“Hey, Eva… I just found out my Human Design Type, and I’m trying to learn more about what it means. What should I know about being a [Manifestor/Generator/Projector/Reflector]?”
Welcome to the rabbit hole of all rabbit holes, my friend. 😄
If you’ve just discovered Human Design, looking into your Human Design Type is a great place to start. Consider this your official introduction to the gifts and challenges of the 4 (or 5, depending on your approach!) Human Design Types.
What Are Human Design Types (+ Why They Matter)
Your Human Design Type describes your fundamental energetic role in the world.
It’s the key to understanding how your energy operates + how you interact with others.
In very (and I mean, very) simple terms:
- Manifestors get The Thing started
- Generators provide the energy to actually build The Thing
- Projectors guide the process of building The Thing
- Reflectors tell everyone how well The Thing is going
Your Human Design Type determines your Strategy: a specific behavior pattern that enables you to move through the world with less resistance + supports you in becoming the person you were always meant to be.
The Type → Strategy pipeline looks like this:
- Manifestors → Informing
- Generators → Waiting to Respond
- Projectors → Waiting for an Invitation
- Reflectors → Waiting a Lunar Cycle
Once you’re living your Human Design Type’s Strategy, you will then experience the rewards as your Type’s Signature: Peace (for Manifestors), Satisfaction (for Generators & MGs), Success (for Projectors), or Surprise (for Reflectors)
I’ve found this little sequence to be rather accurate during my own Human Design experiment.
Wait… How Many Human Design Types Are There?
In terms of Human Design mechanics, there are only 4 “official” Human Design Types: Manifestor, Generator, Projector, and Reflector.
However, you will often hear about a fifth type called a Manifesting Generator.
A Manifesting Generator (or MG for short) is a subtype of Generator, designed to follow Generator Strategy (Waiting to Respond).
However, there are some notable differences in how Pure Generators versus Manifesting Generators operate, which is why people (myself included!) often choose to talk about MGs separately.
How to Find Out Your Human Design Type
Free options
If you want to find out your Human Design Type (for free), I recommend starting with the Jovian Archive chart generator.
It will give you the basic information you need to get started without overwhelming you with too much extra “stuff” right off the bat.
(It’s also where I got my first Human Design chart done. #memorylane)
Keep in mind that certain parts of your chart can change every few minutes (e.g., your Variables), so you will need an accurate birth time to make the most out of this system.
Paid options
If you’re looking for more advanced Human Design software, I personally use and recommend Neutrino Design App.
It’s clean, it’s simple, and the $40/year price tag feels fair for the amount of features and extra information they offer.
Genetic Matrix is another popular (paid) option; however, I saw a decent number of people complain about chart generation mistakes, which is why I chose to go with Neutrino Design for my practice.
Introduction to Human Design Types
The Manifestor
Aura: Closed & repelling
Strategy: To Inform
Not-Self Theme: Anger
Signature: Peace
Manifestors are here to get things started.
A “doer” by nature, the Manifestor can go from idea to execution in the blink of an eye. They are comfortable with solitude and can easily “get going” without assistance from other people.
That said, they are not meant to be lone wolves (at least not all the time).
Their true gift lies in initiation, and they need the gifts of the other four Types to bring their projects and ideas to completion.
Society tends to glamorize the Manifestor’s ability to act independently while also being afraid of their power.
Manifestors can sometimes be perceived as wild, uncontrollable, and even dangerous by the people around them, which can lead to more and more obstacles being placed in the Manifestor’s path.
That’s where the Manifestor Strategy of Informing comes in.
This Strategy actually quite simple: if you are a Manifestor, you need to inform others of your decisions before taking action on them.
For example, if you wake up one day and decide to go vegan, you need to let the people you live with know about the change in your dietary habits before running off to the grocery store to load up on tofu.
This will ensure your trailblazing ideas meet much less push-back than you’re probably used to–and you may even find yourself getting unexpected support from others to make your vision come to life.
Remember, informing does not mean you’re asking for permission; you are simply showing respect to people who might be affected by your decisions by letting them know what you’re up to ahead of time.
The Generator
Aura: Open & enveloping
Strategy: Waiting to Respond
Not-Self Theme: Frustration
Signature: Satisfaction
Generators are the great builders & creative powerhouses of our world.
