Mesmer

## Life Task

To stop valuing themselves in terms of their performance. Usually only a significant failure can precipitate the depression needed to sufficiently slow down and question what they are doing, and why. Hope comes with the practice of truth and in glimpsing a larger vision of lawfulness.

*"I need to succeed."* - Mesmer Principle

## **Description**

Like all enneaclasses, the name "Mesmer" is not referring to any classes from media that utilize the same name. Rather, it was the name selected to better convey specific information about other gamers and to gamify the powerful notions found in the **Enneagram.**Every person has access to all the classes but primarily settles on one which frames the personality. Accessing other classes' potentials and maximizing the capacity of the primary class takes a large degree of work and effort, and this work could be viewed as lessons an entity must overcome to become unified.

Mesmers need the admiration of others in order to feel worthy; indeed at a very deep and largely subconscious level, Mesmers feel as though they need to see themselves reflected in the eyes of others in order even to exist. Confusion about the difference between appearance and reality, image and substance, who they are and who they are taken to be is often at the center of the Mesmer fixation.

Mesmers are people who adopt an ideal of success and attempt to embody it. If the Mesmer is less connected to the parents, or for some reason finds other influences more compelling, the ideal will be drawn from the broader culture.

There are many possible ideals from which the Mesmer might choose. Whichever ideal is chosen however, it is something which, by its very nature, is approximated by just a few. Mesmers are therefore forced to compete.

Mesmers tend to pursue their chosen ideal with zest, determination and focus. They believe in their innate abilities and are optimistic about their prospects. They tend to be good networkers and know how to rise through the ranks. They know how to present themselves, are socially competent, often extroverted and sometimes charismatic.

Many Mesmers subtly and even unconsciously alter their self-presentation to appeal to the particular person or audience with whom they are engaging. In the process of doing so, they sometimes lose touch with who they really are.

Mesmers frequently are successful, at least as defined by their chosen system of values. They tend to be doggedly determined and are not easily deterred by failure. But while Mesmers do tend to be “successful,” sometimes even extraordinarily so, they are often secretly afraid of being or becoming “losers.” It is almost as though they were afraid of being “found out.”

Some Mesmers actually self-destruct when they achieve overwhelming degrees of fame or fortune. It is as if they realize how disconnected they are from their grandiose image, how false and phony it all is, how poorly anyone really sees them, how alone they actually feel even in the company of those who treat them with adoration.

Mesmers can sometimes find intimacy difficult. Their need to be validated for their image often hides a deep sense of shame and confusion about who they really are.

Having achieved success, Mesmers can begin to wonder whether they are truly loved for who they are, rather than for what they have achieved or how they appear. Mesmers tend to be large hearted, generous and likable, but they are often difficult to really know.

## **Class Identification Questions**

Every entity falls primarily within one of the enneaclasses, originally. While it can be difficult to elucidate which correlates with any individual, these nine questions (for each class) were designed to analyze certain aspects of the personality so that one can come to an understanding of their class.

1. Do you sometimes think you're too cynical or suspicious because you intuitively seem to know the hidden motives of others -- especially their dark, manipulative intentions?
2. Are you able to be positive, optimistic, and upbeat around others even though you feel pessimistic or desperate about your life when you're alone?
3. Do you guard against becoming too emotionally vulnerable or dependent upon even those closest to you because you fear being manipulated?
4. When your goals are unclear or you don't have any goals, do you lose your energy and find that life is suddenly dull and boring?
5. To avoid being rude or hurtful, do you often have to feign interest in a conversation you're having because a new idea or important current project is beginning to race through your mind?
6. Do you prize relationships that are free and undemanding and break relationships that become too complicated or time consuming?
7. Are you able instantly to hide your feelings of shock, disappointment, anger, embarrassment, and so on until you can deal with them in private?
8. Would you tend to err on the side of saying too little rather than saying too much?
9. Is it difficult for you to take time for yourself, to relax or to "do nothing" when there are still projects left undone?

## **Preoccupations**

Preoccupation relates to the matter of being preoccupied or engrossed with something, so what you might find here are areas of examination with which this class might find themselves involved.

