Other Characteristic Traits And Psychodynamic Considerations

Bon Vivant

As an expression of a life dedicated to hedonism, this character has the ability to feel good and to convince himself that everything is fine. He seeks pleasant environments for himself and for others. His image is usually neat, elitist, and friendly, in polite ways, reinforcing the power of his seduction. He likes to involve others in what he considers the "good life," wanting them to have fun with him. This is the most attractive aspect of his demeanor, and a way to maintain his narcissistic image.

Ironic, Cynical, and Sarcastic

The Self-Preservation 7 usually has a great sense of humor, enjoying life and having fun. He laughs happily at almost everything, and when it comes to humor, nothing is sacred. However, his sense of humor often serves as a means of showing contempt for the other person, in a clear display of narcissism. He is irreverent, arrogant, and mentally aggressive. This is how he expresses his rage, almost as an alternative to physical aggression, since he doesn't allow himself to act out physically. He is adept at pointing out others' flaws with every word, and can laugh at himself, distancing himself from his true emotions. Most importantly, he is not afraid of others, preventing him from taking them seriously. Etymologically, "irony" involves dissimulation, "cynicism" refers to behaving like a dog, and "sarcasm" involves cutting or biting a piece of meat—all of which suggest a disguised sadistic behavior and a tendency to mistreat while trying to appear cordial.

Self-Indulgent

The mantra of a Self-Preservation 7 might be: "First of all, avoid being uncomfortable." This reflects an anesthetic behavior in the face of suffering, a need to disconnect from the harshness of life to maintain the illusion that the “childhood paradise” has not been lost. He despises suffering as something for “unintelligent” people, while, deep down, a great fear exists—fear of returning to the deprived place of childhood, where he experienced a strong sense of threat to survival.

"My self-complacency is so great that I lose the ability to listen or see at times when an authority, or anyone, points out my mistakes or inadequacies. If criticism is launched indirectly, I am unable to recognize it as directed at me. It would affect me greatly to receive disapproval in public, so I assume an authoritarian and excellent role, inhibiting others from

pointing out my flaws. For this reason, sometimes criticism comes in a veiled, indirect way, but I am unable to understand that it is directed at me or my behavior." (Alexandre)

Entitlement

As an extension of his narcissism, we encounter entitlement: a sense of superiority and entitlement due to his talent and personal charm. It's subtle. In romantic relationships, the E7’s attitude is different from that of people who go through life with an important, authoritative role. In this case, it's a more subtle form of importance: it's not that he expects to be obeyed, but rather to be heard and recognized as someone who is "in the know." A man may expect the woman to be his audience, and the same applies to a father and his son. A corollary to the need to be heard is his inability to listen, although he may not be aware of this, since he offers great empathy with his attentive demeanor.

Jealous

A fundamental polarity in this character, already pointed out in Chapter 2, is the opposition between the greedy insatiability at the forefront and the fear of lack, which is denied.

"There is a rejection of the victim in me, and this leads me to an inability to listen to someone else's complaints, whether they're about me or someone else. The idea behind it is that the weak complain, those who cannot face reality, those who resist making this world a better place." (María Marta)

Although it may seem contradictory to the oral optimism of the E7, the Conservationist tends to compare himself to others and, unconsciously, feel envy. Those who compare, suffer. Unlike the E4, there is a strong tendency to overcompensate, turning envy into insatiability. However, the underlying sense of lack and disadvantage remains, likely due to having felt excluded or disadvantaged in childhood. This explains the voracity in his relationships and the aggressiveness with which he faces the world. Feeling that his starting conditions were less advantageous, he tells himself that he needs more to catch up or succeed.

"As a child, I suffered a lot from the comments of adults, who told me I was ugly. Throughout my life, I evaluated people's happiness based on their physical attractiveness. I always imagined that an ugly person would have enormous difficulties, almost insurmountable, in enjoying joy and being happy. On the other hand, I considered beautiful people happy and felt enormous envy toward them. However, when it came to men, I

thought they might be handsome, but they didn’t have the sensitivity that I possessed to offer women in a relationship." (Alexandre)

Excessive, Aggressive

This need to compare and measure creates stress and anguish, becoming a source of compulsive behavior and all kinds of excesses. Just as the miser does not want to part with what he feels is scarce, the greedy person distracts himself with abundance, faced with the fear of lack. Excessiveness becomes a door to dispersion, an inexhaustible source of problems. The greater the gluttony, the greater the need to compare, which brings the individual into contact with feelings of insatiability, creating a feedback loop that lays the groundwork for the usual manic-depressive phases this character typically experiences.

