YOU’RE NOT ONLY A GOLD, you also have strong secondary characteristics of the Blue personality. And you have tested as a Color Q Introvert, which means you recharge your batteries by being alone, rather than being with people. You are most happy when things are orderly, efficient, and predictable. Because of your innate talent at it, you have a strong drive toward managing.
A pillar of whatever organization or community you join, you are thorough, responsible, and hard-working. Your unusually accurate memory records what others say and do with astonishing precision. While thoughtful, you can overlook such formal niceties as thank-you notes or praise for jobs well done by others.
Realistic and practical, you take your commitments seriously. You value “the system” of whatever organization you are in, trust contracts, and organize your life and work around procedures. Your children and co-workers all feel secure and stable under your watch; that is, if they measure up to your high standards. You can be the classic “Type A” personality, demanding much of others both at home and work. But those demands are never made capriciously; you think things through and always are cautious about changes.
With your highly developed administrative skills, duty-bound work ethic, and great ability to concentrate, you float to top-level positions wherever you invest your efforts. Fierce loyalty to your company cements your status.
When undertaking a task, you bring to it logic, impersonal analysis, common sense, and practical experience. You gravitate to situations where you have to plan ahead, set goals, and control the schedule. You are gifted at implementing well-defined policies and ensuring that things remain orderly and on track. Because doing a good job is your primary focus, you expect to be judged and compensated on your own merits. You are fair and consistent when dealing with others.
Family is your central focus. You honor traditions and rituals, observing holidays, birthdays, and religious and cultural events with appropriate fanfare. For you, these times are important symbols of continuity to be passed on to the next generation. Gold/Blue Introverts often trace their roots and record the family heritage for their progeny.
“Appropriateness” is your watchword. Your strong morals lead you to judge others and speak up if they seem to blur right and wrong. You simply want the world to stay organized, free from the chaos that follows when rules are broken. Even flamboyant dress and unconventional behavior try your tolerance.
case study one
College President
Dr. Kathleen Waldron is president of Baruch College in New York City. With 15,500 students, Baruch is the nation’s largest accredited business school and one of the most selective public colleges in the northeastern United States. It has been named the most diverse college for six straight years by U.S. News and World Report. Dr. Waldron moves effortlessly between her many constituencies—students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and public officials. She is a natural and graceful leader with superior management skills.
A Fulbright scholar who received her doctorate in Latin American history in 1977, she had a thirteen-year career at Citibank, capped by her turn as President of Citibank International in Miami from 1991–1996. She then spent six years as Dean of the School of Business at Long Island University before joining Baruch.
She has achieved success by leveraging, rather than working against, her Introverted nature. For instance, others describe her as a great listener. “I am a fairly private person who can read three books a week. Now that is very hard to do with all the evening entertainment and events that take away my private time,” she reflects. “But I knew that going in.” While quite reserved in her early years, today her people skills are superior. “It’s been a long process,” she says, “to develop a comfort level for public speaking, of going forward to people with my hand outstretched, taking the initiative to do that. That was hard.”
Fundraising is a substantial part of her job, one where her banking background and Gold/Blue strengths are useful. When she sits down to solicit corporate leaders, “they know I am a business person who sets goals, measures accomplishments, and is a serious manager. They feel more comfortable that their donations are going to be properly utilized.” Dr. Waldron stresses to them and her staff the importance of “accountability, stewardship, and reporting back to people.” She is known for expressing her opinions with tact. All these are prime Gold/Blue values.
She is also very involved with instituting proper instruments for educational evaluation. This typical Gold/Blue interest in results and accountability helps her nearly 1,000 faculty members institute assessment models that work within their particular business disciplines. “Getting a job is such a narrow definition of a successful education,” says Kathleen. “I changed the dialog to broaden those evaluation measures to instill in students analytical capabilities, communications skills, and a broader sense of life including art and music.”
She also has a typical Gold/Blue approach to organizing her work. “I have all my systems in place; I am very structured in getting to my goals. I keep very careful agendas, cross-checked to be certain things are on schedule. I know exactly where I’m going to be a year from now.”
