5 Misconceptions About Human Design Types
When I learned about my Human Design type, I thought there was some mistake.
Even though I had my birth certificate, I thought someone had gone on a lunch break and forgot to write my actual birth time.
Maybe they guessed and goofed.
I also tried rectifying my birth time (which people do when they don’t know their exact birth time), and it still made me a Projector.
Womp womp.
Naturally, I figured something was wrong with ME, not the type itself, and forced myself to be the Projector stereotype.
My type felt like a limitation rather than an opportunity for growth. I'd eventually learn that generalizing types aren't always helpful.
So whether you love your type or think you were born at the wrong time (like I did), let's talk about misconceptions when it comes to Human Design types.
And shed some light on why some of your type just doesn't feel right.
Misconception #1: Your Human Design type stands alone.
To understand how your Human Design type works, think of food: You have a burger, but the burger is a sum of parts.
Your Human Design chart is made up of two charts:
Your design (red side) was written three months before your birth.
Your personality (dark side), which was written at the moment of birth.
These two charts were combined to cook the end result: your type.
For example, here's my design chart (Reflector):
My personality chart (Reflector):
My complete chart (Projector):
I’m a Projector, but I have two Reflector charts that make up my Projector chart.
When I experimented with my Human Design, I also read up on Reflectors to supplement my understanding of my type.
But it’s important to remember that your type is your type. Your separated charts offer another layer of depth, but your BASELINE for type, aura, and strategy is based on your combined chart.
Note that I said baseline.
(Keep reading to see how your chart can feel different from your type).
Misconception #2: Rarity matters
A few months ago, I told a friend who works in the medical field that I had an AB-negative blood type (rarest type). He proceeded to laugh and say, “Of course you do! You always gotta be the special, unique one.” 😆🙄
My rare blood type doesn’t mean anything… except that people always ask me to donate blood, or when I have babies, they consider the Rh factor.
The same thing happens in Human Design.
Reflectors are the rarest Human Design type, followed by Manifestors.
Lunar authority, self-projected, mental, and ego are the rarest authorities.
All it means is that it may be more challenging to find other people to relate to based on these factors alone. Or that it’s hard to find information about these types and authorities.
I’m guilty of rarely (see what I did there?) writing about Reflectors because Reflector clients are few and far between. While I can talk about them from a textbook perspective, I don’t have as many conversational experiences.
There are so many cool things about Human Design outside of rarity, like:
Channels that mark mystical traits.
Channels that reveal specific portions of your chart that follow another type’s strategy. For example, a non-Projector can have a “projected channel” where they’re encouraged to wait for an invitation.
Experiencing strategy differently from others that share your type based on what centers you do/don’t have defined.
Misconception #3: Your type determines how many naps you need
As a Projector, I generally don’t take naps, despite what I’ve been taught about Projectors.
If I swam for three hours, cooked every meal, ran errands, and did five readings in one day, yes, I may take a nap.
So would you, regardless of your type!
And if you menstruate, you’ll likely experience fluctuating energy based on which phase you’re in in your cycle.
I’ve talked to…
Manifestors, Projectors, and Reflectors who are comfortable doing athletics, manual labor, working extended hours, and being in a go-go-go environment.
Generators and Manifesting Generators who feel like their type is incorrect because they’re always tired.
Your chart’s centers, not your type, talk about how energy moves (or doesn’t) throughout your chart.
Plus, you’re human. Your type can help you create a structure supporting your work/rest cycles, but it’s not a hard and fast rule.
Misconception #4 (for coaches): Your type is your coaching/guidance style
Manifestors don’t have to be abrasive or loud, despite being designed to inform.
Just as Reflectors don’t have to be tranquil guides gently working with their client.
How you guide, teach, or lead others (through the context of Human Design) goes well beyond your type.
For example:
The throat center reveals your tone(s).
The incarnation cross can show where your life purpose intertwines with your practice.
Quarter divulges where you shine in your client’s journey and, potentially, your niche.
On that last note, some are designed to:
Work with clients to conceive ideas and have breakthroughs.
Bring conceived ideas to life and guide clients through the complex process of teetering over the cusp.
Walk and coach clients through the process when they know their intentions (not necessarily their destination).
Navigate endings and conclusions, guiding people to finish a project.
The "ending and conclusion" one is the base for how I conduct Human Design readings. I often get clients who want to dissolve narratives/contracts, recently got divorced, or just completed a significant transit/life crisis.
I used to punish myself for not creating “long-term coaching packages,” or I thought something was wrong with me because “people didn’t want to come back for seconds.”
While my Projector type is called “the guide, the energy manager,” it didn’t tell me how or where I shined as a guide.
Today, I love the fact I do one-and-done readings. People return for more when they reach another completion period, and I’m all about it.
Misconception #5: Your type’s not-self is the enemy
Every story needs someone to be the bad guy, and the not-self says, “Why is it always me?!”
Plot twist: the not-self isn’t the villain. It’s just misunderstood.
I encourage you to see the not-self as a guide in your personal cosmology.
For example, my Projector not-self is bitterness.
I used to speed-read Human Design charts for free (I did 100 in 30 days five years ago) to learn the system. What initially felt great quickly turned to bitterness when I burnt out.
So bitterness showed up, saying, “Aaaand what did you learn?”
Me: “I need to be compensated, but I’m not ready to charge for readings! I need to learn more and more.”
Bitterness: “Why?”
Me: “How else can I compete with other readers? How do I validate myself to clients?”
Bitterness: “And you need to… why?”
Me: “Because… because…” (my fists ball up as bitterness keeps bugging me), “I DON’T KNOW, OKAY?”
Bitterness: “You mean… it’s not… of… your… self?” 😉
Me: “Fine. You’re right. But it doesn’t mean I like this!” 😩
My not-self guide means well. But it's also a troll that pokes me until I relent and have a conversation.
Yet, it works.
