There’s this thing called Human Design. And I’m obsessed.
I got the book. I take the courses. I consume Human Design content practically daily. I’ve also started offering Human Design sessions professionally since I love it so much. And I can’t help but filter everything I’ve learned about HD into my interactions and how people behave.
However, I did not start off that way. It took two years from my initial introduction before I dove in head first into learning all I could about it…
A darling friend of mine messaged me one night in 2015 and said I ought to look up my Human Design to learn my energy type. Of course, my mind was like, “My what now?” … But then she told me I simply must look it up. That it had helped enlighten her about her own aura and energy.
I popped on over to jovianarchive.com to input my birth information per her suggestion. Next thing I see is a human-shaped chart, containing both white and colored squares and diamonds, linked together with red, black, and white lines.
And I learned that the five different energy types are meant to engage with the world in specific ways, based on the shapes activated (colored in) within the chart.
While the rest of the chart was overwhelming and new… I knew I had to look into what it meant to be a “projector” energy type in Human Design.
When it comes to your human design,
your energy type, strategy, and authority is the best place to start.
Then, when the spark of inspiration to learn about human design circled back around to me in 2017, there was no turning back! And I’m so excited to start sharing more information about it!
Before I dive in, here’s a bit about Human Design (HD):
Human Design is a conglomeration of ancient and modern sciences. An esoteric combination of astrology, the Kabbalah, I Ching, the chakra system, human biochemistry, and quantum physics. Through these foundations, your birthdate, time, and birthplace produce a Human Design chart. This chart is called a BodyGraph, or what I like to call your “energy blueprint”.
In your energy blueprint, you get valuable information about your aura, how your energy works, your strengths, challenges or points of potential conditioning, and so much more!
Basically, your human design chart maps out how you’re meant to be your fully individual self in this lifetime.
I see Human Design as a massive permission slip from the universe to be the most authentic form of yourself—who you would naturally be if conditioning hadn’t gotten in the way (but that happens to everyone, so don’t feel bad about that or if pieces don’t resonate right away, if at all!).
Understanding the different aspects of your Human Design can show you how to optimize your energy, your environment, and so much more—to be more aligned with who you really are.
You with me so far? 🙂
Now I will tell you… Human Design is ridiculously layered, and I’m constantly learning more about it, and all of it is fascinating to me. I love learning about it, and I love sharing it with people.
That being said, there are only a couple of elements that you really need to know to start putting your Human Design into practice. In this, you’ll start to feel more in alignment with more ease and hopefully less resistance in your life.
The core aspects of your HD “blueprint” are your energy type,
which designates your strategy (how you’re meant to interact with the world around you).
The other core piece to know is your authority (how you best make decisions based on your chart’s characteristics).
How about a brief breakdown of the energy types?
Manifestors –
The initiators of the energy types! Their aura is naturally repelling, but I prefer to say it feels self-contained–like a contained sphere around their body. The manifestor is one of the easiest aura types for me to intuitively feel when I first meet them. It literally feels like their energy stays within an invisible wall not far from their physical body, like a protective shield, that no one can penetrate without permission.
The manifestor’s strategy is to inform whoever might be impacted or involved in what they want to do. And then they go do the thing they feel the urge to do. They like to do things on their own since they have these urges that must be acted upon. They are the Regina George in the driver’s seat claiming, “Get in, loser, we’re going shopping!” And then everyone else can decide to either get in or get out of the way.
However, manifestors are also known as non-energy types since they lack sacral definition. This means they work best in short, powerful bursts since they have a motor center activating their throat, and then resting when they need to replenish their energy stores. I’ve noticed their creative bursts and restorative times operate a little like seasons, rather than on a day-to-day basis.
Reflectors –
The mirrors of society, reflectors are. They are the only environmental type, which means the reflector strategy is to wait for the lunar cycle of 28 days before making any big or important decisions. They may feel different every single day based on where the moon is! They wait so long to make sure they feel the decision through their whole chart before centering in on their best choice.
