Episode 153: Integrating My Human Design Type As A Projector
This episode is all about my Human Design as a Projector.
You’ll hear me share:
The foundations of Human Design
How Human Design is different from other personality frameworks
How I’ve unknowingly been living my type
How I’m learning to integrate it into daily life and what that’s been like
Listen to the Episode:
Mentioned in this Episode:
Episode 152: Self-Discovery Through Human Design & Health
Episode 130: Finding Ease & Alignment Through Human Design with Victoria Jane
Connect with Naomi:
Share the Episode:
“I’ve observed, thus far, how I’ve already lived-in alignment with my Human Design and it’s given me a framework of how I can continue to develop and grow – in my communications, in my decision-making, in how I process information, in my work, in how I show up and take a leadership role in life.”
Read the Transcript:
Hello, my friend, Happy New Year, and welcome back to the show!
This time of year is always filled with hope and anticipation, and despite the current state of the world, especially with the pandemic, I’m feeling optimism like never before!
It’s a different kind of energy, one that comes with feeling certainty and having clarity into how I want to show up in this world. Do I have a clear vision of specifics yet? No, but I’m looking forward to witnessing it unravel before me.
For this first episode of the year, I’m following up on the last episode, Episode 152, where I shared how 2020 was a year of self-discovery and self-development for me.
A big part of that process learning about Human Design. So today, during this time that we have together, I’m going to my Human Design profile with you with specific examples of how I’ve already been living my design, how I hadn’t been, how that’s affected me.
But first, some background on how was first introduced to Human Design.
Back in March, I was on a socially distanced walk back with a friend and we were walking our dogs in the city, the city being here in San Francisco.
We’re both really into personality profiles and embrace the insights and self-awareness these tools give us.
She was telling me all about her Human Design reading that had been gifted to her. At first, I thought I hadn’t heard about Human Design before, but after coming home and googling it, I remembered that a couple of friends had Human Design readings a few years ago.
At that time, I remember looking up my Human Design chart, and if you’ve ever seen a Human Design chart then you know it’s one of those things where you really can’t understand it - you have someone do a reading for you. So I forgot about it and hadn’t thought about it since.
But with my friend recently having her chart explained to her, she thought I’d really get a lot out of exploring my chart as well, so back in April, I had a reading with Victoria Jane, who was a guest on Episode 130, who now happens to be teaching the Human Design Coaching Certification course I’m taking. Now, as I mentioned, I’m really into personality profiles.
In the Myers Briggs framework, I’m an INTJ
I’m also an Enneagram 1
In the Four Tendencies framework, I’m a Questioner.
In the Fascination Advantage system, my top two traits are Prestige and Mystique, with Innovation being my lowest trait.
I love all of these frameworks and think that they’re spot on for me. But, Human Design is different, and this is perhaps what I love most about it.
In these other frameworks, you answer questions to get your results.
Now here’s the thing - whenever you answer questions, there’s always going to be some bias to your answers. It’s human nature, which is why I’m still now sure if I’m an Enneagram 1 with a 2 wing or a 9 wing.
I have friends who are Enneagram 3’s but insist they’re a 1 wing, which if you’re familiar with the Enneagram system, is not really an option for Enneagram 3’s – its either a Wing 2 or a Wing 4. But neither of them resonates with this person.
I have other friends who can’t decide if they’re an Enneagram 2 and a 9.
In Human Design, you answer 3 questions of which there is not bias associated:
- Your birthdate
- Your birth time – hour and minute
- Your birth location
That’s it.
And for every person who’s chart I’ve run so far; the results are shockingly accurate.
I’ve been doing Human Design readings for family and friends and as I’m diving into their charts, its resonated so deeply now just with myself, but with them too. As I go through their charts, I’ll grab little snippets and text it to them and I usually get a response like, “Oh my gosh, that’s me! That’s so me! And most of them know absolutely nothing about Human Design!
Over the past 8 months I’ve dived deeply into my chart and there’s so much there that I’ve never verbalized to myself or anyone else, but when I read these things, it’s made me feel so seen and validated in ways that I’ve never acknowledged or had anyone acknowledged of me. So, what are all these things that I'm feeling seen about? What are these things that feel so validating?
That’s what I’m sharing today, so let’s dive in!
Before I get into my own chart, let me set some context.
There is SO MUCH about Human Design to know that more than once I’ve commented to friends that the certification course feels like a college level course.
But the basic foundations to start off with are knowing your Type, Strategy and Authority.
Even if you just know that, without going into the more advanced topics, can provide you with a tremendous amount of insight.
