YOU’RE NOT ONLY A GREEN, you also have strong secondary characteristics of the Red personality. And you have tested as a Color Q Extrovert, which means you recharge your batteries by being with people, rather than being alone. Green/Red Extroverts are warm, free spirits who often feel forced to conform to norms of practicality set by other Colors. You’ll likely have more career changes than other Colors, not because you’re unfocused, but because you are gifted, curious, and flexible.
Energized by new ideas, you’re intrigued by the unusual. Your deepest satisfaction is to be acknowledged for your originality and unique contributions. A free spirit, you are unconventional and admire the bravely creative.
A keen and penetrating observer, you know what motivates others. You’re aware of what’s going on at any moment in the cosmic drama around you. You love challenges that require you to be ingenious. Routine is a drag, but you take life as it comes and do what you must.
If you’re not changing careers frequently, you definitely are changing projects and goals more often than other Colors. While you fear others may see you as a flake, in reality they think of you as dynamic and highly skilled at juggling lots of people and events … often simultaneously.
Have you taken up writing or public speaking yet? If not, you probably want to. Your verbal and written skills are superior. You can convince employers that you can do the job, even if you’ve never done it before, and by the way, do it better and more innovatively than anyone else!
You are a gleeful warrior against bureaucracy. It is imperative that you be allowed creative freedom, or you wither.
A need for empathetic relationships is another driving force. Warm and insightful, you establish rapport quickly by being genuine and nonjudgmental.
The trends and pitfalls of the future spread themselves out like a feast on the banquet table of your intuition. Intuition drives you into many areas of interest, almost against your will. Most impact people or are of global concern.
The people who irritate you most are manipulative or controlling. In the second half of your life, you’ll move toward a more objective and logical approach to these people. You’ll use your superior verbal abilities to extricate yourself from the web of their agendas.
case study one
Business Consultant
Gregory J. Marion is a typical Green/Red Extrovert who has carved out a niche in an atypical field. In senior management of a leading strategy consulting firm he has found success emphasizing the creative and relationship-building aspects of the work.
Not surprisingly, Greg says, “It’s always been the hardest job for me to be an analyst relentlessly focusing on detailed facts. I prefer the 80/20 rule,” he says, “Find the key facts but don’t overdwell, then move on trusting your intuition.”
Greg is in charge of managing a team whose goal he describes as “leading the client through change, which requires a strong point of view, persuasive skills, and building trust.”
His biggest stress is having to act as an expert when he doesn’t feel like one, since Green/Reds revere authenticity. He prefers long-term assignments; it takes him about twelve months to really talk his clients’ talk with ease.
Building relationships with staff and clients energizes him most, as it does for most Green/Reds. He especially enjoys seeing ads and products from clients he has helped. “I want to actually touch the products on the shelf and bring them home and say, ‘I was part of this.’”
Greg describes his top three strengths as “motivating others, coaching, and building relationships.” These are core Green/Red Extrovert strengths.
Also typical are his dreams for the future. He’d like to be a published poet (most Green/Red Extroverts turn to writing at some point in their lives), a small business owner, a photographer, or a nonprofit manager. Drawn to artistic and socially relevant endeavors, Green/Red Extroverts also love working in groups small enough to know everyone well.
“Bringing out the best in people” is your real gift. During the startup phase of a company or project, you are a strong leader (particularly if conditions are chaotic). You inspire confidence and support, literally able to rally others to achieve impossible goals. Your understanding of what motivates people allows you to create unwaveringly loyalty from your staff. Inviting everyone from all levels to make suggestions brings forth unique ways to solve problems. You then motivate with positive and constructive feedback during implementation.
Brainstorming is your bread and butter, and you’re better at it than almost anyone. Contributing idea after idea, no matter how outrageous, you eventually find those tremendously creative ideas that put your company on the cutting edge.
Figure 8–1 Natural Work-Related Strengths
Others are at ease around your warmth, humor, and empowering “cando” attitude. They then generate ideas and offer resources that otherwise would have been left dormant.
