Finding Your Primary Color, And Making The Leap
October 18th, 2009
Email this article to a friend
I’m not really into career books, so at first I wasn’t particularly interested in this book called The Leap: How 3 Simple Changes Can Propel Your Career from Good to Great
But it’s good, really good. It’s really not about traditional career advice, but more about how ordinary people make a quantum leap from an average life to a great life. One example is the author himself, who went from being fired from a job he didn’t care about to starting World 50, an elite executive networking company.
Other case studies are a door-to-door fax machine saleswoman who started her own clothing line, a shrimp farmer who became a renowned genetics expert, a software designer who became a leading advocate for the homeless, and a guy named Bill Gates who started a company called Microsoft.
The book is about how to make your own leap by following three rules. The first rule is to find your primary color, which represents the intersection of your greatest strengths and passions.
It’s illustrated with a color chart, with red representing curiosity, green representing execution, and blue representing leadership. Where do these intersect for you?
You can find out your primary color for free at http://www.primarycolorassessment.com. It takes about 15 minutes, and an email address is required, but you can use a fake one if you want since they give you the results right there in the web page. My results are below.
It says:
YOUR PRIMARY COLOR IS:
CANDY APPLE RED – Wildly CuriousCongratulations! Your primary color is that specific area of the spectrum that best represents the intersection of your greatest strengths and passions. Be sure to check out the So What?! and Now What?! tabs for additional information and resources.
Curiosity is the cornerstone of this color area. You are energized by the new and novel…interested in trying new things and exploring innovative approaches and solutions. Leaders in this cluster are generally most comfortable and effective when leading through vision and ideas. You are decisive, yet are always looking for a better answer and need time to think and explore alternatives.
Fast paced go-go environments can be a negative place for you even though you may be energetic and driven. You are also quality driven and motivated by achieving excellence. If you are a STRONG RED, others may see you as idealistic and perfectionistic – certainly difficult to please – never settling for “just OK.”
I thought “wildly curious” was accurate, but a couple of things jumped out at me. First, 0% for execution? Do I really have that little follow through? The other thing is that these numbers add up to 94%. Did 6% of my soul leak out?
Then I thought that maybe they’re not supposed to add up to 100%, but each one can be 100% for a max total of 300%. And I saw that the inside of the book jacket shows a screenshot with 95% curiosity, 21% execution, and 86% leadership, for a total of 202%.
Now my scores look really low! Oh well, I’m focusing on the color rather than the numbers.
I agree with him that the MBTI isn’t useful for career planning, but then again it’s not meant to be, despite what everyone thinks.
To find your field, you’d want something that measures strengths and passions, like his primary color assessment. One thing I’d like to see is what other people with my primary color have done to make their leap.
I do think he has some good insights about how to live the life you’re supposed to have, and the common elements among ideas that really take off. If you’re looking to make a leap, you’ll love this book.
If you take the primary color assessment, please tell us your color. Any other candy apple reds out there?
October 19th, 2009 at 12:51 am
I’m a Razzle Dazzle Rose, which sounds a bit like the name of a madam from a cheesy Western movie, but is actually the color associated with being an Innovative Organizer. I’m “comfortable in the world of ideas and innovation” but can also “be an effective organizer who can get things done.” That’s largely a good description of my job!
Like you, I was surprised to see that I had 0% in execution (88% curiosity and 47% leadership), especially since I spend a great deal of my day working on getting things done for others. I’m intrigued by the premise of The Leap–enough so that it’s going on my list of Books I Want To Read Soon.
Thanks for the post–this book was off of my radar screen until you mentioned it!
October 19th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Hi,
I just took the test. I’m a pink cadilac, with curiosity 86%, leadership 87%, and execution 20%. It says I’m a visionary and a change agent, which I like. It also says I’m a decisive take-charge leader and strongly people oriented. Really.
I think the test is made with the assumption of traditional organization with management roles. It doesn’t take into consideration so much of independent small business owners like myself. Yes, my work is people oriented, but it’s a bit different from the old leadership role — I inspire and help, rather than manage.
Well, you know me pretty well, Hunter, what do you think?
October 19th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
I’m a jazzberry jam – energized innovator. 49% curiosity and 25% leadership. That’s on the bottom in the So What? section, as a strong individual contributor rather than “inspiring others.” That sounds great to me!
October 19th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Hey! I was going to review this – I had the same reservations as you, I’m so not a career person, but it was very motivating and interesting all the same.
I am a purple mountain majesty – I like the sound of that:
When it comes to taking charge and motivating others to move forward into new territory you are likely to be in the lead. Others generally follow you willingly and will take more risk than normal because of the enthusiastic confidence that you inspire in them. Your character in the face of adversity can be infectious and motivating to others.
