The book review for today starts with a confession. I’m a victim of clever marketing coupled with the appearance of a book on the Netflix docuseries “Break Point.” In Episode 1 of Season 2, Aryna Sabalenka shows off a book she says her team gave her. Although it clearly isn’t a tennis book, I wondered if it contained some hidden gems for on-court performance or communication between team members in a competitive setting.
Surrounded by Idiots: The Four Types of Human Behavior and How to Effectively Communicate with Each in Business (and in Life) is an English translation of a book originally published in Sweden. It describes a simple categorization of people labeled by color, giving us red, blue, green, and yellow personality types. The book claims to provide actionable insights into working more effectively with others by correctly identifying personality colors and adjusting interactions accordingly.
As I started into this book, I immediately realized I had already been exposed to this exact categorization framework in a corporate setting. Many years ago, I transferred to a team that was mired in the “storming” phase of team development. It was long past the time when we needed to be performing. The interpersonal dynamics had become so challenging that HR intervened. Their solution was to herd the entire team into a conference room for an intensive multi-day guided group therapy session centered around the personality categorization system described in Surrounded by Idiots.
I was scarred by the experience. Processing the material in this book stirred up unanticipated visceral reactions.
The four personality types in this framework start with “Red” which are strong-willed, aggressive, and dominant. “Blue” personalities are described as systematic, structured, and analytical. The “Yellow” type is characterized as talkative, social, and enthusiastic. Finally, “Green” people are loyal, supportive, and stable.
The author, Thomas Erikson, delivers information about each personality type using anecdotes and case studies. Consequently, the book is relatively short and is delivered in a light conversational tone. I was surprised it did not include an instrument or mechanism to identify the reader’s own personality type. However, since much of the material provided cues for identifying each type in various settings, perhaps it was assumed that people would also inherently be able to recognize themselves.
In my corporate experience, we all took a quiz that slotted everybody into one of the colors, and we were all dispatched to four separate corners of the room to be with our people. I don’t think the exercise produced any great breakthroughs. Long after the project was concluded and the team disbanded, I still fundamentally believe that the performance issues of that particular team weren’t rooted in personality differences but rather in technical competence. Of course, that is exactly the conclusion that a Red person would naturally gravitate to, with or without that training.
There isn’t anything in this book that can influence on-court performance during a tennis match. I don’t have enough insight into Sabalenka or her team to determine if they are using it to understand and improve their interpersonal dynamics, but that is possible.
I strongly suspect that although Sabalenka is shown reading the book on the show, it may have been completely staged. There is no evidence of a bookmark, and it clearly was cracked open to the first chapters. It is quite possible the book was mostly a “gag gift” from her team, suggesting that Sabalenka is also a Red and prone to telling her team that they are idiots. I can see it.
Surrounded by Idiots: The Four Types of Human Behavior and How to Effectively Communicate with Each in Business (and in Life) is a condensed and less painful way to learn about the concepts than what I experienced in the corporate environment. This color categorization of personality types has a large and enthusiastic following, and the book is usually positively reviewed. I would echo those recommendations to anyone who is seeking innovative ways to improve their interpersonal interactions and team dynamics.
I didn’t find a tennis-specific application for this material. That is good news because I think I recall seeing one or two other books on earlier episodes of “Break Point.” This spares me from any sense of obsessive obligation to go back to seek them out.
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