Their Defined Sacral Center gives them access to a large, regenerative source of power that gets replenished every time they sleep–as long as they are correctly using up that energy during their waking hours.
It is often said that Generators are here to work + to become a master at what they do. However, if you are a Generator, not any old job will do.
More than any other Type, the Generator needs to be lit up by the work that they do. The right work allows Generators to fully use up their Sacral energy each day and brings them a deep sense of Satisfaction.
(If you’re falling into bed each night completely exhausted but proud of what you’ve accomplished, it’s a sign you’re doing the Generator life right.)
So how does a Generator find the “right work” for them? By following their Strategy of Waiting to Respond.
Hmm, “waiting to respond”… Let’s break it down a bit.
If you are a Generator, your open & enveloping Aura draws people and opportunities to you like a magnet (← as long as you do the “Waiting” part, a.k.a. avoid initiating) and your Sacral response (← this is the “to Respond” bit) tells you whether those opportunities are worth pursuing.
That Sacral response might show up as:
- An “ah-uh” (yes) or “uhn-uh” (no) sound coming from your belly
- Seeing/feeling your body “light up” on the inside, starting from the belly area/the Sacral Chakra
- A physical movement towards/away from something (more common with MGs)
The most important thing for Generators is resisting the impulse to initiate and “make things happen.”
Your most aligned opportunities will probably find you in ways that seem quite random (and often fly in the face of conventional life advice).
For example, you may spend hours combing through job boards because that’s what you’re “supposed to” do… But then the perfect job you didn’t even know existed (!) lands in your lap because of an offhand conversation with your barista.
Welcome to the Generator experience, my friend. It’s quite a ride. 😄
*The Manifesting Generator
The Definitive Book of Human Design describes an MG as “a Manifestor compressed to fit inside a Generator vehicle”… And I’m inclined to agree.
(If you’re an MG, go back and read the descriptions for Manifestor and Generator Types first–then come back here.)
Manifesting Generators retain the main qualities of the Generator Type (the badass creative builder energy + the Strategy of Waiting to Respond) while moving through life at a much quicker pace (akin to that of a Manifestor).
Unlike Generators, MGs are not here to master things. They are the ultimate multi-passionate creators, designed to jump from one thing to the next + create something completely unique by weaving together their diverse range of experiences.
In addition to that, MGs have an eye for efficiency and will often skip steps they deem unnecessary to get to their destination faster.
Just like Pure Generators, MGs are designed to do work that they love–but the cost of not doing so tends to manifest quicker, and in more explosive ways.
The most important (and perhaps hardest) thing to remember about being a Manifesting Generator is that your Strategy remains Waiting to Respond.
The Manifestor part of your will probably want to get out there and “make things happen”… But you still need to wait for your Sacral “yes” if you want things to unfold smoothly.
The Projector
Aura: Focused & absorbing
Strategy: Waiting for an Invitation
Not-Self Theme: Bitterness
Signature: Success
Projectors are here to guide the other Types (particularly Generators) in using their energy more efficiently.
Their focused, penetrating aura + their talent for recognizing the capabilities of others make them exceptional advisors, coaches, and mentors. They see things other Types often miss, and are brilliant at guiding others by asking the right questions.
However, just because you see how something could be improved, doesn’t mean you should go around telling people what to do (at least not if you want it to be well-received).
That’s why the Projector Strategy is called Waiting for an Invitation.
When it comes to the big things in your life–such as career changes, buying a home, or entering into a new relationship–Projectors are designed to wait for another person to:
a) Recognize what they bring to the table and
b) Pull up the proverbial chair for them by officially inviting them to share their gifts.
This process is a bit more formal than the Generator Strategy of Waiting to Respond.
While the Generator’s Sacral can respond to anything from a cool social media post to the way the light hits their desk that day, the Projector is waiting for a more substantial invitation–one that usually comes in the form of a verbal ask.
“You’re so good at explaining things to people! Would you mind taking a second look at my new website to see if there’s anything I can do to make it clearer? I’m happy to pay you for it, of course.”
Think of it like waiting for an investor to recognize & formally request access to your specific gifts and talents–in exchange for ample compensation, of course.
Please note that this Strategy only applies to the “big stuff” in your life. You don’t need a formal invitation to go to the store and pick up your groceries, okay?
More importantly, you ALSO don’t need an invitation to start a blog or Instagram page to share the projects you are working on.
