Enneagram Type 5 -
The Investigator -

The thinker, the innovator, the observer. Enneagram Type 5 are part of the Head Triad, the ones who want to reveal how the world works and to unveil the mystery of life, but are afraid of the biggest mystery: themselves.

Enneagram Type 5: The Investigator

Welcome, welcome to the Type 5 spectacular home! Type 5s have an amazing spectrum of possibilities. From the deepest place within them, they can gaze at the space and wonder about the highest matters and seek the more complicated answers. The Investigator thinks that the better they know the world around them, the safer it will be. But the truth is that they desire to be an expert in the field of their interest. For Enneagram Fives, doing it right is not enough. They need to go beyond, break the wall, and take a leap into the unknown. This fearless (and thrilling) attitude is exclusive to their thoughts; that’s why Type Fives withdraw into their interstellar home and prioritize thinking over doing.

What Motivates Enneagram Type 5?

Being useful, competent, capable of something great. Leaving their mark. These are the things that keep Enneagram 5s’ sparkle burning. In depth, they hate the idea of being a useless good-for-nothing, and that’s where their unstoppable effort to become an expert in things finds its impetus. Also important is the need to unveil stuff that is buried to anyone else. Type 5s think they’re only worth it if they are capable and if they demonstrate how distinctive they are. However, Five’s passion for exploring goes beyond and takes over everything. For most of people, it is amazing to reach incredible discoveries and discover new questions, but for Type 5s, it’s their daily engine. The things that happen inside the minds of Enneagram Type 5s would blow other people’s minds, but sometimes they get so deep within themselves that it’s difficult to share and relate with other human beings. This is not to say that Type Fives are reptilian, but it is not saying they aren’t either. (Pssst: if you are a reptilian, feel free to reveal the secret of human evolution. That’s not asking too much, is it?)

How Does Enneagram Type Five Think?

We don’t have a crystal ball, but it is clear thatType Fives are a little detached from their environment, like if they were hanging from a big balloon that keeps them living their adventure up high. It is hard to blame them; it’s a wild world, so withdrawing from it into better and more imaginative places is a great option to preserve the mind. Still, nothing lasts forever, and someday something might pop the Enneagram 5’s balloon, so they had better get their tools to build a home on the ground. Their challenge? To enhance their natural abilities, their genius, and assimilate them into a healthy balance with reality.

How's Enneagram Type 5 In Love?

If for some people love makes them walk on the moon, for Type 5s love is a bridge to reality. In fact, it’s the only way they choose to connect with reality. Fives look for a long lasting love, someone they can really trust, someone special to share their insecurities and eccentricity with. Is easy for Fives to open their hearts to their special someone. They become communicative and loyal. Their strong sexuality encourages them to take a chance and let the other person enter their sacred worlds.

However, when something makes them feel unsafe, they withdraw into their minds and disappear. When this occurs, it can be baffling to their significant others. But, sooner than later—if the relationship is worth it—Type Fives will determine another way to manage that situation.

The Best & The Worst Of Enneagram 5. The Light And The Darkness

In good times, Enneagram Type 5s can be participative, able to enlighten people with their ways and how they communicate. They can show their full potential and be a visionaire. Type 5s just need to stop fighting with their own doubts and trying to prove their worth. That’s when they better explore their capacities.

In bad times, Enneagram Five’s are lost in paranoid thoughts where everything’s threatening. Like a halloween town, they live among ghosts and scary visions of themselves and others. They run from everybody and do everything they can to disappear. The mind is truly powerful, isn’t it?

The Investigator is capable of doing a lot of things in a wide spectrum: they can be supernovas or a black holes.

Average Enneagram Type 5

In the average state, Type 5s are like an old man that scares away kids that are just playing in his front yard. “Get out of here! You’re disturbing me, you lil’ demons!” (Ok, not that antisocial, but they definitely don’t want to be distracted from their thoughts when they’re developing a big idea or project.) Enneagram Fives think people won’t understand things even if they explain it, and explaining takes way too much time, so they just withdraw from the world. Like a crazy scientist, Type 5s keep on persevering and trying different solutions. They study and think of ways to reach their goal more effectively. For them, it’s disturbing how some people can remain attached to old beliefs, so breaking these beliefs every once in a while can be fun.

Like Doctor Emmet Brown, the Investigator thinks, “If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything,” and nothing can stop you. There are no pain, limitations, and nos.

Unhealthy Enneagram Type 5

Type 5s, when in an unhealthy state, think the world is an empty place that has nothing to offer them and they have nothing to give back. They find no place to stay, to be, or to feel like they belong. Withdrawing from the world is just so recurrent that Type 5s would often rather never return to reality. They renounce everything that makes them feel safe but at the same time know there are some remaining fears orbiting their mind as they are in a constant state of alarm. Enneagram Fives feel hopeless and powerless because “the night is dark and full of terrors.” Their minds have entered a harmful cycle that slowly and intensively degrades them; it’s a nightmare from which The Investigator can’t wake up. They can’t discern between what is real and what has been created by their fears. Suffering is the only possible reaction for them in facing such a terrible world. Fives willingly withdraw from themselves (black curtains descend).

Enneagram Type 5 The Investigator Healthy

Healthy Enneagram Type 5

Brrrr. But..the show must go on! Dark periods are mysteriously necessary. And when Enneagram Type 5s recall how they felt in their golden times, they withstand and find themselves able to push through anything.

Full of new and powerful resources, they develop their Valyrian steel to fight against their fears. In other words, Fives have the power to vanish every scary simulation of pain and misgiving. By banishing their insecurities, they are able to see their potential and become more playful with their capabilities. As a result, The Investigator reinforces their self-image, they relax and become more participative and social. The interaction flows and nurtures them with useful data to self-manage themselves. Suddenly, things aren’t as scary as they seemed to be because Type 5s are strong, they can deal with challenges they are faced with, they can transform them.