Before I get into my type, I think it’s important to share what the 5 main types are so you can understand the ecosystem and where I fall into it because each type has a specific role to play in this world.
First, are the Manifestors. These are the people who are the innovators. They bring forth the new ideas. They provide the vision and the spark get started.
Next are the Manifesting Generators. They are the creators and the builders. They bring the most energy of the five types. They’re the best at multitasking and can get a lot of things done.
Then there’s the Generators. Generators are also here to create and build and to lift up other with their enthusiasm. They are here to show us what's possible.
These 3 types create their own energy - consistently.
Then there’s the Projectors, and that's what I am – a Projector. Projectors are here to guide and to organize the people.
Unlike the first three types, Projectors, we don't have the ability to create our own energy consistently. We absorb energy from others. Because of this, we aren't meant to work all the time.
Rather, it’s ideal for Projectors to work 3-4 hours a day, then spend the rest of the time studying whatever our passion or specialty is and integrating it. So, the Projectors role is to show people that you don’t have to grind all the time to be successful. It’s not how hard you work; it’s how efficiently you can do your work.
This right here – this was eye-opening for me because while I’m definitely a subscriber to working smarter, not harder, especially in my full-time job, for most of my life, and definitely since I started working as a health coach, I’ve put in countless days where I’ve worked long, long hours. And it left me burnt out, exhausted and feeling like I’m not showing up as my best self. So, that then had me asking, “Well, when do I feel like I’m my best self?” Not surprisingly, the answer was, when I’m working smarter, not harder.
And that’s led me to take a step back and look at how I was approaching my work – in my full-time job and in my coaching, podcasting, and even Beautycounter business? How can I scale back but still show up how I want to?
I’ve since outsourced some of the tasks that I was still hanging on to doing, not because I was the only one who could do them, but because of a need I have to control everything. So this has definitely been an area of growth for me. Where I used to spend all weekend, putting all my time into one episode, I now have my portion of each podcast episode done and wrapped up and sent to my podcast production team by Thursday, so I can take the weekend to work on other projects or do other things instead.
Another discovery with relation to this was the fact that I discovered that almost everyone, from my immediate family, to closest extended family, to closest friends are ALL Manifesting Generators! I’m literally surrounded by the people who have the most energy!
And as a Projector, I pick up on the energies of those around me, so I’ve been working my whole life as a Manifesting Generator, when in fact, I’m not! No wonder I’m prone to adrenal fatigue and burnout! Like I said, this learning alone, has been so transformative in not just how I work, but the boundaries I set for myself and with others, and ultimately, in my health and how I feel on an everyday basis.
Another validating part of learning that I’m a Projector is that in my full-time job in the corporate world, I’m a Project Manager!
I get paid to organize and guide teams of people! I’m literally getting paid to do what I’m meant to do. As a Project Manager, I’m not the one doing the work, rather, I'm bringing the people who actually do the work.
I provide the space for them to collaborate, to keep each other up to date on what’s going on, to communicate what each other’s priorities are. I help them identify and work through whatever roadblocks they may be facing. In short, I lead and guide through facilitation.
So, without even knowing it, professionally, I’m living my Human Design.
You know, a lot of people hate their jobs. It feels suffocating and they just want to get out of it. They want to quit and make their side hustles their full-time gigs because usually it’s what their passion really is. Perhaps this is because it’s not in alignment with their Human Design.
Truthfully, I've never felt that way. While I love the work that I do on the side as a coach and mentor, which also falls in line with being a Projector, I also do really enjoy my full-time job; I get a lot of fulfillment from it. And now I can understand why.
It falls in line with the nature of the work that I meant to do, just as coaching does too.
A bit of a side note and tangent: a lot of folks don't actually understand what coaching is. I mean, when I first got into it I didn't understand it either.
As a coach, I'm not here to necessarily tell you what to do, to give you all the answers. Starting out as a health coach can be very intimidating because if you don’t understand the nature of coaching, you may think you have to be the doctor, the expert but that is not the role of a coach. Leave that to Google, and the people who are.
The value that I provide as a coach is to put that knowledge into context or frame it in a way that applies specifically to the person and their situation. To help them process and integrate the advice and information they’ve been given. To guide and hold the space for them much like I do as a Project Manager my full-time job.
So, learning that I’m a Projector and what that means resonated so much with me.
To close out the 5 types of Human Design, the 5th type are Reflectors. Reflectors make up only 1% of the population. Like Projectors, Reflectors don't generate their own consistent energy. Rather, they reflect the energy of everyone that's around them. Reflectors are here to guide people towards peace and cooperation. They highlight and show everyone around them what their highest potential is. So Reflectors, I think, are very special people, and despite only being 1% of the population, I’m fortunate to know a few Reflectors personally and I think they're very special people.