In fact, doing so can be very beneficial for you, as it allows other people to see what you have to offer and extend their invitations accordingly.
The Reflector
Aura: Sampling & resistant
Strategy: Waiting a lunar cycle
Not-Self Theme: Disappointment
Signature: Surprise
The rarest of all types (consisting of only 1% of the population), Reflectors are the mirrors of Human Design.
They are here to sample, reflect, and judge the quality of their environment in order to tell us what’s working–and what’s not.
Reflectors have an incredible gift for sensing the physical, emotional, and spiritual health of people around them, which makes them excellent facilitators and diagnosticians.
A Reflector can walk into a room and instantly be able to tell you who has had a bad day, who needs a bit of encouragement, and who can be trusted to see the project through till the end.
(Strangely enough, they are usually not all that interested in formally “studying” themselves or others, despite having access to this gift. Go figure.)
If you are a Reflector, your environment is everything for you.
Do not stay in places where your reflections are not welcome, and make sure to give yourself plenty of alone time on the regular.
All Reflectors have a special relationship with the Moon. They have a Lunar Strategy, which means they need to wait at least one lunar cycle (28 days) before making a big decision like buying a house or accepting a new job.
Your perception of the decision at hand will probably change drastically as the Moon changes its position throughout the month.
Your job during this time is to talk about this decision with as many different people as possible: not to seek their advice, but to see your thought “reflected back” through their Aura.
Keeping a daily journal or working with lunar transit charts can also be helpful.
(My Reflector grandmother has kept a daily journal recording the weather patterns + her blood pressure + most important events of each day for as long as I can remember.
Coincidence? Maybe. But I think there’s some unconscious Reflector magic at work there.)
The Best Place To Learn More About Your Human Design Type
I’m currently working on a longer piece on the intricacies of each Human Design Type (e.g., how Responding differs for Generators vs MGs)…
But where do you go while you’re waiting for that to drop?
Personally, I would love to see more people interacting with the source material at the beginning of their Human Design journey.
I believe there’s something magical about the original language of the transmission–and you owe it to yourself to experience it at least once.
To that end, I’d recommend getting your hands on a copy of The Definitive Book of Human Design, and reading through the Type descriptions in there.
Going Beyond Your Human Design Type
Now that you know a bit about your Human Design Type & Strategy… Where do you go next?
The next obvious piece to look at is your Authority (the way you make decisions).
Many people stop there, citing the need to focus on your Strategy & Authority above all else.
Personally, I find that logic a bit iffy, especially because the founder of Human Design didn’t even start talking about these concepts until about five-ish years into his teaching career.
(And when he did? Well, let’s just say that the approach he took became FAR too dogmatic for my taste. 🙄 #cultleadervibes)
In addition to that, even if these concepts do resonate with you, it will probably take you a while to begin trusting your Strategy & Authority…
And I find it helpful to give the mind a few other things to hold onto in the meantime.
A few concepts you may want to Google next:
- Your Profile
- Your Incarnation Cross
- Your Environment & Digestion Variables
^^ And there’s plenty more where that came from, if you happen to be an insatiably curious cookie like me.
Check out my guide on how to learn Human Design as a beginner if you feel ready to explore some concepts in more depth.
What If I Don’t Resonate With My Human Design Type?
First of all, that’s perfectly fine. Truly.
I’m not as keen on it as most Human Design practitioners myself (partially due to how cult-y the founder of Human Design became when he began incorporating it into his teachings).
Second of all… If Type doesn’t resonate with you but you still feel the pull to explore the Human Design system in more detail, try looking at your Gate activations instead.
Start by looking up:
- Your Conscious Sun Gate
- Your Conscious Earth Gate
… And let your intuition guide you from there on out. 😉
An Invitation to Respond To–In Your Own Time
Your Human Design Type is just the beginning. There are hundreds of little nuances that make up someone’s chart, and it can take years of study to begin to see the subtle, yet important, connections between them.
If you’re intrigued by the Human Design system (and my approach to Human Design resonates with you), consider this your official invitation to book a 90-minute Foundational Reading with me.
During our session, I will introduce you to the most important elements of your Human Design chart (e.g. your Profile) while also touching on a few more “advanced” subjects you might be curious about (e.g., your Incarnation Cross).
You’ll walk away with a solid understanding of your unique Design + plenty of avenues for further exploration and experimentation.