The E7 often retains a degree of aggressiveness and a tendency toward possessiveness, seizure, and even looting, sometimes leading to confusion with the E8 character. These tendencies are related to his disposition: narcissism and impulsiveness, acting before reflecting, risking everything as an art, and often exhibiting a counterphobic, even psychopathic attitude.

Utilitarian and Strategist

A good friend of the powerful, an effective propagandist, a highly perceptive planner, and strategist, the Self-Preservation 7 usually surrounds himself with people who can not only help him but also make him prosper and carry out his projects. His utilitarianism is evident in personal relationships, where friendship is only cultivated if the friend is useful to his plans or interests, or if they find him suggestive enough. He deals with information strategically, using tactics to position himself comfortably. He seeks ways to get what he wants without asking directly, and above all, without relying on others. He is accustomed to delegating his responsibilities, pushing them onto others, to reach pleasure sooner.

Impatience, Boredom

He has a predisposition and intolerance to boredom, an allergy to everyday life and routines. He needs constant stimuli and new, extraordinary experiences, even at the expense of enjoying the simpler pleasures of life. At the root of this is a difficulty connecting with emotions, resulting in a feeling of dryness in life.

He resists obligation and responsibility, often predisposed to flight or abandonment. His desire is to return to pleasure and freedom as soon as possible. It's also difficult for him to accept slowness—the natural flow of life—constantly trying to accelerate everything due to the planning ego, in order to avoid confronting his own feelings. He struggles to sustain frustration and give space to emotions, relying on immediacy and constant acceleration to avoid unpleasant emotions like anguish.

Insubordinate and Rebellious

The belief that accepting limits creates suffering leads him to challenge authority, which must justify itself, or else he will disregard it. Internally, the Self-Preservation 7 tends to underestimate and disqualify authority, despising and disobeying it. The core distortion here is: "Accepting the authority of others limits my personal autonomy."

He enjoys presenting himself as a rebel, but avoids direct confrontation with authority, instead dodging or seducing it, avoiding consequences that would contradict his image. Indiscipline and procrastination are closely linked to insubordination and rebellion. A background of invalidation by the father in childhood drives his invalidation of all other authority, which he sees as repressive or imposing. The limited capacity for self-criticism further fuels this scenario: there is difficulty in repenting, as well as little tolerance for criticism from others, all reinforced by his aggressive mentality and elusive tendencies.

Egotistic and Individualistic

His absolute priority is to satisfy his own desires, with the belief that others must adapt to his times and needs. In the Self-Preservation 7, narcissism is closely tied to objectifying others. There is difficulty in seeing his partner as a separate entity from his own desires and interests. People who don't belong to his inner circle can be seen merely as obstacles to his goals or simply ignored.

He feels a deep need for Conservation, thinking, "I can handle everything, I don't need anyone." This belief fosters his desire for immediate pleasure without considering the consequences for those around him. He also holds the misguided idea that emotional intimacy makes him lose his independence, making him less "special" or "unique."

Prone to Corruption

For some representatives of this character, the descriptor "prone to corruption" may not seem too strong. We can subject the term 'corruption' to a process of euphemization (typical of this character) and call it "the tendency to take legal shortcuts" or to interpret laws as indicative rather than as mandatory guidelines. This attitude underlies the light approach to life typical of all E7s, especially the Self-Preservation subtype.

If one does not believe in anything—if one implicitly thinks that authority is useless and that the system is corrupt—then one must do what is best for oneself. With so many people sharing this view, the community cannot function properly. When Socrates was offered the opportunity to flee, he chose to give his life as an example in support of the ideal of democracy, strengthening faith in the idea that the people can govern themselves; even if one is wrong, one can still arrive at a system where wisdom prevails. How far we are today from that attitude!

What would a Self-Preservation 7 have done, instead of Socrates?

Fraudulent and Charlatan

This character uses any available resource to achieve their ends, both words and actions. Some of the most common tools they employ are lying, stealing, confusing others, cheating, and manipulating.

