“Surrounded by Idiots” Book Review

 

Do you think you are surrounded by idiots?

Last summer, during a two-week trip to England, I picked up this book in London simply because the title caught my eye.

One person may think another person is an idiot, and vice versa. Everyone may be regarded as an idiot by different types of people.

This book gave me a lot of inspiring ideas. Many people criticize the author for oversimplifying human complexity by using only four groups to differentiate people; however, he went ahead and did it anyway.

Color Personality Summary Table

Color Profile	Dominant Traits	Core Motivation	Focus	Key Weaknesses
Red	Result-oriented, dynamic	Achieving, controlling	The Goal	Can be insensitive, impatient
Yellow	Creative, optimistic	Expressing, influencing	People, Ideas	Struggle with focus, attention span
Green	Patient, supportive	Stabilizing, cooperating	The Team, Harmony	Resistant to change, can appear too passive
Blue	Analytical, precise	Analyzing, organizing	Facts, Details	Slower to decide, can be perceived as cold

The author also said:

“Statistically speaking only 5 percent of the population has just one color that shows in their behavior. Around 80 percent have two, and the rest have three. No one has four, with the tool I use.” (p. 96)

“So the basic rule is to meet a Red with Red behavior, Yellow with Yellow... You’ve done your work with pacing. Then it’s time to get them on board by making certain demands. Keep these straightforward at first, then make them a little tougher.” (p. 235)

One message from this book is that unless you’re living on a deserted island, there’s nobody in the world who shares your exact personality, so blending in is a basic survival skill. How to deal with idiots: just act like one of them on the outside.

When I started reading this book, I wanted to know my exact color; however, I realized my color is subject to change in different situations. Ultimately, I learned that the main takeaway from this book is not to be bound by the colors, but to understand my true self. Though I may not choose to apply recommendations from this book to my real life, I am glad to discover different models that help people find themselves and cope with the people around them.

It’s great to find yourself, be honest with yourself, and set goals for yourself.

All the best!