* Identification with achievement and performance.
* Presentation of an image that is adjusted to gain approval. A high-profile public persona.
* Competition and the avoidance of failure. Identification with competitive achievement.
* The belief that love comes from what you produce, rather than for who you are.
* Intuitive adjustment of self-presentation, often to the point of believing that the image is one's true self.
* Poor access to personal feelings. Emotions are suspended while the job gets done.
* A way of paying attention that is called convergent thinking, in which a multitrack mind is focused upon a single goal.
* Submission by conforming to other's values, then avoidance of depression by achieving the other's approval.

## **Special Abilities**

Each enneaclass has several unique traits which may be cultivated in such a ways as to give advantages when dealing with situations that are characteristic of that class. Those of the Mesmer can be roughly summarized to:

* being optimistic, friendly, and upbeat
* being able to recover quickly from setbacks and to charge ahead to the next challenge
* staying informed, knowing what's going on
* being competent and able to get things to work efficiently
* being able to motivate people

## **Weaknesses**

Each enneaclass also has several areas of weakness where they generally do not thrive unless work has been done towards alleviating these shortcomings. While the following examples are general statements, it is expected that most Mesmers dealt with or are dealing with issues of this nature:

* having to put up with inefficiency and incompetence
* the fear of not being -- or of not being seen as -- successful
* comparing myself to people who do things better
* struggling to hang on to my success
* putting on facades in order to impress people
* always being "on." It's exhausting

## **Class** **Synergy**

Some enneaclasses naturally work better together than others, which leads to many moments of understanding and misunderstanding. Many potential adverse situations can be overcome by understanding those around oneself and learning how to best optimize those others, which quite frequently results in some synergistic outcomes.

* Assumes own ability. The instant expert. Being respected for ability as a worker is more important than being liked.
* Wants a clear path to success. Shoots for defined goals. Wants reward for effort. Intolerant of ambiguous returns.
* The priority is to be efficient and save time, even if this means cutting corners. Takes the shortcut. Does several things at once. "Details later."
* Feels rage when tasks and goals are interrupted. Anger is usually task specific.
* Values product over process. "How much did I produce?"
* Exerts power over people; competes for leadership roles.
* Pays selective attention to positive feedback. Image has to be maintained. Intolerant of criticism. Places responsibility elsewhere if failure occurs.

## **Charm Guide**

Relationships among gamers of various enneaclasses are often tenuous due to a lack of understanding. This may not be of consequence in regards to relationships that are superficial or purely of a business nature, but these relationships only compose a small subset. It can be beneficial to learn what makes each class comfortable and respected in order to forge more meaningful and deeper connections. For the Mesmer class, some of the techniques towards achieving this end are as follows:

* Leave me alone when I am doing my work.
* Give me honest, but not unduly critical or judgmental, feedback.
* Help me keep my environment harmonious and peaceful.
* Don't burden me with negative emotions.
* Tell me you like being around me.
* Tell me when you're proud of me or my accomplishments.

## **Class Specialization**

Human evolution requires three basic survival behaviors, referred to in the Enneagram as the instinctual specializations: the self-preservation specialization, the social or group specialization, and the one-to-one or intimate specialization. Because these are survival behaviors, each Enneaclass includes all three subtypes. Although you manifest all three to some degree, you usually express one of these three subtypes more than the other two. Both environmental circumstances and your Enneaclasses's structure influence their expression, especially the core emotion associated with your adaptive strategy and what you put your energy into.

**Self-Preservation Instinctual Specialization**. Your attention and energy go to issues related to personal survival, such as safety, security, comfort, protection, and adequate basic resources of food, shelter, and warmth.

***Social Instinctual Specialization.***Your attention and energy go to issues related to your community and group membership, such as role, status, social acceptance, belonging, participation, and fellowship.

***One-to-One Instinctual Specialization.*** Your attention and energy go to issues related to connection in vital relationships, such as bonding with special others, sexual intimacy, attractiveness, closeness, union, and merging.

 Shifter | Social | The drive for success is directed toward winning social approval, knowing the right people, and achieving power in social institutions, whether in government, business or community groups. There can be genuine social leadership or simply self-aggrandizement through propaganda and image-making.