Now each of the 5 types has a strategy.
And so, the strategy for Projectors is to Wait for the Invitation.
What does it mean to, “Wait for the Invitation?”
Well, as someone who leads, guides and coaches people, I often feel like I know the answers to a lot of people's questions; that I have the solution to a lot of people's struggles. But if they're not open to it, if they're not asking me, if they're not issuing an invitation for me, then what I have to share isn’t going to be received. And if I try to push my information on them, it's gonna fall flat.
And so, as a Projector I need to wait to be invited to share whatever it is that I have to share. When I do this, I’m in alignment with my true self. When I don't do this, I’m in what’s called my “not self” and when what I have to share isn’t received, I feel bitter.
For a Projector, leaning into your strategy will feel success, and not leaning into it will result in bitterness.
I can't tell you how many times this has rung true for me.
When I first learned this, what immediately came to mind is my Beautycounter business. I’m not someone who, in the past, considered myself a salesperson. Funny enough, there is a channel in the Human Design chart that specifically relates to sales, and its actually an active part of my chart which means sales is actually a gift that I have. So why hadn’t I felt it before?
Because I wasn’t waiting for the invitation.
A lot of sales training programs will teach cold calling, because it’s a proven approach for sales. But I’ve never felt comfortable taking that approach because – it’s not waiting for an invitation.
Now when first starting out in something that you have no experience in, I do think it’s helpful to try the best practices taught. And I did! Gosh, I’ve been with Beautycounter for almost six year, and in that first year or two, I remember cold calling people and having it fall totally flat.
I was ghosted, rejected and it fell flat because there wasn’t any invitation. It felt bitter and disheartened.
But I kept up with it and found a way to approach sales that felt natural to me. Without even knowing it, I was taking the approach of waiting for the invitation and guess what – I’ve been able to build a consistent business. When I’ve waited for that invitation, those people who invited me have become my most consistent and engaged clients.
I know so many people who have felt so much enthusiasm and passion in their role as a consultant, but things fell flat, they got discouraged and quit. And I can’t help but wonder what their Human Design profile is, and how would things have played out, if they leaned into their strategy. Interesting right?
So, this is another way that I’ve found Human Design so validating in my life.
Now, because I know this is a question that’s going to be asked, because I asked it to, is how do you get an invitation?
Well, you’re not going to be invited if people don’t know what you do. So, it’s important to let people know what it is that you do. It’s important to show up and share consistently, and invitations can look like, listening to this podcast, subscribing to receive emails from me, following me on social media, or literally, asking for more info!
For Projectors, when you’re consistently sharing who you are, what you do, and who you do it for, invitations will come naturally. I’ve seen a pattern of this – when I am consistent, the invitations are there and when I’m not, there aren’t any invitations.
Now just knowing and leaning into your type and strategy is going to be impactful to you, but there’s so much more about Human Design. In fact, I’ve been telling friends, as I go through my certification program that it feels like a college level course – there’s so much to learn!
I won’t get into all of the advanced topics, but one final thing I want to touch on today is Authority. Just as every person has a type and strategy, every person has an authority.
In my chart, my spleen is my authority, making me a Splenic Projector.
The spleen is all about instincts – listening to and trusting your primal instincts; what your gut is telling you. It’s about having discernment and knowing immediately, in the moment, if something is right or not right for you.
I found this really interesting because I feel like I’ve always had good instincts. I've always felt that I have a gift of discernment and my instincts never fail me. I usually know immediately if something is right, and I definitely know when something doesn't feel right.
But at the same time, I’ve also struggled with self-trust. And in observing moments when I lack self-trust, I’ve come to realize that that self-doubt comes when I look to others for external validation.
Now, when taking a functional or holistic approach to health, and we look to the root cause of the problems we’re experiencing, when we’re living out of alignment, that connection to our innate selves is broken. And that can show up in physical conditions.
For example, I’ve struggled with thyroid and digestive conditions.
Well, in my Human Design, I only have two defined centers – my throat and my spleen.
Well, the throat is where the thyroid is, and one way of self-healing from thyroid dysfunction is to speak your truth.
I long suspected I had thyroid issues, even as far as being checked out by my primary care physical back in 2009. She said I was fine, though in hindsight, I look back at my test results and see that it really wasn’t – but that’s a topic for another day. And I can honestly say that in my younger years, I can honestly say, I didn’t feel empowered to speak my truth.
