Month: March 2014

Beware the Ides of March–Assassination and Intrigue

On March 15th of 44 BC, the term “The Ides of March” would become forever changed. Its modern meaning?  The date that Julius Caesar was assassinated.

Although a seer continued to warn Caesar that harm would befall him no later that the Ides of March, Caesar failed to listen. On his way to the Theatre of Pompey, where he would be assassinated, Caesar passed the seer and joked, “The ides of March have come,” meaning to say that the prophecy had not been fulfilled, to which the seer replied “Aye, Caesar; but not gone.”

Caesar was stabbed to death while leading a meeting of the Roman Senate. The successful conspirators were led by Marcus Junius Brutus, and instigated by Gaius Cassius Longinus.

Caesar was not a lovable man, but a strong and remarkable leader. He won his soldiers’ devotion by the victories that his intellectual ability, applied to warfare, brought them. Yet, though not lovable, Caesar was attractive and, indeed fascinating. His political achievement required ability, in effect amounting to genius, in several different fields.

Brutus was worried that Caesar was aspiring to dictatorship. The assassin loved Caesar as a friend, but he opposed the ascension of any single man to the position of dictator. Brutus’s inflexible sense of honor made it easy for Caesar’s enemies to manipulate him into believing that Caesar must die in order to preserve the republic. While the other conspirators acted out of envy and rivalry, only Brutus truly believed that Caesar’s death would benefit Rome.

Longinus, would never be a strong leader. He was witty and charming and was only interested in making money so he could have status and be accepted good society. Although Cassius was “the moving spirit” in the plot against Caesar, winning over the chief assassins to the cause of tyrannicide, he was no leader.

While successful in their assassination, the unexpected result was that Caesar’s death precipitated the end of the Roman Republic. CC

 

Colors

Caesar_________________________________________

Brutus__________________________________________

Longinus________________________________________

Are You Guilty of Color Bias?

I am a Red.

When I took the Color Code assessment 8 years ago, I didn’t really understand the paradigm, and quite frankly, didn’t take much stock in it. But, working for Color Code, part of my job description was to get on board (go figure), so I took the test.

You are a Red. When I got those results, I wasn’t pleased. I didn’t feel motivated by power. I conjured images of myself in a Hiltleresque mustache, demanding and rigid, expecting everyone to fear me. Then I read that a Red’s motivation for power is like that of a car engine. Power that moves you forward, not power that makes you have a diabolical need to control the world.

Still, I was sure I must have answered the questions incorrectly. I mean, really! My twenty-page report was full of things about me that couldn’t be true. I can’t be a Red.

Bias #1 Red’s are egotistical bullies, right?

When I became more educated about Color Code and really began to see it in action, I was surprised that I not only had misconceptions about Reds, but other color bias:

Bias #2 I don’t like Blues because they over-articulate.

Bias #3 I don’t like Yellows because they are irresponsible.

Bias #4 I don’t like Whites because they are lazy.

Sound ludicrous? Of course it is. Making blanket derogatory statements about any group of people is BIAS. While it’s true that the limitations I find annoying are generally associated with that color, for me to lump all the people within those DCMs as the sum of their limitations is close to defamatory.

Here is my truth:

Bias #1–Everything my 20-page report said about me is true. I am a Red. I do have all the strengths it describes—assertive, determined, and focused. But, I admit, I have Red limitations too—bossy, demanding, and arrogant. Still, we Reds, (believe it or not), have people who actually like us.

Bias #2 —I am married to a Blue, and while I have to check my patience while he explains in great detail why I can’t have the faucet I want, rather than just say yes or no, I love his consideration, his sensitivity, and his loyalty.

Bias #3–All of my closest friends happen to be Yellows. My oldest Yellow friend was a workmate. Once, I asked her a time-sensitive, work related question. She said she would check on it a call me right back. She hung up and went to a movie. I waited for my phone to ring. In the workplace, she drove me crazy, but the time we spent together outside of the office was magic. We laughed until our stomachs hurt.

Bias #4–Ah, Whites. They hold a special place in my heart. They are intelligent, humorous, and self-deprecating. As a Red, I am baffled by their lack of ambition when they show so much talent and creativity. I want to push and prod them, but I know this is a futile gesture.

Oh, yeah…did I mention that my report also said I have the Blue limitation of being judgmental, the Yellow limitation of being self-centered and the White limitation of being silently stubborn? So!  The big and most difficult question: are my biases the fault of the other colors and their pesky little annoyances, or are they a result of my own limitations including the Red limitation of arrogance? If I am to take 100% percent responsibility for my own actions and feelings, I, in all honesty, have to choose the latter and face the consequences.

It is up to me to realize that each person is different—products of nature and nurture. Not only do they have core motives, but, they have secondary colors and filters that modify their behaviors.

Most importantly, they just might have Character. Something I need to work on. CC

 

Teresa Glenn has been working with the Color Code since 2006, where her main focus is product development. She has been in the publishing and product development field for over 20 years. Teresa is a core Red with a strong Yellow secondary.

Ask the Expert

Dear Jeremy,

Personally, I don’t consider myself a “RED”; however, when I see that my red is 34.7% and my Blue is 34.09% (.61% difference) then what does that make me? I mean if I’m equally a red and blue then should I be aware of the Blue-Red, Blue-Blue, Blue-Yellow, and Blue-White relationships?

Thank you for your consideration.

George

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Dear George,

Thank you so much for submitting your questions. Without a doubt, you have a VERY strong and extremely close Secondary Color to consider. There are definitely some insights that I have for you both in determining with certainty your Core Color and in understanding how your Secondary Color will affect you in a couple of different ways. I’m going to do this in outline form for you so that it will be easier to reference these comments in the future.

