Dealing with the nine’s deadly sin, sloth.

Another element to the enneagram is the deadly sins. Each type has a deadly sin. The sins include all the deadly sins in: pride, envy, wrath, gluttony, lust, sloth, and greed, with an addition of sloth and deceit. The enneagram nine’s deadly sin is sloth.

Similar to the animal, nines struggle to get moving and have trouble doing things in a timely manner, but it is deeper than just being slow to do things; it is a paralyzing fear of discord that holds nine’s back from reaching their potential and dreaming big.

Ian Cron, the author of The Road Back to You, compares this consuming fear of conflict to sleepwalking. 

“Nine’s suffer from a more aggressive form of somnambulism than other numbers. If they are not careful, they can sleepwalk through life” (Cron 65).

I often catch myself sleepwalking through life. I get lost in routine and get overwhelmed by avoiding conflict or trying to make peace. It is not until I am faced with an unavoidable conflict that I snap out of it. Upon waking up out of this state I find myself a stranger to myself and have lots of catching up and reflecting to do. Soon, having opinions and self awareness soon becomes too tiring and I return to my sloth-like state. 

Like most things, the first step to overcoming it is acknowledging when and why you struggle with the deadly sin of sloth. From there, there are a plethora of ways to fight. Journaling is a great way for nines to relieve their brain and heart from the weight of suppressing all conflict. Journaling also requires reflection and deep thought which nines are not typically good at making a natural habit of. I have found it very hard to sleepwalk through life when I make a habit of journaling. 

Another great way to fight the sloth is through an accountability partner. Having someone to check in with you and help you not sleepwalk through life can be a game changer. Accountability partners can help nines end bad habits of sloth and help nines build habits of action.

Nines, you are not alone in this, but don’t let your enneagram be your excuse.