You see the following numbers in my workshops:

Roughly, 45% of the world is Gold, 30% is Orange, 15% is Blue, and 10% is Green.

So the best case scenario for good relations must fall to the numerous Golds, but even they face the reality that 55% of the world -- still the majority -- just might not understand them very well.

Worse for the others: 70% barely understand Oranges, 85% misunderstand Blues, 90% struggle to comprehend Greens.

Let's get straight to an example.

You are a team leader. You are Green. Smack in the middle of a meeting, you blurt out, "I think everybody needs to do their part here."

The other Greens are mad because you're suggesting they are not straight-A performers. The Golds glare at you because you had better get specific pretty quick or else risk hard-core detailed blowback. The Blues have prided themselves in teamsmanship, so they assume you must be blind. Some of the Oranges want to know right now how you, as leader, plan to fix things.

Now as your knowledgeable and competent Green self, you likely assumed that any idiot can see what's missing and should figure out how to close gaps in teamwork. Why should I have to say anything else? It's obvious to me. Why wouldn't it be obvious to anyone else?

All of us get in trouble because we forget that the rest of the world thinks differently than we do. We can stay out of trouble by respecting the values and needs of all four personality types. As leaders, especially, our words carry more weight and ridiculously imaginable meaning.

The tools you got in the workshops provide plenty of material to relate better with other temperaments -- to craft your words.

No wonder that the title of Dr. Keirsey's fundamental work is Please Understand Me. I would like to offer a corollary: Please Understand Others Enough To Make Yourself Understood.

Keirsey calls Blues and Greens "aliens." Golds and Oranges he calls "earthlings." It's a 25% "abstract" world versus a 75% "concrete" world. That notion alone must make you pause long enough to re-edit meeting comments and group emails, right?

To conclude, most people will not understand you indeed. But you personally will get the edge when you tune into others' values, strengths and needs. Thus you will win their attention, respect, and cooperation.

Write me a note if you want to examine this further.