You may irritate teammates by talking too much and going off on tangents.
Look at Figure 8–1 on page 51 for a list of your natural work-related strengths.
Now see how some Green/Red Extroverts use their strengths in very different fields.
case study two
Model, Actress, Writer, Interior Designer, Berry Farmer
Gloria Parker’s face may be familiar to you—she was Oleg Cassini’s top model and has appeared in numerous movies, television shows, and commercials. If not her face, you may know her name as writer for television series like Murphy’s Law and Tour of Duty. Perhaps you bought high-end furniture from her upscale store on Montana Avenue in Los Angeles. If you were lucky enough, you hired her to decorate your house, as Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Pierce Brosnan, and Arnold Schwarzenegger did.
“I loved being on stage, making people laugh and cry,” says Gloria of her early career. “It opened a world to me I might not ever have walked into.”
When her acting career wound down, Gloria in typical Green/Red Extrovert fashion followed her heart and opened a furniture store, leveraging her show business contacts to sell and create a custom interior design clientele. “I enjoyed the artistic part, and I am really good at sales,” she says.
Green/Red Extroverts build extensive personal networks, and Gloria’s helped her crack open the screenwriting world. “The first play I did (“Women’s Gym”) got produced and sold to television!” she recalls with her natural enthusiasm.
Green/Red Extroverts love to be in the middle of things. Gloria is an especially good example. “It’s really exciting when TV shows are interviewing you, you’re in the public eye, you’re young, and the world is at your feet.” she says. “My store—the hottest people in California were coming to see me. And when my first play was produced, there was so much attention—the reviews were calling me brilliant and genius!”
Gloria eventually burned out on the LA scene and, once again, followed her heart. It led her to 26 acres on a quiet New England river where she continues to write and is building a berry farm.
Although to other Colors Gloria’s many careers bewilder, for her they were a natural progression. “My deepest satisfaction is when something is completed and beautiful and it gives pleasure to other people.”
When Green/Red Extroverts have done as much as they can enthusiastically and interest wanes in one career, they move on to the next exciting thing. They are merely following their artistic core, which leads them like a beacon to the next hot thing.
Green/Red Extroverts are starters, not administrators. Gloria, like most of her Color type, hates paperwork and accounting. She does it as a necessary evil and delegates it whenever possible. Owning a store with thirty employees was especially difficult, but her caring Green personality and natural Extroversion inspired deep loyalty in her employees.
case study three
Fine Artist, Commercial Artist, Art Teacher
Oldrich Teply is one of the envied men who make art their living. His corporate graphic work, fine art, and teaching fulfill him on many levels. Most energizing to Oldrich is his teaching work at the renowned Art Students League in New York City. Handling classes of fifty painting students, he gently and diplomatically corrects errors in proportion, drawing, composition, or color. Green/Red Extrovert teachers are known for their inspiring ways, and they love the contact they have with their students. Oldrich can respond to different ages, backgrounds, and skill levels with equal ease. He has the Green/Red core desire to develop potential in others, and is most pleased when a student begins to show his or her own style.
For corporations, for example, he creates watercolors showcasing new high-rise condominiums. Such assignments can involve studying blueprints and conferring with architects and designers. Greens are particularly skilled at pulling together diverse data to create one compelling visual that communicates the spirit of a project.
At the request of Lou Gerstner, then-CEO of Nabisco, Oldrich drew twenty-eight caricature portraits of the company’s new management team to ease their transition. At the annual meeting, as the pictures flashed onscreen, the humor Oldrich captured broke the tension surrounding the impending changes. Humor is one tool Green/Reds use to create harmony.
The variety and creative freedom of his work are deeply fulfilling to Oldrich, as is his minimal exposure to rules and bureaucracy.
For Greg Marion, it’s important that his clients know his heart is in the right place and he truly wants to be of service. Wherever Green/Red Extroverts work, if high value is placed on human well-being, they are happy. Green/Reds like Gloria Parker crave creativity and idea generation in a lively, fast-paced world.
When a job offer is made, leverage as much as you can from the list in Figure 8–2.