Early in her career, Kathleen was a natural analytical problem solver. Now, her feeling/intuitive side is coming in to play. “I believe that leadership is people developing people. What gets me excited is to watch people do better than they have.” Kathleen exhibits most of the key characteristics of her Color style, especially in her aptitude for taking the helm and running a smooth ship.
“Getting the right things to the right people, in the right amounts, to the right place at the right time” is the crux of your talent. Outstanding logistical skills are the hallmark of Gold/Blue Introverts in leadership roles. With a clear chain of command and well-defined expectations and duties for the staff, you can achieve anything. Those who play by the rules and live up to your exacting standards are rewarded in fair measure.
You see your role as reliably providing for your organization’s practical needs. You are accurate, decisive, and know how to get things done.
Your decision-making style is to absorb and assess as many facts as possible. Then you measure the cost of each possible solution before choosing the optimal one.
Your positive contributions are many. Getting to the core of problems quickly; clarifying issues, obstacles, and goals; bringing logic to the table; preventing important details from falling through the cracks; ensuring needed resources are available; acting as a reality check about costs … no team functions optimally without a Gold/Blue Introvert as one of its members.
You feel both responsible and loyal to your teammates. You know how important your contributions are, and you work hard not to let others down. However, you may irritate team members by not sharing information until too late in the process and/or being rigid about how things should be done.
Look at Figure 22–1 for a list of your natural work-related strengths.
Now see how some Gold/Blue Introverts use these strengths in very different fields.
Figure 22–1 Natural Work-Related Strengths
Senior Investment Officer, Private Bank
Sergio I. de Araujo has the classic Gold/Blue Introvert resume, with clear corporate loyalty and few career changes. He has been with his current company, U.S. Trust Company, for almost eighteen years and today is a Managing Director and Senior Investment Officer for the Southeast region.
His Gold management skills are put to active use overseeing regional investment activities and directing portfolio managers in several Florida offices. Says Serge, “among my responsibilities is to see that we adhere to investment policy, develop strategies for dealing with concentrated positions, and follow agreed-upon client objectives.” Golds follow established policies to the letter, an important characteristic in high-level financial positions.
Client relationship initiatives such as wealth advice, planning, and relationship reviews are Serge’s strengths, drawing on his attention to detail and organizational skills. He also directly handles several portfolios for individual clients. Previously, he worked for the Rothschild family and helped found Citigroup’s International Private Banking Division in 1971, where he spent the other half of his career.
Early on, Serge realized how to make himself indispensable in an industry where there are always younger, brighter, better-educated, and cheaper managers waiting to step into one’s shoes. “I enjoy working with the clients,” he says, “and soon realized they are the anchor of one’s career.”
He also enjoys making a major contribution to his firm’s bottom line. “At Citibank or JP Morgan Chase, the trust and investment business never represented a significant percent of revenue and profits,” he says. “Here, I am in an institution where 100 percent of its profits come from the wealth management business, and the firm has a long history of success and commitment.”
Managing people, Sergio says, is simply one aspect of his demanding job. In addition to his managerial role, he must balance the myriad of daily challenges that often include providing superior client service and competitive investment performance, keeping up with technological and professional advances, and implementing compliance initiatives.
Working for an organization that has had low turnover, however, is particularly satisfying to this Color group. At U.S. Trust many people have been around for thirty to forty years, and this satisfies a Gold’s need for continuity, tradition, and stability.
Sergio’s top three strengths have attracted a large book of business for him to manage, but he has had to pare it down in order to handle his duties as regional Senior Investment Officer. “I am a good listener,” he says. “I am able to empathize with people, and I’m decisive.”
case study three
Chemical Engineer, Manufacturing Company Owner
In Germany, all little Martin Deeg wanted to do was play in the dirt. The family had different ideas. “I grew up with parents who were both technically trained,” says Martin. “It was an environment that discouraged anything other than being a scientist; an engineer was marginal, but nevertheless acceptable.” His family moved to the United States in the 1960s when his father took a job as Director of Materials Research at the American Optical Corporation in Southbridge, Massachusetts.
Martin’s adolescent rebellion led to a college major in archeology. “I would have loved to have been an archeologist. I like digging in the dirt.” But parental expectations prevailed. After studying Chemical Engineering in college, Martin worked in product development for Celanese Corporation. He began as a Process Development Engineer and ultimately attained the position of Staff Scientist. He holds more than ten patents in the fields of high-performance composite materials and PET/PBT melt spinning.
