Delineating The Perfectionism of Types 1 & 3
Understanding why perfectionism stems from varying motivations
What is Perfectionism
We should first distinguish between obsessive-compulsive tendencies and a high need for order in one’s environment. Any of the nine types can have a high need for order or anxiety around disorganization. In fact, Sixes, Twos, and Sevens use the word perfectionism in their Enneagram lexical analysis questionnaires.
Despite the universality of the word “perfectionism” as a general human trait, many people believe that Ones are the most perfectionistic type on the Enneagram, but this is only partially correct…
Ones and Perfectionism
Perfectionism, for Ones, is an inner experience that implies a never-ending journey toward the best moral version of themselves. Ones desire to be organized and appropriate and feel a continual need to be above reproach. Ones believe that making any error means they have overlooked some vital detail and, thus, calls into question their correctness as desired status as a good person. For Ones, goodness is indistinguishable from being accurate and detail-oriented. The core motivation of Type One is to strive to meet their inner standards constantly. These standards come from their self-directed convictions about how they and others should behave, think, and live. Ones, like all gut types, are their own authorities, and even as children don’t think to look to parents, teachers, or other authority figures to steer their behavior, ethics, or morality. Of course, like anyone else, they are influenced by their families of origin’s behavioral, moral, and ethical focus. However, Ones often develop a sense of themselves and their morality as a reaction against what they believed were inconsistent, chaotic, unreasonable, or too permissive authorities.
As one client aptly said, “My parents had no idea what they were doing, so I took it upon myself to figure out my beliefs and ideas about right or wrong. In my opinion, there wasn’t enough structure, so I made my internal structure. My parents had little to do with that process; I guess it happened almost automatically for me.”
Like all gut types, Ones want to be masters of their domains, particularly their moral and ethical identities. Perfection for Ones is not a destination but a journey that takes a lifetime. Many Ones relate to angelic imagery because they strive to embody the purity and perfection of an angel, not because they believe they are angels.
The misconception that Ones believe they’re perfect comes from the external observations that they are very hard on themselves if they make a mistake and their tendency to correct or spot errors in others’ behavior, wayward thoughts, intentions, or conduct. However, most Ones, unless deeply narcissistic, never believe themselves to be perfect, and the suggestion that they do would be highly offensive.
One’s they strive tirelessly to be consistent, error-free, and aligned with their standards of behavior, which can create the appearance of someone who is careful and perhaps a bit tightly wound. The key to understanding the One’s perfectionistic tendencies is remembering they are in the idealistic triad (along with Fours and Sevens). They are all too intimately aware that the world is imperfect but have a moral responsibility to constantly push themselves and others to improve.
Their inner drive toward purification should not be confused with external perfectionism. While many Ones are organized, put-together, and orderly, others may (at least to the outside observer) appear disorganized, disheveled, or even messy. Many Ones reject external perfectionism around appearance as superficial or frivolous. Of course, Trifix will shape how much each One cares about aesthetics. For example, a 147 or 137 will be more noticeably concerned with their appearance due to the influence of the other types in the Trifix.
Threes and Perfectionism
Threes, on the other hand, believe that they must be the “perfect person.” They attach their intrinsic value to how efficiently they perform and how attractive and flawless they appear to others. Threes want to be enviable, and part of being aspirational includes appearing perfect to establish themselves as winners. Threes share the One’s focus on efficiency and pragmatism but will often forego accuracy and detail for expediency. The One wouldn’t dare sacrifice accuracy for expediency as that inevitably leads to mistakes, making the One feel bad and wrong.
Threes are driven by an internal sense to move toward the next goal constantly. Slowing down for too long to check their work or purifying their inner worlds would seem, to most Threes, like a waste of time, and wasting time is the cardinal sin for many Threes. Both types have a strong work ethic. However, Ones are typically less expedient and less concerned with others’ perception of them as accomplished. Threes always stop to take stock of who’s paying attention to their efforts. As image types, their sense of self is contingent on the approval and admiration of others.
Ones often have to be reminded that others may be scrutinizing them. This causes anger because Ones often believe that only they and their Creator(s) have the authority to scrutinize their behavior. Threes believe that their successful performance means nothing if no one is there to praise them. External perfectionism is more important for Threes because their view of the world is projected onto everyone else, and they become convinced that a flawless appearance speaks louder than the morally intentional focus of the One. Having the best job, the right clothes, the perfect partner, an impressive resume, and knowing the right people will push them closer to their goals than an inner-directed sense of rightness.
Perfectionism, like any other behavioral trait, must be traced back to a motivational strategy to be considered “type-specific.” Ones exhibit a particular brand of moral perfectionism and over-focus on accuracy to avoid being wrong or bad. Threes exhibit perfectionism around their appearance, performance, or image to maintain an identity as aspirational, successful, and worthy of praise. Any type can have perfectionistic behavioral patterns related to anxiety or simply a preference toward perfecting themselves, their environment, or other aspects of their lives.