Surrounded by Idiots. A book review.
by Thomas Erikson
MBTI. Insights. They’re a bit of a corporate rite of passage. If you don't dig deeper these tools can feel a bit like a party game or a horoscope (even if they do create a shared framework and language for teams/groups to work from).
Enter Erikson and his book to make them work a bit harder for you. He explains what each of the colours means so you can situate yourself and think about who you are and your behaviours.
Then he digs into real life examples on specific areas like body language, how each colour delivers and receives bad news, what stresses each colour most and how to deal with how others respond to you.
The title is deliberately provocative. It’s not a thought I’ve had before (see, I can control my red). But often I wonder why people behave in ways that don't seem logical to me. I’ve had long conversations with previous coaches and mentors about this.
I like how it gave me simple explanations about how I (red/yellow with a dollop of blue) react to certain situations and how others react to me.
I made a lot of notes and I have a feeling I’ll be referring back to this a lot.
The title did cause a lot of raised eyebrows in my local coffee shops. Some joked it was about them. Er, no. Some told me they’d read multiple reviews and wanted to get a personal recommendation before reading it themselves. I obliged.
That extra dash of self awareness is helpful. Understanding how the colours blend together, which colours get on best, which less so; how they can best communicate together and how to create strategies to get the best from everyone. It’s useful, actionable stuff.
It did leave me with a tonne of questions though (normal for me…)
How does culture/nationality affect the colours?
Is it like MBTI when the tendencies invert when 'in the grip'?
Can our colours evolve as we age or as our circumstances change?
How does education and continued personal development affect our colours?
Would I recommend? Yes. Anything that raises self awareness and helps us rub along better together is a good thing.