger need to drive them.

A few respondents reported their biggest temptation is not to blog at all. They feel it might not be the best use of their time, as they'd prefer to be out in the field, getting their hands "dirty," so to speak. Less talk, more action. Other Eights reported difficulty in making and keeping boundaries as a chief struggle, as well as spending too much time online.

Resources: The Enneagram Institute, The Enneagram: A Christian Perspective (Rohr), Enneagram Made Easy (Baron and Wagele), The Wisdom of the Enneagram (Riso and Hudson)