Dealing With an (E) – An (E)ntrepreneur or Arsonist

It would be a waste of time to approach an (E)ntrepreneur type the way you would an (A) – with a 30-page report detailing a problem and its solution. An (E) will not read your 30-page report. He will put it on his desk and forget about it.

Furthermore, an (E)ntrepreneur resists any idea unless it is his own idea. If you walk into a meeting with an (E) and say, “Boss, here is a problem; here is the solution; I just need your approval,” there is a good chance he’s going to say, “Wrong problem, wrong solution.” He’s going to try to change it, he’s going to attack it, he’s going to look for a loophole, he’s going to try to find out what’s wrong with it. Why? Because he wants to put his stamp on it. He does not like finalized ideas, which don’t require his input. In fact, he feels threatened by them. For an (E), if you present an idea that’s already finalized, it means you’re charging ahead and leaving him behind, forgetting him, ignoring him, not consulting with him. He feels disrespected. And sooner or later, he will find a way to put you in your place.

So how should you approach an (E) when you have a problem?

First of all, don’t call it a problem. An (E) is not interested in problems; in fact he gets annoyed when you talk about problems because problems are something he hired you for. Instead, figure out how to transform your problem into an opportunity. When you get to his office, instead of saying, “We have a problem,” try saying, “We have an opportunity to do something better,” or “We have an opportunity to change something. What do you think?”

The second issue to consider is: “How do I make the solution his idea?” Here it helps to use phrases such as “I suggest …,” or “May I suggest …,” or “I’ve been thinking …,” or “It appears that…,” or “What do you think?” instead of saying, “Here’s what I think we should do.” Allow the (E) an opportunity to put his stamp on the solution.

Please note that I’m not talking just about your boss; I’m talking about your subordinates too. If you treat an (E)-type subordinate as a subordinate – “This is what you need to do; here is how I want you to do it, this is when I want it done; now go do it!” – he’s going to be unhappy and resentful. The reason is that you aren’t giving him a chance to use his creativity. (E)s like to design the train; they even like to design the train's route, not run it.

So you have to talk to them – whether they are boss, peer or subordinate – in the identical (E)-language: “What do you think?” “What would you suggest?” “How would you improve this?” You know you’ve succeeded in selling your idea when the (E) gets excited and says, “Yes, that’s good, but what if we also …?” and begins to add his own thoughts to the mix. All you need to do at that point is find a way to incorporate his ideas so he can own the solution.

Here’s another technique: Explain the problem and your solution – but intentionally leave a mistake, a very obvious mistake, at the very beginning of your presentation. An (E) will see it immediately and correct it; in correcting it, he will feel ownership of the solution.

In the advertising business, this is called “the hairy arm” strategy: When the storyboard is designed for a TV ad, the artist will deliberately draw excessively hairy arms on one character in the ad. The minute he sees the storyboard, the client will notice the hairy arms, point them out and say, “That’s wrong; fix it.” This accomplishes two goals: The client will feel he has contributed to the process and thus “owns” the result of that process, while at the same time, his attention has been focused away from other aspects of the project that he might have felt like changing.

One of my clients, an architect, once told me: “I listened to your crazy idea and I tried it. Now when I design something, I put an intentional error upfront. It has to be very easy to identify so the client finds it right away and doesn’t get distracted by something else. What happens is that instead of starting to make changes that I don’t want him to make, he picks up this problem and corrects it– which you know he’s going to do because you planted it yourself– and you’re home free.

“But watch out. It can’t be too stupid, or they’ll fire you.”

Finally, how do you give an (E) bad news?

If there is any hint in your presentation that he, the (E), is somehow to blame for the problem, he will immediately attack you: “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about!” “You have completely messed this up!” “You are trying to create turmoil in this organization!” “You’re totally dysfunctional!” The key is that the bad news must not reflect badly on him.

An (E) can easily become emotional and paranoid, so you must be extremely careful in your choice of words: “It appears that we have an opportunity to do something better here; what do you think we should do?” Saying “it appears” is always less risky than stating something very definitively.

If he denies what you’re telling him, you have no choice but to retreat. If he replies, “That’s interesting, but don’t worry about it,” you can press a little harder: “Well, but it appears that.…” But be very careful because if he interprets the bad news as making him look bad, he will look for a scapegoat, and you will be the most convenient target.