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The Enneagram 6w7 Type

What is the Enneagram 6w7 personality type? What are its key traits, strengths, weaknesses and fears? We’ll answer these questions in this article.

This is one of the 18 Enneagram Wing Types, which don’t exhibit traits of just one profile, but blend two adjacent ones. The 6w7 is a blend of the Enneagram 6 and the Enneagram 7. They are both part of the Head triad, which makes for a cerebral personality.

We’ll start by talking about how this profile is composed of 6 and 7, then talk about its core traits. We’ll round off with a field manual for the Enneagram 6w7: a summary of its core strengths, weaknesses, fears and desires.

What is the Enneagram 6w7 Type?

First, let’s clarify what the Enneagram 6w7 is. It means an Enneagram 6 with a 7 Wing. It helps if you understand the 9 Enneagram Profiles in some depth.

If you have a 6w7 personality, it means you’re predominantly an Enneagram 6, but exhibit some traits from the adjacent profile, number 7. It’s also possible to be a pure 6, or a 6w5.

If you want an approximation of what a 6w7 looks like, take the core 6 and 7 traits and blend them together, with 6 dominating. If you know somebody who is primarily a 6 but has significant traits of 7, they might well be a 6w7.

The folks at personalitydata.org found that 10.3% of Enneagram 6s exhibit a 7 wing. 88.3% are pure 6s, while the other wing type, 6w5, makes up the remaining 1.4%.

Remember, the 6w7 is predominantly a 6 but shows significant 7 traits.

6s are great at observing, analysing situations and coming up with complex solutions (The Loyalist), while 7s are outgoing, larger than life and optimistic (The Enthusiast).

6w7s are predominantly a 6, so are outer-focused, reliable, keen to contribute to group tasks and great at thinking through problems, but the 7 wing means they exhibit some of the core Enthusiast traits. So they’re also extroverted, live for pleasure and love coming up with plans and ideas. They tend to be more sociable, confident and energetic than a typical 6.

In a nutshell, the 6w7 is highly motivated to be inquisitive, skeptical and analytical, while exuding energy and vivacity.

For your information, I refer to personality types as “it” because they’re abstract profiles derived from real-world data, detached from any one person. Though the Enneagram possess huge explanatory power, nobody is a cookie-cutter 6w7.

The Core Traits

The Enneagram 6w7 Type is called the Confidant because it is at once skeptical and cautious of people, yet loves socialising and forming bonds. Its basic desire is to plan, strategise and solve problems while living life to the fullest and inspiring others.

Like a typical 6, it fears being controlled or betrayed. This contrasts with the strong 7 drive to socialise and build a wide circle of friends and associates. That said, its extroversion can soften 6’s reservedness and suspicion.

As with all Enneagram Profiles, there are downsides to the 6w7. For one thing, the Type 7 can be polyannish, always on-the-go and ultra-energetic.

Combine this with 6’s need to take action and be a changemaker using knowledge and facts, and you can get a nasty combination. The 6w7 can wind up obsessing over problems and overwork. The 7 is poor at completing projects, which may jeopardise 6’s work ethic and focus.

The 6w7 really doesn’t want to be betrayed by others. It needs to feel reassured and safe in its relationships, and is unusually loyal. As a result, it can be overly suspicious and yet overly loyal too. It’s prone to being needy and clingy once a relationship is established, because it fears that others have ulterior motives.

Whether we have a 6w7 personality or not, we can learn from its successes and struggles. It’s a universal fact that if our prime directive is to analyse the facts and solve problems intellectually while also being sociable and active, we can end up divided between work and play, suspicion and loyalty, and inner focus and outer focus.

The best professions for the Confidant are those that favour problem-solving and extroversion, like police officers, nurses and property agents.

The Enneagram 6w7 Field Manual

The core fear of the 6w7 is to be betrayed and feel lost or insecure, so it can be suspicious, over-analytical and needy.

Its core drives are to be supported by others and feel loved and appreciated.

The strengths of the 6w7 are its work ethic, problem-solving skills, loyalty and energy.

Its weaknesses are its neediness, franticness and suspicion of others.

The 6w7 is at its best when it has the opportunity to contribute unique solutions in a supportive environment.

Master the Enneagram with my series of articles on the Enneagram Wing Types

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