A. What can we say about Blue, Red and Green as types?
 

 

B. I have filled in the questionnaire Diversity Icebreaker. How do I understand my scores? 
 

 

 

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1. Is Diversity Icebreaker a personality instrument?

2. What is different between Diversity Icebreaker and MBTI and other Jungian like concepts?

3. What are the alternatives of how to make groups on different colors in seminars?

4. How do you make groups with same number?

5. Why Green first?

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6. Use of Flip charts?

7. What kind of tasks do you give the groups?

8. Do participants repeat the questionnaire content when they define the colors in groups?

9. How many participants are recommended?

10. How long time does this take?

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11. Is there a political reason for the different colors?

12. Humor and having fun is typical for the process of Diversity Icebreaker. What creates the humor?

13. How do you promote learning and how do you formulate learning concepts?

14. What are different ways to follow up the collectivization process?

15. If some people ask, what is really typical for Red, Blue and Green, what to say?

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16. What are potential pitfalls?

17. If there are lacking one color in a team, should we recruit a person with these color quality?

18. Advanced facilitator skills

19. Do you expect this process to vary dependent on cultural dimensions like Individualism and Collectivism?

20. How is this linked to teamwork?

21. What about the ethical aspect of changing behavior due to who you talk to?


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A. What can we say about Blue, Red and Green as types? 

People with BLUE preference:

1) “Blue” people are concerned with being concrete and practical. They like to calculate and work towards solutions in a systematic manner. They want things to be useful. They believe the purpose of communication is to solve tasks in a precise way. In decision making they want the facts to be presented, and they measure the arguments in terms of usefulness and goal achievement. They want to keep the end result precise and all details correct.

2) In order to communicate and work with “Blues”:

• Be down to earth, practical, focus on usefulness

• Be logical, goal oriented

• Use facts and examples

• Focus on details

• Use numbers and calculations

• Be structured and well prepared

3) Additional information about “Blues”:

Blues tend to think and consider the consequences before they speak or take action. They contribute by remaining focused, goal oriented and intent on completing the task. They are not ones to talk much about feelings or get carried away by imagination. They do not seek excitement for its own sake and are not carried away by positive emotion. Their everyday life is not characterized by impulsiveness; spontaneous suggestions are mostly seen as a disturbance. What has been done in the past is considered important when deciding what to do in the future. It is more important to follow a plan than to be flexible and open to new and creative ideas. Their practical, down-to-earth style limits their openness to different kinds of experiences. They are conscientious and reliable, and gain trust over time. Conscientiousness and self discipline are combined with a certain degree of orderliness. Carefulness and reliability are virtues to them.

Blue people are considerate of the group and contribute constructively and consciously to the common good. They can be very loyal to the group, the leader and the organization. They do not want conflict, but seek productive and harmonious cooperation with few diversions. People with blue preference are often seen as organized, focused, rational and without unnecessary emotional outbursts or a need to stand out in social contexts.

4) IF YOU ARE A “BLUE”:

• Know your boundaries, and express them early.
   

• Be aware that other people stress human relations to a greater degree than you do. Be patient with them, and recognize of your own resistance to change.
   

• Don’t give up your identity or try to become too Red or too Green. Remember, you do make a special contribution to the team. 
  
   

  
   

People with RED preference:

1) “Red” people a enjoy spending time with others. They have a lot of friends and get energy from meeting, being together and talking with people. To reach them it is important to have a personal and enthusiastic message. They are open about their feelings and find it easy to talk about them. At the same time, they show respect and patience towards others. Harmony in social settings is the most important thing to them. This may lead to concrete tasks being given lower priority. The goal of communication is to ensure inclusion and solidarity.

2) In order to communicate and work with “Reds”:

• Converse in a harmonious way

• Be personal and enthusiastic

• Focus on social consequences and community spirit

• Show trust and consideration

3) Additional information about “Reds”:

Reds tend to be spontaneous and impulsive when meeting other people. They are often described as warm and easygoing with the ability to create security and positive feelings among others. They consider the emotional part of work to be more important than action and concrete ideas. Clarifying their own feelings is one of their strengths. At the same time, they may be aware that they or others might take up too much space and attention in the group. This ability, however, makes them successful when having an integrating role in groups; they try to make certain there is integration and respect in spite of the members’ differences. They appear socially responsible as well as having respect for each individual person. They are less ambitious when it comes to reaching goals and may find it difficult to contribute in a focused manner over time. Historical facts and sharp analysis are less important to them than to creating a solution through conversation and agreement. They often can be self-sacrificing in their pursuit of satisfaction and harmony.

4) If you are a “Red”:

• Make sure to have some structure and continuity in your tasks.

• Be aware that not everybody finds it easy to speak up.