Reflectors are distinct in that they have no active or defined centers in their HD chart at all. So, they are a non-energy type as well, meaning they should listen to and follow their flow of energy as much as possible. This means they are constantly sampling everyone else’s energy and seeing what it’s like to be all types of people.
Their aura is gentle and also a little protective, so they don’t absorb too much energy from other people. The environment is very important to reflectors, as they reflect the environment and energies around them. If the reflector in your midst feels out of sorts, something is not right for them in the environment or the people nearby. They are very sensitive, so they need to be able to move around or choose to be around different people until they feel good.
Generators –
The builders and doers of the energy types! They are the only types who create that powerful, magnetic life force energy through their sacral center. While EVERYONE is meant to do work and other activities that excite them, the generator is like the light bulb that’s found the room it’s meant to be lighting up when they do work they enjoy. Everyone wants to come in that room!
Generators have an enveloping aura about them, and it’s particularly sparkly and magnetic when generators do what they love. Generators are meant to master their craft, get down in their process, and spend their days doing what they love. They often focus on one thing for an extended time. Generators are in it for the long haul when they are committed. (They were the energy type the 9-to-5 mentality and work grind catered to.) That being said, they are not meant to initiate.
Instead, the generator strategy is to wait to respond to the world around them. Whether it’s an idea, opportunity, or question that gets them excited to take action… Thus, responding to that stimuli! They’ll naturally get a physical yes/no response to whatever is presented to them through their defined sacral center. If it’s a yes, then they’ll have the energy to go forth and do it for hours upon hours. If it’s a no they feel, and they do it anyway, then their sacral energy will deplete and they will burn out quickly. Life is meant to come to generators… as well as manifesting generators!
Manifesting Generators (MG) –
The beautiful energy type with the sacral base of a generator with the manifestor motor connection to the throat center. MGs share many similarities with generators. The enveloping aura, very sparkly and magnetic when doing what lights them up, and lots of energy to go and do all the things. They even share the same strategy of waiting to respond to what comes to them in order to get excited and act on it (or not).
The main difference is that the MGs are the multi-passionate multitaskers of the energy types. It’s important to note that it’s okay for them to quit things if they no longer feel lit up by them. They are very energetic and can get a lot done quickly (though they may skip steps). Their energy is meant to bounce from one exciting thing to the next as they feel lit up by them. This is opposed to the generator who optimizes their energy by knuckling into an enjoyable task for extended periods of time. MGs may or may not finish something before moving on to another, and that’s okay.
Projectors – my own energy type!
Projectors are the guides of the energy types, and we come in a wide array of chart variations. We have a cone-shaped probing aura that is meant to see into others and situations very easily. Projectors are easily able to see what’s working, what isn’t, and how to make it work even better. We just need to ensure we have permission to offer advice, or else people will think we are a know-it-all bossy-pants (Hermione, anyone?). Due to our ability to hone in and make things more efficient, we get a lot done in a short amount of time. This is interesting since projectors are suggested to work for only 4 hours a day as a non-energy type. The rest of the projector’s day is supposed to be filled with enriching activities. Like learning about what interests us, making ourselves visible so people can find us to invite us in, and resting.
The strategy as a projector is to wait for the invitation to feel success. This means waiting to be recognized for your gifts and who you are, to be invited into opportunities. This is more for big decisions or those that involve other people, as opposed to day-to-day decisions… So, to enter into a new relationship, a new job, a new place to live (if moving in with someone), etc., projectors should feel recognized and have a clear invitation (whether physical or energetic) to say yes or no to. That’s how projectors use their energy correctly since they don’t have a motor connected to the throat and no sacral energy either. I’ve noticed that being recognized by others often means being able to recognize myself first.
My Reflections as a Projector
This “wait for the invitation” immediately struck me.
In a reflection on jobs past, I noticed that I had been invited into almost every job I ever had.