Martin branched out when he joined Scott Paper Company. Starting there as Technology Manager, Martin eventually expanded into Director of Business Development–World Wide and concentrated on the marketing side. Following Scott Paper’s merger with Kimberly Clark, he was given the title Senior Research Fellow.
In 1999, he established and became president of Icarus West, Inc., a niche business manufacturer handling supplies for the polysilicon industry: “We make very clean, very pure, very expensive, extremely specialized polyethylene gloves,” he says. Martin is involved in all parts of the business, handling all customer contact. “We have no competition,” he says. Other companies “have not been able to meet the same kind of quality standards,” he says. No doubt his Gold/Blue process skills keep those standards high.
Being company president has its down side, however. “Bookkeeping, dealing with suppliers … taxes are downright stressful!” he says. “But probably the most stressful thing is dealing with ongoing requests to decrease price. I hate negotiating—I like things black and white, nice and straightforward.”
Martin doesn’t define what he’s doing now as success. “I’ll have success once I retire. The definition of success for me is being able to wake up in the morning and feel good about whatever it is I’m going to do for the day.” To accomplish this, Martin plans to go back to his roots. “Doing relatively basic clearing, constructing, excavating … something outside, pushing dirt around, seems to be potentially a fun thing to do … it justifies buying big mechanical toys.”
For both Dr. Kathleen Waldron and Sergio de Araujo, a stable and well-respected institution with a predictable future is their chosen environment; Martin Deeg owns his own business and frequently works at home.
When a job offer is made, leverage as much as you can from the list in Figure 22–2.
Figure 22–2 The Ideal Gold/Blue Introvert Work Environment
The WORST type of work culture for a Gold/Blue Introvert is loose and open-ended with regard to goals and measures of success. “You’re only as good as your last (fill in the blank)” describes a work environment that would make you tear out your hair.
You also hate working with people who take things too personally. You want to stay focused on task; emotional situations are cloudy and distracting. Never work for a company that values intuition over hard data. You need facts, bottom-line costs, and rules in order to feel comfortable at work.
When Gold/Blue Introverts work in nonideal corporate cultures, productivity is stunted and career achievements become an uphill climb.
Even a great job can be frustrating under the wrong boss; a mediocre job under a wonderful boss is pretty hard to leave. Gold/Blues get along especially well with other Golds. But bosses of other Color types who possess the characteristics in Figure 22–3 also can be good mentors.
Like Sergio de Araujo, you want to find a place to call home, where you can work comfortably for many years under the guidance of clear rules, procedures, and expectations. You require predictability and stability to be at your best. You are happiest upon reaching a high level of responsibility, like Dr. Kathleen Waldron, in a culture where there’s a clear chain of command. Like Martin Deeg, you particularly need to be rewarded for your abilities to be accurate and get things done.
Please note that not all the following careers will appeal to you, but recognize that each, in some way, draws on the strengths of your style and appeals to a significant number of your Color group. This is not a comprehensive list, but it will show underlying patterns of preference. If unlisted careers offer similar patterns, your chances of success increase. Copy in parentheses highlights the Color style characteristics that create success.
Figure 22–3 The Gold/Blue Introvert’s Ideal Boss
In addition, two codes indicate those jobs that are currently predicted to have an above-average salary and growth potential. This information is based on the continuously revised data provided by the U.S. Department of Labor and Bureau of Labor Statistics available on the O*NET website, http://online.onetcenter.org/.
Bold indicates that the career is considered to be among the top 100 best-paying jobs based on the average or median salary paid to individuals with five years of experience. Excluded are jobs where salary statistics are not available, such as “business owner,” or not indicative, such as “actor.”
Italics identifies the jobs that are predicted to benefit from an above-average growth rate over the next several years.
Bold and italics indicates jobs that will benefit from both higher pay and high growth potential.