1) Everybody has one, and ONLY one, Driving Core Motive.

In a case like yours, you also have an extremely close secondary Color, but it is not possible to be two colors equally, or to be a “purple” for instance. Your first step here should be in determining which is the Core Color, and which is the Secondary Color.You said you don’t consider yourself a Red – and that may very well be true. In your case, with the percentages being as close as they are between the primary and secondary Colors, one question answered differently could flip your results the other way around. Keep reading, and I’ll show you how to look at this a little more objectively.

2) Your Driving Core Motive is far more significant than your Secondary Color.

Even if the percentages are close, your Core Color is quite a bit more significant to you than your Secondary Color. Dr. Hartman says that where self-awareness and building relationships is concerned, being in touch with your Core Color is like a human being understanding how to breathe. It’s that essential! Understanding the Secondary Color, he adds, is like a human being learning how to walk. Yes it’s very important and will affect the way that you experience life, but it is not nearly as critical to your success as breathing would be!

3) Tips to determining which is the Core Color and which is the Secondary.

You are the ultimate barometer here, truthfully. There are a couple of tips that I will share with you here, but ultimately you will feel that one of these two Colors (Red or Blue) feels more like “home” to you and is therefore your Core Color. The other will probably feel quite comfortable as well – like a nice hotel room – but not quite as comfortable as truly being at home.

That said, you should consider what your “knee jerk reaction” is to everyday situations. Is your instinct to take the Red approach or the Blue approach? Sometimes your instinct make you want to go one direction, and then you decide to move in the direction of your Secondary Color because you’ve trained yourself to do so to achieve a certain result. If you pay attention to the natural reaction, though, you may start to see your Core Color more clearly.

One of the best ways to determine this is to learn more about the Color Code. If you were to participate in a Color Code Workshop or even listen to our 6-CD Seminar Series, it would probably become very clear to you which the Core Color is versus the Secondary Color.

Another thing to check is the strengths and limitations list available on your Comprehensive Analysis report. It is in Section 2 located right below the pie chart showing how you scored in all four Colors. There, we plot out for you all of the traits that you indicated on the assessment so that you can see what Color category they come from and whether they are strengths or limitations. The trick here is to look at the limitations column, because typically (though this isn’t 100% fool-proof) the column with the greatest number of limitations ends up being your Core Color.

The last suggestion I have for you if those ideas still aren’t working for you would be to take our Character Code Assessment. On that assessment you answer the questions based on what you are mostly like today, and even though it’s objective is not to determine your Core Color, sometimes you will see some patterns emerge (again – usually in the limitations section) that will make this clearer to you.

4) Pros and Cons of the Secondary Color.

Now I would like to turn my attention to the advantages and disadvantages of the Secondary Color. Before I do, however, it would be good to note that to determine whether somebody has a Secondary Color, we look at whether an individual has scored 66.67% or more in any one Color Code category. If they have, we consider them to be a “Purist”, which is somebody who doesn’t really have a significant Secondary Color. If they score lower than the 66.67% mark in their Core Color, they probably have a Secondary Color. Over 75% of the population shows a Secondary Color score.

The up-side to having a Secondary Color is that development within that Color comes a little easier than it would for others. For example, if you are Red Core with a Blue Secondary and you are not naturally detail-oriented (a strength common to Blues), you might find that you have an easier time learning that skill than somebody else would who has very little Blue in their profile. The reason why is that you already “speak the language” of Blues to a degree. You understand where they are coming from and how they might approach things. That makes the development flow a little more naturally for you.

The drawback to having a Secondary Color are the the limitations can be extremely damaging to you and your relationships.

It’s a funny phenomenon, but others are far more inclined to overlook – and be forgiving – of limitations you display from your Core Color than they are from your Secondary. And that’s whether they know the Color Code or not!

People just seem to get a sense of each other. They can accept or even dismiss limiting behavior from your Core Color, because at least it seems congruent – or natural – from someone with your unique personality. However, when you act out of a limitation from outside of your Core Color, others feel offended, put off, or generally suspicious of you. It makes them want to take a step back and not be as willing to connect with you out of the uncertainty of whether they will be dealing with Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde.

The difficulty for the person with a strong Secondary Color, of course, is that you may flow into those Secondary Color limitations so naturally that it doesn’t seem like a change of direction in the slightest way to you. Others, however, will notice it, and may not accept the shift at all. That is precisely why you need to be aware of the limitations associated with that Secondary Color so that you can keep those behaviors in particular in check.

5) Relationships and Conclusion.

To better understand each of your relationships (as you asked in the second part of your question), you should first seek to understand which is your Core Color. From there, and understanding of how the Secondary Color impacts those relationships is also important.I would encourage you to make a list of the following insomuch as they impact your relationships:

A) What are your top 3 strengths in your Core Color?

B) What are your worst 3 limitations in your Core Color?

C) What are your top 3 strengths in your Secondary Color? (Those will feel like a great, unexpected “bonus” to others.)

D) What are your worst 3 limitations in your Secondary Color? (Those may be damaging your relationships more than you realize.)

Thank you, George, for taking the time to ask the question. I probably gave you a little more than you bargained for here, but I felt it would be to your benefit and the benefit of our other subscribers as well to understand a little more about Secondary Colors.

Very best of living,

Jeremy Daniel
Training Director
Color Code International

 


JeremyDanielJeremy Daniel (Core Color: Yellow) has been working with the Color Code since 1998 in various capacities from training in the field personally with Dr. Taylor Hartman to designing customized corporate solutions and new training programs for various industries.  To ask about Jeremy’s training or speaking services, please email and inquiry to jeremy@colorcodetraining.com.