One of your major strengths is your ability to define direction and draw others towards it to accomplish a goal. While you can set direction and define desired outcomes, the attention to details may be best left to others. In general, people with this color place a high value on harmonious human contact and relationships. You may find that you tend to trust more than average and will concentrate on the admirable qualities of others.
While you are decisive, you have the gift of being able to see the value of other points of view. Intuition can play a large role in your decision process and personal values will always be important. Your preferred work environment will be one that is people oriented, socially supportive, organized and encourages self-expression. Look for opportunities to be a change agent in a dynamic environment.
October 19th, 2009 at 8:30 pm
Oh yes, and I’m 0% execution, too. I think my mom would tend to agree with that. I do think I’m much more than 20% creative, but 43% leadership sounds about right.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
Wow, lots of low-execution people here.
Now I’m wondering what that really means, because I don’t think we’re all slackers. Maybe it doesn’t mean that we can’t execute, just that we’d never prefer it when given a choice.
Akemi points out that the test might have been made with a traditional organization in mind. The “About This Free Assesment” page says the intent was to measure human ability, which sounds really generic. Then it seems more about traditional careers by saying things like “leadership + execution = management.” But are all execution-oriented leaders managers? I don’t think so, at least outside of a corporation.
A lot of effort went into making it, so I’m sure there’s a lot of cool psychology behind it. I’m a candy apple red, so I’d like to know the details.
October 20th, 2009 at 3:10 am
I am a “Sun Flare”
86% Curiosity
90% Execution
37% Leadership
“those who are very logical and base actions and decisions on facts and those who are equally analytical but make more use of their intuition and “gut feelings.” The latter will, never-the-less, tend to verify their intuition with facts and hard data. While you may be outgoing and people oriented in situations that call for it, you generally prefer to be more introverted in your interactions and to function as an individual contributor.
Strategic planners can be frequently found in this color, where logic and analysis tend to be hallmarks. ”
Very interesting. I didn’t think this test will have much of a grasp of who I am, but this is pretty accurate.
October 20th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Hunter, thanks for the review! You are right about the career thing. its always a battle with the publisher, but in the end they convinced me to put in the sub-title, as you have to win in one market before you can be seen in all, or something like that.
Great to have people share their colors. I am purple mountain, and my wife is exactly the opposite with Electric Lime.
One very cool thing people can do is to take this test (or just log back in) on the Primary Color facebook app. You can search on Facebook “What is Your Primary Color”, or, just go to my blog and look in the upper right – that will take you right to the application. if you just log back in with your id and password, you can post this to your page, and see what all your friends colors are. Its pretty cool. Overall, this site has already had a quarter million page views and counting! thanks again.
October 21st, 2009 at 6:54 am
@Hunter: Thank you for the link – I’m Candy Apple Red too…
“leading through vision and ideas” tjeck
“always looking for a better answer and need time to think” tjeck
“Fast paced go-go environments can be a negative place for you” tjeck
“idealistic and perfectionistic – certainly difficult to please – never settling for “just OK” tjeck
Pretty accurate.
October 26th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
Um . . . OK, sigh . . . I’m Sassy Salmon – and salmon is DEFINITELY one of my least favorite colors! But, the assessment is pretty good, so I guess I have to own it.
Curiosity 85% – most people reading this blog seem to be pretty high in curiosity
Execution 35% – believe me, this is a LEARNED skill after 35 years in the corporate world – definitely not innate
Leadership 33% – yeah, about what I expected – just put me in a room and let me do what I gotta do, OK?
You will thrive in situations that make use of your ability to design logical and complex systems. You also have the ability to see the “big picture” while at the same time staying connected to the immediate need. Others will likely view you as the go-to person when logical analysis that cuts quickly to the core of the issue is needed. You are thoughtful, and will prefer to work in an environment that exposes you to other independent thinkers, provides you with considerable leeway in getting the job done in your own fashion and often allows for privacy and quiet.
While you can work effectively with others and can be a good team player, you may prefer to operate as an independent contributor. Often quiet and reserved, you will prefer to organize facts and data rather than people and things. You may be good with your hands and are likely to be interested in how and why things work. As a result you may be drawn to the applied side of science and engineering/technology. On the analytical or intellectual side fields such as law, economics, marketing sales (technical), finance or statistical/actuarial fields could provide a great deal of satisfaction.
Why does everything keep telling me to go technical, statistical, actuarial??? That is NOT where I wanna be – just what I have learned to do well because that’s where the jobs were for women in the 70’s! Being good with your hands and wanting to make things work DOESN’T necessarily equate in my mind to law or economics (bleah, urgh). ;-P