- A friend recruited me to be a delivery girl for a local cafe one summer in high school.
- My writing abilities were invited to work for a family member’s company to help with writing their IT newsletter. (Good ol’ fashioned nepotism at play too, but I really was known for my writing ability.)
- A producer I had met while working a media internship for my university’s athletic department invited me to apply for an internship at the local news station (which I ended up working for beyond the internship).
- I was invited to apply for the communications job where I ended up working for two years before I moved to New York.
- Once in NYC, a wonderful woman I met asked me to help with editing work. She has since kept inviting me to help out in various capacities for the companies she assists.
- Working on one play within my first two months of arriving in New York introduced me to many actors and directors who would then later invite me to be a part of their productions. All of which I had a blast with when I could participate.
When I thought back to when I was applying for jobs and internships, almost none of them worked out. It felt incredibly draining to have to try and prove myself to people I didn’t know. Almost every single job I did end up having and succeeding in, I had been invited into in some way. Someone had recognized what I brought to the table and said, “Hey, we want to work with her!”
Isn’t that funny how naturally the strategy as a projector played out before even knowing my energy type?
That alone blew my mind about being a projector. I could immediately see how “waiting for the invitation” had served me already. That’s part of the magic in my human design!
(One of my favorite things about doing readings is seeing how folks are already living in alignment with their design—so magical!)
The other aspect of the projector’s energy type that struck me was how much rest projectors need. Oh, the resting…
All energy types require proper rest, however, society was not built to sustain non-energy types: projectors, manifestors, and reflectors. The go-go-go, put your head down, and do the work 9-to-5 mentality comes from the generator and manifesting generator types that have run the world for so long.
Projectors are one of the newer types to the planet, only arriving in the last couple hundred years. That hustle and grind is not the way of the projector. We are here to help usher in a new age of being. To show that the hustle lifestyle is neither sustainable nor desirable for everyone. That rest can be just as important and impactful as doing.
And you know? Growing up, I thought I was such an oddball in my family due to my sleep patterns. I was always the one sleeping in on the weekends. Everyone else would have this magical ability to be awake before 8 a.m. just fine. Unable to control myself, I fell asleep in class often, particularly in the class after lunch. And I was the biggest night owl of the bunch too. Funnily enough, this is all indicated in another part of my Human Design chart, but that’s for another day!
The best comment I ever got from a teacher who caught me sleeping was: “If you don’t wake up, I’m going to decorate you like a Christmas tree.” Even when I started working a 9-to-5, at times I’d have to fight off the ZZZ monster mid-afternoon. Guess my projector aura was done early, ha! Yet I still got my work done, often quicker than expected. But of course, I couldn’t let those in my office know that…
These were the basic points that I gathered from my energy type upon my first introduction to human design. Since then, I’ve discovered even more of my HD that has helped me step more into my power and to trust my natural flow of energy. Let me tell you… It helps far more than you know!
I feel more comfortable in my own skin knowing that I naturally operate in this way. I love that this system can help me discover and experiment to find more alignment for myself. And I know that this system could help sooo many people.
And don’t you know, projectors are here to master systems too? 😉
There will certainly be more to come through my experiment in living more in alignment by following my human design. Stay tuned!
Do you know your energy type yet?
Get your birth date, time (as exact as possible), and your birth location… And head on over to one of the many Human Design chart generators for your free human design chart:
- jovianarchive.com (the OG)
- mybodygraph.com (my fave for channel/gate names & descriptions)
- myhumandesign.com (good for learning helpful variables like digestion, environment, etc.)
- geneticmatrix.com (in-depth, used by professional readers)
There might be a lot of information and the chart could look overwhelming. However, just start with your energy type, strategy, and authority. That’s all you need to start embodying your true self for a clearer sense of who you are and how your body communicates to you.
Then come back and tell me what your energy type is! I’d love to hear who has found me over here and what type/authority you have. 🙂
Or if you want to dive in for a reading, you can book one over here!