Note there are successful people of all Color styles in all occupations. In nonideal jobs you can still shine by creating your own niche.
accountant ♦ auditor ♦ bank officer (all types) ♦ budget/financial analyst ♦ credit analyst ♦ financial advisor ♦ financial examiner ♦ investment banker ♦ stockbroker ♦ treasurer/chief financial officer ♦ venture capitalist (efficiency, observant of details, moral certitude and appropriateness, low tolerance for unconventionality).
actuary ♦ administrative services manager ♦ auditor ♦ chief information officer ♦ compensation and benefits manager ♦ efficiency expert ♦ executive ♦ insurance claim examiner/underwriter ♦ human resources specialist ♦ management consultant ♦ managers of all types [construction, database, factory, financial institution, hospital, hotel, industrial production, office, sales, etc.] ♦ insurance agent/broker ♦ project manager ♦ purchasing manager/agent ♦ real estate agent/appraiser ♦ sales [tangible products] (accurate memory of details, bottom line and cost-oriented, well-developed administrative skills, need for order, give clear directions).
computer analyst/security specialist ♦ information system manager ♦ network administrator ♦ web editor (good memory for details, efficient, solid administrative skills, keep things orderly and on track).
athletic coach/trainer ♦ professor ♦ school principal/administrator ♦ university president ♦ vocational teacher (administrative skills, respect for “the system,” common sense, thoughtfulness, practical experience).
anesthesiologist ♦ clinical technician ♦ dentist ♦ medical and health service manager/technician ♦ pharmacist ♦ optometrist ♦ primary care physician ♦ radiologic technician (accuracy, keen observation of details, practical and measurable work, organizational skills).
compliance officer ♦ corrections officer ♦ division manager ♦ firefighter ♦ investigator ♦ IRS agent ♦ judge ♦ lawyer [particularly administrative, antitrust, bankruptcy, real estate, securities, taxation, transportation] ♦ military officer ♦ pilot ♦ police officer ♦ security consultant/guard (respect for rules and procedures, good administrative skills, observant of details, factoriented, boldness, ability to make tough decisions).
engineer [civil, chemical, environmental, health and safety, industrial, mechanical, nuclear] ♦ geologist ♦ meteorologist (good memory for details, efficient, ability to work with tangible things and projects, keep things orderly and on track).
carpenter ♦ electronic repair ♦ general contractor ♦ mechanic ♦ plumber ♦ surveyor.
case study four
When a Career Isn’t Working
Brad Gunter was fed up, and the good money he was making wasn’t enough compensation for the daily aggravations. Worse yet, he felt trapped. His uncle Phil, who was a partner in a major Los Angeles advertising firm, had gotten him this high-paying job as an account executive. Brad desperately wanted to quit, but he could not let the family down.
Even weaving his way through LA traffic in his new Porsche Carrera wasn’t cheering him up as it once had. The day had been especially grueling when it should have been triumphant. Brad had just landed a major airline account. Today, it seemed as if his private office had been stormed by everyone in the firm. The Creative Department wanted ideas and brainstorming, which Brad hated. The back office needed lots of handholding as they established an account larger than any they had ever seen. Brad was assigned to three new teams, and working on teams was something he dreaded. All he had wanted to do was sift through demographic information about potential airline customers and memo the right people. Instead, his reference materials had gone untouched all day, and Brad was suffering from the serious Introvert’s overexposure to people.
Finally, a pleasant thought entered his crowded mind—Michelle, the lovely young woman he had just met. They had had a wonderful lunch conversation several days ago about her work as a real estate appraiser. Convinced at first he would be bored out of his skull, Brad had been surprised by how interested he was in Michelle’s work. The factual data-gathering, the comparisons to similar properties, the long hours alone with papers to be interpreted … right now, Michelle’s job seemed like heaven to Brad. It certainly was a job for which Gold/Blue Introvert Brad felt well suited.
Fast forward two years. Brad finally found the courage to give up his stressful account executive position despite family opposition. Using the money he made from his commissions (which ran well into six figures), Brad supported himself while studying to become a real estate appraiser. When Brad married Michelle, she quit so the two of them could form their own appraisal firm. Energized daily, Brad loves his new career and is about to hire several people.