• Respect others need for quiet and concentration.

People with GREEN preference:

1) “Green” people are easily stimulated by new ideas and the possibility of being able to do things differently. They become enthusiastic about unusual and untraditional ideas. They enjoy looking deeply into a question and at new ways to approach their job as well as at the overall picture. This often enables them to come up with imaginative solutions that connect ideas from different areas. They are ambitious and have high goals for the future.

2) In order to communicate and work with “Greens”:

• Give them time for reflection and consideration

• Focus on the larger picture and the connections between different ideas

• Be open to change and try to understand their visions

• Be open to creative and innovative ideas

• Set high goals

• Be value-oriented

3) Additional information about “Greens”:

Greens tend to make their mark quickly, often with thoughts and ideas that can dominate and influence what your team focuses on later. They are very open to new ways of thinking and new ideas. They enjoy leading and/or like to participate in abstract and exciting discussions. Greens are impulsive and creative. They may use feelings and beauty as both inspiration and reasoning for what they find important. They do not think for long or evaluate the consequences before they speak or act. They are good at focusing on alternative solutions while brainstorming, but do not necessarily have the patience to complete a task. Self discipline, patience, order, details, or being conscientious does not characterize their everyday life. Greens can be socially dominant and do not always adapt to the group’s prevailing ideas. Independence is one of their many strong values and they express their values easily even when they are in opposition to those who are leading the group. Modesty is not a virtue to Greens. It is unlikely for them to make sacrifices for the organization or community unless connected to strong, value based activities with which they agree.

4) If you are a “Green”:

• Let other people express themselves and listen to what they have to say.

• Show consideration and respect towards other people’s way of thinking and approaching a problem.

• Manage your own impatience and work to obtain support for your ideas.
   

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B. I have filled in the questionnaire Diversity Icebreaker. How do I understand my scores?

When filling out a questionnaire like this it is important to have a critical approach. Sometimes the model upon which the questionnaire is based is not really suitable to some people. These models are mostly created to be used to systematically measure differences between people. That does not necessarily mean that it describes each person in the best manner. You can think of models like Red, Blue and Green as spectacles that show you these exact dimensions while looking at a human being. Some people are more unique than others, or have qualities that are more pronounced, and different from those highlighted by the model. Measuring Red, Blue and Green does not necessarily catch these kinds of original qualities. In everyday life these qualities can be very influential. With regards to your own self perception these unique qualities are often the ones which stand out in your self image.

The following questions are helpful in determining the quality of the test result:

IMPORTANT QUESTIONS:

1. Does this concur with my experience in this team?
2. How typical is this for me?
3. In what contexts am I different?
4. What about my competence to fill this and other roles?
5. How do the other team members experience me in relation to the different roles?

You can place yourself according to the descriptions of the dimensions, either using the pages in this booklet that describe the colours, or by getting feedback from people who know you well. Please note that there is often considerable difference in how your colleagues see you and how you see yourself. This is connected to how your colleagues only see you in a certain role at the work place, whereas you have experienced yourself in different settings throughout your whole life. Your colleagues often see things that you yourself had not realised, but just as often there are things you know about yourself that your colleagues have not had the opportunity to get to know. We recommend that you and your colleagues discuss your assessments in order to discover the connections between your own thoughts and those of your colleagues.

Risk of stigmatisation
We have seen that expensive and strongly descriptive personalised test results conveyed by authority figures easily get to be of central importance for an individual within an organisation. You are identified as an “instigator” or “idea maker”. In some cases this label sticks to a person, unwantedly, for a long time.
Working with Red, Blue and Green we have pointed out that while the scores have some measure of stability, there is also room for change. Social processes and work tasks, as well as competence and motivation, are important elements that shape the role you get in everyday life. We would also like to stress that one must remember that even the most reliable tools may occasionally be erroneous. And people change over time. This is particularly evident in places where people are consciously working on cooperation and development of personal competence.

Are we either/or?

You might end up with a score like this:
Blue: 38, Red 24, Green 22.

Your primary preference will be blue, i.e. it will be easiest for you to relate to behaviour similar to that described for people with a strong Blue preference. You also score high on Red and Green, however. This means you can relate more easily to the other colours working style. It will most probably be quite easy for you to use a different style, acting in a Green way and manner, for example.

Switching between roles is easier the more average or close to normal your score is. If your primary preference score is extremely high compared to others, acting out of it will be more difficult. If you have a secondary preference colour that is extremely low, that working style will not be easy for you to use. But what is extremely high and extremely low?

In order to answer this we will study a scale that compares you to what is considered normal (i.e. comparison with a norm table). Here follows a norm table for men and women based on what we call deciles; 10% units.

Norms,