Introduction
Surrounded by idiots by Thomas Erikson, is a book first published in Sweden in 2014 and later in the US and UK in 2019, categorizes human behavior into four types: Red, Yellow, Green, and Blue. Erikson explores how these behavioral types influence actions and how understanding them can lead to better results in life
Thomas Erikson lives in rural Sweden with his wife Christina. He’s a sought-after public speaker on human behavior, self-awareness, narcissism, and leadership. He lives by the quote: “You can’t change somebody else, but you can change yourself“
Key points of the book
- The book contains 21 chapters in total.
- This book explores human behavior by categorizing people into four types: Red, Yellow, Green, and Blue. Each type is unique, and individuals may belong to one or a mix of these groups.
- Red Behavior Personality: Natural leaders, decisive, goal-oriented, ambitious, strong-willed, pioneers, impatient, controlling, convincing, powerful, initiators, intense, independent. These alpha personalities thrive on controlling and leading situations.
- Yellow Behavior Personality: They are talkative, prefer answering over asking, spontaneous, creative, optimistic, social, expressive, charming, sensitive, adaptable, inspiring, encouraging, flexible, open, and easy-going. They excel at leading conversations and engaging the group.
- Green Behavior Personality: The most common type, Greens are often silent, making them excellent listeners. They are patient, relaxed, self-controlled, reliable, loyal, stable, helpful, thoughtful, kind, and the most balanced among the four types.
- Blue Behavior Personality: Perfectionists who scrutinize every detail. They are systematic, structured, analytical, logical, and reserved, striving for correctness and being highly detail-oriented.
- Nobody is perfect; each behavior type has its strengths and weaknesses. This book will help you understand how these behaviors are perceived, making it easier to interact with people of different types.
- This book teaches you to identify various personality types and interact accordingly. Understanding that everyone is different will help you deal with people based on their personality type.
- This book is essential for anyone in roles dealing with people, such as managers or organizational positions. It provides insights into understanding behavior and reactions, and explains how to create a team with all four personality types for optimal results.
- This book explains handling situations like body language, delivering bad news, written communication, and managing stress and energy with various personality types.
Conclusion
This book is a must-read for anyone in people management. It provides a deep understanding of the behavior of the people around us. Anyone interested in understanding the behavior of people around them must read this book. It mainly describes the different natures of people, how to deal with them, and why they behave the way they do. You can buy this book on amazon.
Other Books Review
- Let’s Talk Money – by Monika Halan
- Rich Dad Poor Dad -by Robert T. Kiyosaki
- Ikigai – by Hector Gracia & Francesc Miralles
- The Psychology of Money – by Morgan Housel
- Think and Grow Rich – by Napoleon Hill
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely my own after reading the book. It is not intended to offend anyone. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This article is neither sponsored nor endorsing anyone. The link mentioned here is an affiliate link. If you’re interested in reading this book along with me, buying it through the affiliate link is a great way to support me!
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