Saturday, March 12, 2022

The Johari WIndow - what you know and what others know about you

 

The ancient Greek aphorism "know thyself" can be formed as a deeper matrix between what other know about you and what you know about yourself. This matrix has been called the Johari Window after the two researchers (Joseph Left and Harrington Ingham) who formed the model. There model helps to describe and understand our relationships with others. 

If your known self matches what is known to others, you are an open book. You are a transparent person. If you know yourself, but others do not you have a hidden personality. If others know you better than you know yourself, then you are blind to your own characteristics. What is unknown is what is not known by yourself or by others. 

This is all very interesting but may seem removed from investing. However, this can be viewed as variation on the Rumsfeld "known known" comment as applied to your relationships. From a game theoretic approach your knowledge of self and the knowledge that others have of you is very relevant. It highlights how others may trade against you and where you will potentially have weaknesses. Do you know yourself, and do others know you? Do you know your firm's trading style and do others know it? Does that provide an advantage or disadvantage? 

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