The WORST type of work culture for an Extroverted Green/Red emphasizes routine and details, like the paperwork and accounting tasks Gloria hates. Rules and procedures dominate, against which Green/Reds can’t help but rebel. Highly political atmospheres destroy the creative freedom and trust necessary for Green/Reds to contribute their best.
When Extroverted Green/Reds 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. Green/Reds get along especially well with other Greens. But bosses of other Color types who possess the characteristics in Figure 8–3 on page 56 also can be good mentors.
Like Gloria and Greg, you are most attracted to careers that provide recognition for your creativity and versatility. Or you may be attracted to professions that involve teaching and helping others. Others will include those listed below.
Figure 8–2 The Ideal Green/Red Extrovert Work
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 8–3 The Green/Red Extrovert’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.
art director ♦ creative director multimedia team ♦ desktop publisher ♦ designer [interior decorator, set, wardrobe] ♦ fine artist ♦ graphic artist/designer ♦ landscape designer ♦ multimedia specialist ♦ web designer (encourages originality and uniqueness).
account executive ♦ conference programmer ♦ consultative salesperson ♦ corporate communications director ♦ corporate trainer diversity manager ♦ employment interviewer ♦ human resources generalist/specialist ♦ industrial psychologist ♦ organization development consultant ♦ strategic partnership developer (brainstorming ability and relationship building, strong verbal and written skills, good mediator).
actor ♦ agent/manager [artists, performers] ♦ columnist ♦ editor [book, film] ♦ film producer ♦ journalist ♦ literary agent ♦ model ♦ motivational speaker ♦ playwright/screenwriter ♦ translator ♦ TV anchor/newscaster (superior verbal and written skills, going from one glamorous project to the next).
adult literacy specialist ♦ educational consultant ♦ guidance counselor ♦ instructional coordinator ♦ teachers at all levels [plus art, drama, music, special education] (enjoy continuing education, establish rapport).
dietitian ♦ family practitioner ♦ nurse ♦ pediatrician ♦ psychologists of all types ♦ public health educator ♦ therapist [physical, massage, speech, occupational] (relationship building, empathy, juggling lots of people).
counselor of all sorts [career, crisis, high school guidance, substance abuse, etc.] ♦ fundraiser/institutional solicitor ♦ lawyer [intellectual property, environment, nonprofit] ♦ legal mediator ♦ philanthropic consultant ♦ religious leader ♦ school psychologist ♦ social scientist ♦ social worker [child family, school] (understanding human motivation, relationship building, good people/project juggling skills).
advertising account executive/manager ♦ advertising creative director ♦ marketing specialist/consultant ♦ media planner ♦ publicist ♦ publicity writer ♦ public relations director/specialist (product positioning and understanding human motivation).
case study four
When a Career Isn’t Working
At age 52, Glen, a New York attorney, had just about achieved all his major goals. Partner of a prestigious Wall Street law firm, Glen was respected and lavishly compensated. His cases were high profile, the envy of his peers. Yet for some reason he could not understand, Glen was finding it increasingly difficult to get up in the morning. He visited a therapist three times a week, seeking answers without knowing the questions.
It turned out Glen had a classic case of burnout—a condition that results when the job does not fit the needs of the personality. Glen had sailed through law school on his smarts, fueled with the idealism that a law career could make big differences in the world (something important to Green/Reds).
In his early years at the firm he worked long hours, energized by the camaraderie with his colleagues, as often is the case with this Color. Extroverted Green/Reds recharge their batteries through supportive interaction at work. This kept Glen going through the tough cases of his junior years. His outstanding ability to make clients feel special and well-served (another Green/Red core aptitude) earned him an early partnership. This put him in high demand; ample and excellent word-of-mouth recommendations attracted career-making cases.
Yet, at the top of his game, his reward was loss of interest and constant fatigue. A brief introduction to his Color style brought several things to light. As a Green, he disliked confrontation, the basis of most prominent cases. The relentless drive for high-stakes settlements and the pressure of outwitting opponents was draining rather than satisfying, as it would be to a Blue.
