Key Characteristics of Enneatype 7
Spontaneous, Enthusiastic, Energetic, Optimistic, Cheerful, Uninhibited, Curious, Sharp, Versatile, Visionary, Distractible, Scattered, Indecisive, Bold, Practical, Multi-Tasker, Fast Learner, Busy, Plan Ahead, Anticipatory, Anxious, Frustrated, Directionless, Lost in Life (in both senses).
General Description
Sevens want to experience positive feelings so they are always looking for things to get excited about, and they always appear optimistic and enthusiastic to keep up the (often subconscious) façade. They lack the trust that life can be naturally joyous so they often plan their activities well in advance, so they can always be sure of doing something that will bring them happiness. Sevens are naturally charming and talkative, but they can sometimes seem wired or shallow, because they are so busy ‘doing’ that they lose contact with ‘being’.
The Three Sub-Types (or variants)
Self-Preservation Sevens
- Energetic, joyful and motivated networkers who often embrace unconventional lifestyles or family styles.
- They are friendly, cheerful, fun-loving, sensual and indulgent.
- They love the good things in life but risk becoming self-interested and pleasure-seeking.
- They are down-to-earth, practical and pragmatic, but also opportunistic and good at getting what they want.
- They build a close network of people whom they trust and can rely on, but can be distrusting of people they don’t know.
- They would benefit from inquiring into their self-indulgent tendencies to get in touch with their deeper feelings and notice how these tendencies shape their relationships.
Sexual Sevens
- Romantic, idealistic dreamers who need to imagine something better than the ordinary mundane reality.
- They have a subconscious need to avoid the boring, painful or frightening aspects of life, so they see the world through rose-tinted glasses.
- They are inclined to end jobs and relationships that have become boring and predictable (love ’em and leave ’em).
- Their lack of objectivity means they often embellish or exaggerate the truth, and it also makes them suggestible, gullible and easily led.
- Their light-hearted positivity is their way of avoiding their deeper emotions, which they perceive are negative and unpleasant.
- They would benefit from exploring why they live in a rose-tinted fantasy world, and why they avoid or deny the negative aspects of reality.
Social Sevens
- Countertype – Can look like Twos.
- Responsible, kind, helpful and generous, and will gladly sacrifice their share to benefit others.
- They subconsciously sense their indulgent inner nature but offset it by avoiding excess and trying to be good and pure.
- They are concerned with the alleviation of pain and suffering in others, but also subconsciously in themselves.
- They are visionary and imaginative planners, but can subconsciously undermine their efforts when it comes to fulfilling their plans.
- They would benefit from inquiring into their anti-indulgent/indulgent nature and their motives for helping others to see how it masks their inner feeling of deficiency.
Further Information About Enneatype 7
Evolutionary Behaviours
(when safe and relaxed)
- Sevens become more focused and profound, like healthy Fives.
- Sevens become more discerning and disciplined, like healthy Ones.
Devolutionary Behaviours
(when stressed)
- Sevens become perfectionistic and critical, like unhealthy Ones.
- Sevens become more self-centred and detached, like unhealthy Fives.
Sevens with a Six Wing
Sevens with an Eight Wing
General Advice for Sevens
- Acknowledge that your need for constant distraction or stimulation is an avoidance mechanism, and tune in to what you are really feeling (or trying to avoid feeling).
- Notice how your feelings actually feel in your body – it will help you to discover that authentic feelings can add depth and colour to your life.
- Realise that what you are really seeking will not be found by trying to “get it all”, but by being present with what is already here and now.
- Practice body-awareness (i.e. quietly feeling the presence of your entire body) to bring you out of your mind and ground yourself in your body.
Core Beliefs & Strategies of Enneatype 7
Lost Essential Quality: Joy
Essential Joy is the expression of a warm and open heart. It includes a range of positive feelings from peaceful appreciation, to fundamental happiness, to abundant joy.
Mental Ideal (Holy Idea): Wisdom
The mind’s sense of the lost essential quality – the wisdom that comes from knowing that the divine plan/life/universe is unfolding perfectly in each and every moment.
Emotional Ideal (Virtue): Clarity (Sobriety)
The heart’s sense of the lost essential quality – the clear and direct (sober) experience of life that comes from accepting and allowing everything just as it is.
Core Belief: I am Deprived / Lacking / Not Enough (sometimes hidden beneath “I am too much”)
The loss of the essential quality (joy), the mental ideal (wisdom) and the emotional ideal (clarity) contribute to the development a core belief of being deprived.
Core Motivation (to disprove the core belief): To be Satisfied
In an attempt to correct the core belief (deprived) and to reconnect with the essential quality (joy), the mental ideal (wisdom) and the emotional ideal (clarity), Sevens develop a strong desire to be satisfied. They fear their desires won’t be met so they try to find satisfaction themselves.
Mental Strategy (Fixation): Planning
The ego-mind doesn’t see the inherent wisdom of the universe so they plan their lives to ensure they will always be happy and satisfied.
Emotional Strategy (Passion): Greed (Gluttony)
They don’t know exactly what they want so they choose everything.
Ego Ideal (what we aspire to be): To be Happy and Composed
The ego-ideal (to be happy) is an aspirational idealised idea of ourself that incorporates the lost essential quality (Joy).