Gold/Blue Introverts have a unique set of potential work-related blind spots. Some you have, others you don’t. No one has them all. Tone down a blind spot by focusing on it, then choose more productive actions and make them habits. (Suggestions for doing so are in parentheses below.) You:
♦ May prematurely dismiss new ideas. (Dismiss nothing until you know the who, what, where, when, why, and cost of a new idea.)
♦ May focus too much on the flaws in the efforts of others and not give credit where credit is due. (Make a discipline of giving some sort of affirmation to a colleague after listing flaws. Acknowledge those who deserve it; say when the flaws are outweighed by the good work.)
♦ Stress immediate results and overlook long-range implications. (Invest some time in long-range planning and get more comfortable with it as a tool. Ask a willing Blue to help.)
♦ Are fixed in supporting established ways of doing things. (The tried-and-true contribute much to efficiency. But they won’t keep your company alive when the market is moving or changing. Also, established ways can be improved. Focus on the who, what, where, when, why, and cost of changing a procedure so you can take some of the credit.)
♦ Are rigid about how others should perform their responsibilities. (This book reveals the strengths of other Colors; strengths you may be lacking. Results are the priority, not necessarily the efficiencies of getting there. Grant the wisdom of others some benefit of the doubt while awaiting proven results. If their way proves better than yours, you don’t want to look stupid.)
Gold/Blue Introverts need to process information. With some interviewers, particularly Golds and Blues, you will feel a comfortable rapport. But with other Colors, you need to prepare and rehearse responses outside your comfort zone. Many human resource people are Greens; make a study of how to communicate effectively with this Color group before your first interviews.
Your natural strengths easily allow you to:
♦ Set realistic goals and timelines.
♦ Adequately research prospective employees.
♦ Be well prepared for interviews and come across as hard-working and competent.
♦ Logically consider pros and cons of every offer.
♦ Be patient with delays and obstacles.
♦ Show confidence in your ability to deal with bottom-line issues.
In order to tone down your blind spots, you need to:
♦ Go beyond your circle of friends to expand networking circle.
♦ Prepare questions to ask interviewers.
♦ Do some brainstorming with a willing Blue or Green to consider alternative careers.
♦ Be more assertive about selling yourself.
♦ Do some thinking about a prospective company’s future direction (ask a willing Blue to help).
♦ Resist the urge to be overly cautious about change.
♦ Step back to reflect for a day or two about a job’s impact on you and your family when tempted to make a snap decision
With an interviewer whose Color is close to your own, you will feel immediate rapport. However, if your interviewer seems to have a significantly different style (and it’s statistically likely that they will have a Green component), use the suggestions in parentheses.
In following your natural style, you:
♦ Are calm and composed. (This can look like disinterest—most interviewers expect a certain amount of nervousness. Make sure to speak more than you normally do, especially at first.)
♦ Document your experience well, in an easy-to-follow manner.
♦ Prefer written communications before face-to-face meetings. (Practice interview questions before the meeting. This will boost your confidence.)
♦ Share few feelings with people. (A Green interviewer relies on his or her emotional response to you as a big part of the decision-making process. If your interviewer asks you questions like “How did you get along with previous co-workers?” he or she may be Green. Prioritize building a personal rapport with such an interviewer by answering emotion-based questions at length. Role-play with a willing Green.)
♦ Focus on the present. (Especially if interviewing for a senior level position, you will need to prepare a position on future planning. Take a Blue colleague to lunch and run a few ideas by him or her before an interview. At least research public statements about the company’s future direction prior to an interview.)
♦ Follow through with all details; respect deadlines and commitments. (Interviewers respect that you send requested items, call to follow up, show up on time, and send thank-you notes.
Okay, go do something purposeful now. Later, check out Chapter 15, Blues Overall, first, then carefully read Chapter 4, A Tour of the Prism Company, and Chapter 25, Adjusting to the Styles of Others, to learn about the strengths of other Colors. Like all Colors, you need the strengths of others. You can put them to work for you if you know where to look and how to ask. If you invest time learning how to recognize the Colors who can best assist you, it will make everyone more effective and productive. You can do this by quickly reading the Blue, Red, and Green “Overall” chapters.
If you are actively engaging in a job search, jot notes in the Roadmap in Chapter 28. Recording your strengths and strategies is a concrete and results-oriented way to navigate the minefields of a job search.
