If Murphy's Law needed a lawyer, someone who could make the case that if something can go wrong it will, then Murphy's lawyer would be a Six. Of the Nine personality types in the Enneagram personality model, the Six is the most anxious. The Six is Paul Revere shouting, "The British are coming!" while Sam Adams, a partying Seven, downs another pint of beer.
I'm a Six. I've read about the other 8 personality types, and only the 6 fits. And it fits me perfectly.
Fortunately, worry can be a gift. Beatrice Chestnut in her book "The 9 Tpes of Leadership" does a great job of showing how all 9 personality types can be either be unhealthy or they can blossom into someone you absolutely want on your team. For example, every team needs a Six. America needed Paul Revere. The Titanic could have used a Six on deck screaming about icebergs.
What has reading about the 6 personality taught me about myself? I knew I had a tendency to identify problems and to try to fix them. I knew I was cautious and prone to see pitfalls and risks. What I didn't realize is that 6's expect everyone else to think, "Wow! I'm sure glad Ben pointed out these issues!", but this is the last thing many other personality types want to hear. I didn't realize until I read that 6's distrust authority that I also distrust authority figures until I get to know them. And when I read that 6's are notorius for extreme loyalty, I suddently understood why I always go overboard with volunteer roles. I become so loyal to the organization I'm volunteering for that I don't set boundaries well. I get overcommitted and sacrifice too much. I've had to cut out most of my volunteer work and now I understand why.
I'm grateful to learn all this about myself, even though there are things to watch out for, because in her book Chestnut also talks about the great ways that 6's contribute to the world. She shows how every personality type has things they need to watch out for, ways that they can get into trouble, but also shows how they can contribute in uniquely and indispensably to their families, communities, and workplaces. The diversity of personality types is perhaps the most important diversity of all.
