Source: Take Care of Your Type

All Enneagram types struggle to share their voice or believe in themselves from time to time, but this is a lifelong battle for Peacemakers. Peacemakers innately believe their voice isn’t worth lending to conversations and that their actions won’t make a real impact in the world. They believe this because growing up they usually were the most soft-spoken person in the room, and they often went unnoticed or unconsidered. Peacemakers have a tendency to think that, because of their past experiences, other people determine whether or not they are important. In other words, it takes someone else recognizing Peacemakers’ talents or skills to validate that they’re worthy, rather than believing they are worthy themselves. I think we’ve all believed this about ourselves to a certain degree. But the truth is, the people you want to deem you worthy may never deem you worthy—not because you aren’t valuable, but because people are human.

A girl I went to camp with in high school struggled with this idea a lot. She confessed that she felt as though she was meant to be mediocre, and she’d just learned to accept that. When our camp counselor heard her say this, she looked her in the eyes with firmness and respect, and said, “The second you start believing you are mediocre is when you become mediocre.” So, to all of the sweet Peacemakers reading this, I want you to remember that as much as we crave approval from others or believe we have nothing special to offer, we are the ones who determine that our voice is valuable and actions are meaningful. We determine our worth.