Transcending Type with Enneagram 8, Sandra Smith

In this episode of Enneagram in Real Life, Stephanie Barron Hall interviews Sandra Smith, longtime Enneagram teacher and author of The Enneagram Map to Your Deeper Self: Living Beyond Your Type. Sandra shares her personal journey of discovering her leading type as Eight, the transformative role the Enneagram has played in her personal growth, and how she now teaches the system as a map toward presence and inner freedom rather than just a typing tool. They explore how they work with clients and teams, how to utilize other points on the map, and how embodied presence can open the door to deeper truth. Sandra also offers type-specific practices from her book to help listeners move beyond their ego habits.

Find the full show notes here: https://www.ninetypes.co/blog/stranscending-type-with-enneagram-8-sandra-smith

🔗 Connect with Sandra Smith!

📷Sandra’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandrasmithalchemyworks/

💻Sandra’s Website: https://alchemyworksevents.com/

🔗 Connect with Steph!

💻 Stephanie’s Website: https://ninetypes.co/

📷 Stephanie’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ninetypesco

🎥 Stephanie’s Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@stephbarronhall

Here are the key takeaways:

• Sandra shares her journey of encountering the Enneagram and finding her core type 
• The Enneagram is a map, not a box—your type is just the beginning of your journey
• Stephanie and Sandra talk about working with organizations
• Sandra talks about utilizing the arrows and the wings
• Presence arises when we’re grounded in the body and emotionally open
• Type patterns begin early and form limiting habits, but can be softened through awareness
• Moments of awe reveal our essence
• Sandra offers practical, embodied advice tailored to each type to help interrupt habitual defenses
• We are more than our type—transcending our personality opens us to compassion and freedom
• Spiritual wholeness comes through embodied presence, not self-fixing
• How to connect with Sandra

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Work from Sandra Maitri
•  Work from Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
• Heart of the Enneagram podcast (co-hosted by Sandra Smith)
• Chatter by Ethan Kross
• The Diamond Approach
• Poetry by Hafiz, Mary Oliver, Rumi, David Whyte, John O’Donohue, Denise Levertov

Want to keep learning about the Enneagram? Grab Steph’s new book, Enneagram in Real Life! Find the book, ebook, or audiobook wherever books are sold.