Glen resigned, much to the surprise of family, friends, and colleagues. He enrolled in a university to earn a Ph.D. in psychology. Now, several years later and brimming with energy, Glen is hanging up his shingle as a therapist for lawyers.
Green/Red Extroverts have a unique set of potential work-related blind spots. Some listed below you have, others you don’t.
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:
♦ Pay too little attention to rules you feel are obstacles to creativity. (Try to understand whose anxiety a rule addresses. Remember, genuine creativity can work around, and through, the rules.)
♦ Can talk too much, going off on tangents during group discussions. (You think holistically; hence, all topics addressed in any order are relevant. Be considerate of your fellow Colors who need linear thought and get jangled when the lines aren’t straight!)
♦ Are too sensitive to criticism. (Because relationships are top priority to you, criticism feels like condemnation when it’s not. Dare to ask your critics if they still like you. Most likely, they do.)
♦ Avoid conflict; often delaying dealing with the issue. (Enjoy the realization that conflict worked through to conclusion actually strengthens relationships. If you are a young Green/Red, this is a very hard lesson to learn. A thicker skin will bring you more and deeper relationships in the long run.)
♦ Get excited by new projects and then don’t complete old ones. (Most projects get “old” before they’re complete, leaving unfinished business. Just finish or delegate so your energy is totally free to devote to the new.)
♦ Make errors of fact. (Gut feelings have always gotten you to the right place at the right time; decisions based on facts often have led you astray. Start intuitively, then prove yourself right. Other Colors need facts and will devalue your ideas if they contain errors.)
Green/Red Extroverts love making a splash and impressing others. With some interviewers, particularly Greens and Reds, you blow away all competitors. With other Colors, you need a different strategy.
Your natural strengths easily allow you to:
♦ Actively network through a broad range of people for referrals.
♦ Enjoy exploring new options.
♦ Interview with enthusiasm.
♦ Establish quick rapport.
♦ Convince an employer to create a new job for you.
♦ Come across as adaptable, a quick learner, and a team player.
In order to tone down your blind spots, you need to:
♦ Role-play negotiating salary and financial issues (find a willing Gold or Blue to help).
♦ Do more research on prospective companies.
♦ Subdue wardrobe, hairstyle, and manner in interviews to counterbalance seeming lack of seriousness.
♦ Talk less in interviews and ask more questions.
♦ Hold back ideas on which you have not done cost research.
♦ Require yourself to make a minimum number of contacts each day of your job search.
♦ Do a realistic budget for your job search time.
♦ Instead of jumping at a job offer, say “This sounds great, but I need some reflection time. Can you allow me one or two days?”
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, use the suggestions in parentheses. Mercilessly exploit these natural abilities of yours, and get more job offers!
In following your natural style, you:
♦ Speak with geniality, fluency, and energy. (You can overwhelm more subdued interviewers. Try to operate from an energy level only one notch higher than your interviewer, not ten!)
♦ Think on your feet and reply quickly. (Don’t think this always makes you look good. It’s possible to be too peppy. Mix it up—make some replies slow and thoughtful.)
♦ Make your points through lively and vivid imagery, personal stories, and humor. (With an interviewer who keeps his or her distance, replace imagery with facts—role play with a willing Gold, if possible. Use personal stories only when interviewers maintain eye contact. If humor falls flat the first time, don’t keep trying! Let the interviewer set the tone.)
♦ See the big picture and typically present that first. (Great if you’re interviewing for a senior level position, irritating if for a junior slot. No boss wants a subordinate who sees more on the horizon than he or she does. Share only if asked.)
Okay, go do something new now. Or continuing reading Chapter 10, Reds Overall. Then learn how to Color-code bosses and co-workers by reading Chapter 4, A Tour of the Prism Company, and Chapter 25, Adjusting to the Styles of Other Colors. The greatest value of this book really is learning how to interact with, appreciate, and use the strengths of other Colors. If you’re doing a job search, jot down notes in Chapter 28, A Roadmap—it will keep you focused.