They have their own morality, where benefits are prioritized over means; in other words, they don't care much about the methods used to achieve certain goals. For this, there must be a high degree of self-indulgence, personal laws, and individual interpretations of good and evil. Since these are self-made laws, they can be changed to avoid guilt or adapt to the ever-present, greedy need of the moment. In addition, this character has a remarkable ability to arrogate merits that don't belong to them, a strong desire for protagonism, and a frequent imposition of themselves, often resorting to mythomania and fantastic pseudology—especially in intellectual fields.

The Self-Preservation 7 has become an expert at getting what they want without asking for it. Their basic belief is that things aren't achieved by asking; instead, they take or cheat, or speculate to obtain them. Asking is seen as putting oneself in a vulnerable position, bringing them closer to pain and frustration. There is, again, a disregard for others. Their childhood experiences of loneliness, isolation, abandonment, and survival contribute to promoting this scenario.

Schizoid Austerity vs. Seductive Waste

At times, the Self-Preservation 7 exhibits a simplicity bordering on the greediness of the E5. They tend to have a lot of control over their finances, constantly calculating costs and benefits. They attach great importance to money and feel dizzy when faced with financial trouble. However, their difficulty in spending is counterbalanced by a great facility to invest and make "businesses," sometimes with hints of megalomania. Their practical sense influences everything: they don't want to complicate their lives and try to avoid anything that could be a source of displeasure. Underneath this, there is a significant fear of deprivation.

However, this behavior changes dramatically when, in their manic state, they pursue their objects of desire. At such times, they can become wastefully extravagant, throwing caution to the wind and committing any excess necessary. Nothing will satisfy them until they achieve their goal. Again, this behavior reflects their bipolar tendencies.

Dryness

The intense mental life leads to a physical disembodiment and semiotic embodiment—bodily and emotional dissociation where life is confused with words and speeches. Their imperviousness to pain makes them less receptive to emotions. They harbor a great fear of vulnerability that prevents them from being open to others. Beneath all the excitement and noise of thoughts and words, there lies a frozen emotional world, the experience of a nuclear coldness. This reflects the schizoid origin of this character.

At the same time, their difficulty with admiring love or spontaneously marveling at creation complicates this situation. As a result, their attitude is often more pseudo-social or even antisocial compared to other E7 subtypes.

At times, they devote themselves to work to the point of becoming a workaholic, often driven by manic or depressive moods. After periods of excessive workload, they tend to fall ill or enter phases of depression or nervous breakdown. They find it difficult to trust relationships, often taking a long time to establish deep bonds (when allowed). These relationships can quickly shift from intense seduction to emotional dryness, testing the patience of others.

Untrusting and Skeptical

They feel a deep distrust in the flow of life, questioning everything with a certain, albeit muted, anger. Fundamentally, this character struggles with devotional love and recognizing others. Similar to the E1, they believe that people are imperfect and untrustworthy, but unlike the E1, they don’t try to correct others. The Self-Preservation 7 isolates themselves from the world, retreating into their own particular "garden": the "family" or their network of connections. This serves as a defense against a life they see as chaotic, reinforcing their belief that pleasure and constant movement are the only viable escape routes.

Moreover, as someone who seeks to profit and lacks a broad sense of community, it is only logical that they mistrust others. They believe everyone acts like they do—that since there is no law worth respecting, everyone will treat rules with the same contempt. When they temporarily set aside their manic tendencies toward worldly pleasures, a nihilistic background emerges. The narcissistic balloon deflates, revealing the schizoid core, along with even greater disbelief and distrust of life.

Stubborn and Earthly

Beyond the tendency of all E7s to procrastinate, the Self-Preservation subtype often demonstrates tenacity in overcoming obstacles and standing up to adversity. This is driven by nerve, willpower, and fury. Their underlying irrational belief is: "I can handle everything."

They are obsessed with efficiency, striving to maximize rewards with minimal effort. Their mental agility and strategic abilities help them in this pursuit.

Their approach to combat is divided between mental activity and physical action. They like to feel in control of situations, which not only reinforces their narcissism but also helps to alleviate anxiety.

Their tenacity can lead to disconnection from both their body and emotional needs. The Self-Preservation subtype is the most realistic of the E7s, with a strong predisposition toward skepticism and a focus on the material and earthly aspects of Conservation. All of this is linked to their utilitarianism and advantage in social relationships. They don't behave like idealists but rather as someone disappointed by ideals—either a pseudo-idealist or even an anti-idealist. They believe that by organizing themselves well, they can avoid the deficient states they experienced in their childhood, thus attempting to eliminate the sense of threat to their sense of security.