My suspicions of thyroid dysfunction weren’t confirmed until my early 40’s. Ironically, or maybe not so ironically, I started this podcast in 2017 and that’s when I finally started to see improvement in correcting it. This podcast has been just one way that’s really helped me learn how to speak my truth and lean into my own voice – to even know what my voice is and then how to express it.
Now with regard to my spleen, I see an acupuncturist every week. I've shared that I've had one-on-one embodiment guidance sessions with Sadie who's been a guest on this show twice. Sadie is also a practitioner of Ayurveda, so both of these women who have helped me tremendously are practitioners of ancient forms of healing.
And they have observed weakness in my spleen.
Again, the spleen is about trusting our gut, our primal instincts. And I’ve struggled with self-trust and self-doubt. Is it a coincidence then that they’ve seen a weakness in my spleen?
So, getting back to Human Design, where some other people might have 4, 5, or even 6 defined centers, I have two – the throat and the spleen, both of which, previously and concurrently, have been noticed as weaknesses in my body that I’d been active working on healing and strengthening.
This is another way that Human Design has been powerfully validated for me.
I said Authority was the last thing I’d share, but there’s one more piece I want to touch on.
You may hear people talk about their Human Design by saying, “I'm a 3 / 5 Manifesting Generators.” Those numbers mean something, or course they do!
They’re what’s called your Profile.
I’m a 1 /3 Splenic Projector, meaning a 1 and a 3 are my profiles in my chart. Without going into too many details basically what that means is that I'm an Investigator.
When I'm learning something, I tend to go deep on that subject. I also learn through trial and error.
And my gosh, is that not what this show is all about?
I’m forever a student, I'm always going to be investigating, always learning. And when I find a topic that lights me up, like functional nutrition, like gut health, like clean beauty, like Human Design, I’m going to go all in on it. I'm going to learn anything and everything about it, going as far as to invest in it with professional training,
I'm going to invest my money, I'm going to invest my time, I'm going to invest my energy on topics that lights me up.
And then, as I learn and go deep on something, I’m meant to share it – to teach it.
But sometimes my shadow self gets in the way where I feel like I don’t know enough to share and teach. That definitely shows up for me all the time, which then begs the question, well then how am I supposed to get an invitation if I’m not sharing?
And this is an area of personal growth for me.
I need to lean into the trial and error and give things a try and see what happens. For me, there are never failures because if I’m practicing trial and errors, there’s only ever opportunities for learning and sharing.
Real people stories.
And isn’t that what this podcast is about?
Sure, I’ve had guests who are doctors, who are company founders, who are best-selling authors – all people who are subject matter experts.
But I’ve also had a lot of real people – people like you and me who have learned through trial and error and have stories and experiences to share.
Much of this show is about my story and what I’ve learned through trial and error and me sharing about my experiences.
I believe that's how we learn and that's how we connect with each other. I can't share or teach anything that I haven't experienced myself, just like I can't sell anything that I don't personally use myself.
And all of this is how I’ve observed, thus far, how I’ve already lived-in alignment with my Human Design and it’s given me a framework of how I can continue to develop and grow – in my communications, in my decision-making, in how I process information, in my work, in how I show up and take a leadership role in life.
And so Human Design is a new component I’m introducing to my coaching practice. It goes hand-in-hand with my approach to health. You know I take the approach of addressing the core basics through diet and lifestyle. Human Design adds another layer on how to best approach those things to meet our unique needs, but also takes it beyond that providing a framework for mindset and how to conceptualize it all together, leaning into our unique gifts and innate selves.
When you’re ready to learn more about it, I’m here to share it with you. I’ll have a link in the show notes for this episode at www.livefablife.com/153, for Episode 153 where you can learn more.
Thank you for being here. It's been a long time since I've been this excited to talk about something, and to dive in and to share it all with you. So I hope you're along for the ride because I'm here for it.
Happy New Year, thanks so much for listening, and I’ll see you again next week.
Naomi Nakamura is a Functional Wellness & Human Design Coach. She helps women who struggle with stress, fatigue, and burnout find freedom and empowerment by optimizing their health, finding balance, and upgrading their energy so they can live life on their own terms.
Combining her diverse professional background, and her unique approach integrates Functional Nutrition and Human Design she guide clients on a highly individualized journey of self-discovery, observation, and integration by removing physical, mental, and emotional confusion and overwhelm, simply taking them back to the very basics of health through their Human Design.
She believes that when our bodies function optimally, our personalities and souls can shine through everything that we think and do with empowering clarity and ease.
Naomi resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and can often be found exploring the area with her puppy girl, Coco Pop!
Connect with Naomi on: Instagram
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