People tend to type President George W. Bush as some combination of 6, 7, 8 or 9. Let's take a look at each of these Enneagram personality types to see why people may type him as they do.

Enneagram Personality Type 6

Enneagram personality type 6 author descriptors include: The Persecuted Persecutor, The Loyal Skeptic, The Loyalist, The Questioner, The Troubleshooter, The Networker, The Guardian, The Loyal Person, The Partner, The Questioner Parent, Affiliator, The Program of Security with Fear and Doubt, The Defender.

Bush expects loyalty. He seems to hire people based more upon their loyalty than their competence. How loyal is he however? A recent book sees him more as using people to serve his own interests than being loyal to his supporters. Personally, I see him as loyal only to his own individual ideals and people he can count on to support those ideals.

As far as being a questioner or doubter, he seems too certain about his own beliefs and doesn't seem to have much doubt that other people are simply wrong or inconsequential. It doesn't seem to matter much that the majority of the country doesn't agree with him on stem cell research or the war in Iraq.

Enneagram Personality Type 9

Enneagram personality type 9 author descriptors include: Going with the Stream, The Mediator, The Peacemaker, The Universalist, The Preservationist, The Peaceful Person, The Diplomat, The Peacekeeper Parent, Accepter, The Program of Non-Aggression with Indolence and Indecision.

In looking at these descriptors, I see nothing to indicate that Bush is a type 9. The only reason I can see for people to believe that he is a type 9, is that the Enneagram author they read has for some reason identified Bush as a type 9.

Enneagram Personality Type 8

Enneagram personality type 8 author descriptors include: Coming on Strong, The Protector, The Challenger, The Asserter, The Boss, The Top Dog, The Activator, The Confronter, The Powerful Person, The Advocate, The Protector Parent, Challengers, The Program of Self-Defined Justice with Arrogance, The Chief.

If you throw The Decider in there as a descriptor, then I think we've identified Bush's personality in some way. Here's a Daily Show (type 6) parody on this aspect of Bush's personality (warning: if you're a Bush supporter you probably won't like this video clip). You can also see this aspect of his personality in sharp contrast to the way his opponent, John Kerry, was depicted as a waffler in the 2004 election.

Enneagram Personality Type 7

Enneagram personality type 7 author descriptors include: Opportunistic Idealism, The Epicure, The Enthusiast, The Adventurer, The Visionary, The Dreamer, The Joyful Person, The Futurist, The Entertainer Parent, Cheerer, The Program of Easy Optimism with Uneasy Activity, The Materialist.

Such characteristics as Bush's idealism, tendency to look to the future and put a positive spin on things fit right in with the type 7. Opportunistic Idealism and The Program of Easy Optimism with Uneasy Activity are particularly revealing descriptors.

George W. Bush - 7w8

Although his bring it on attitude and proclamation as the decider indicate an aspect of 8-ness in his personality, there's still an undercurrent of not wanting direct confrontation by creating this protected environment of like-minded thinking within his inner circle.  It's almost as if he's trying too hard sometimes to present an image of toughness that hides this undercurrent of wanting to avoid direct face-to-face confrontation.

Although type 7 tries to avoid having to follow rules and authority that attempt to limit them, they often do so in an indirect way that involves justifying actions through rationalization. This can include charm, reframing, paraphrasing and reasoning or justification that belie their true motives.

In my thinking, I can see no better type fit for Bush than type 7 with an 8 wing. If you have another opinion on Bush's type, you can leave a comment or cast your vote in this typing poll.