Thomas Erikson

Thomas Erikson
Erikson at the International Book Fair in Kraków 2024
Born
Thomas Lennart Joakim Erikson

(1965-09-19) 19 September 1965 (age 61)
Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
OccupationWriter
SpouseChristina Erikson
Children2
Writing career
Genres
Websitesurroundedbyidiots.com

Thomas Lennart Joakim Erikson (born 19 September 1965) is a Swedish author. He is known for his self-help book series Surrounded By, more specifically his book, Surrounded by Idiots, in which he categorizes the personalities of people in colors based on the pseudoscientific DISC assessment.

Early life

Thomas Lennart Joakim Erikson was born on 19 September 1965 in Örnsköldsvik, Västernorrland County, Sweden.

Surrounded By Book Series

Erikson used the DISC assessment to write his Surrounded By book series. This series includes books such as Surrounded by Idiots (2014), Surrounded by Bad Bosses and Lazy Employees (2021), and Surrounded by Liars (2024).

As of 2019, Surrounded by Idiots has sold 1.5 million copies worldwide, with roughly 750,000 of those sales coming from Sweden alone.

Title Year Notes & Ref.
Surrounded by Idiots 2014 Uses the DISC method to categorize personality traits
Surrounded by Psychopaths 2020 Focuses on manipulation tactics & detecting social predators
Surrounded by Bad Bosses and Lazy Employees 2021 DISC based advice focusing on workplace leadership
Surrounded by Setbacks 2021 Focuses on overcoming personal adversity
Surrounded by Narcissists 2022 Has themes of emotion manipulation
Surrounded by Energy Vampires 2023 The title refers people who emotionally drained others
Surrounded by Liars 2024 Has been compared to "astrology for professionals"

Reception and criticism

The book, Surrounded by Idiots, has become a global bestseller, being translated into over 40 languages. It has been praised for its accessibility and broad appeal, though there has also been criticism from skeptical organizations due to Erikson's use of the unscientific DISC assessment. In 2018, the Swedish organization, Vetenskap och Folkbildning – the Swedish Skeptics Association (Vof), named Erikson "Fraudster of the Year" after basing his book, Surrounded by Idiots, on the DISC assessment which was characterized as pseudoscientific. In 2024, it was also reiterated that he lacks background and formal education in behavior studies.

Other writings

Erikson's debut work was the 2011 crime fiction novel, Bländverk. He also co-authored the Rita Benson book series with his wife, Christina Erikson. The series's first book, Av jord är du kommen, was published in 2015, and its second novel, Dödgrävarens dotter, was published in 2017.

Personal life

Erikson is married to novelist Christina Erikson, with whom he has two children. In 2021, he and his wife purchased Svartå Manor.

References

  1. ↑ "Bookshop". bookshop.ge. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  2. ↑ Carström, Jenni (4 July 2020). "Omgiven av idioti: Stort reportage om kritik mot DISC och personlighetstest" [Surrounded by Idiocy: An in-depth report on criticism of DISC and personality tests]. Magasinet Filter (in Swedish). Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 "Bestselling Surrounded By Idiots author Thomas Erickson needed 20 years to get published | NL Times". nltimes.nl. 15 May 2025. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  4. ↑ Tveitereid, Simen (12 February 2021). "Bankmannen Thomas Erikson ble refusert som forfatter i 20 år. Nå har han solgt tre millioner bøker (+)". Dagens Næringsliv (in Norwegian). Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  5. ↑ Beukers, Gijs (24 January 2025). "'Na het lezen van Omringd door idioten begrepen ze dat hij rood was en zij groen. Nu zijn ze getrouwd'". De Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  6. ↑ Abrahamsson, Benny (6 November 2017). ""Allt ditt är mitt och allt mitt är mitt"". KT-Kuriren (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 Kalenius, Lotten (15 April 2024). "One of Sweden's biggest scientific bluffs". Vetenskap och Folkbildning (in Swedish). Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  8. 1 2 Brains, James. "My mentor recommended this self-help book about dealing with different personalities. Here's why everyone should read 'Surrounded By Idiots.'". Business Insider. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Surrounded By Idiots author Thomas Erikson: "They called me the idiot"". The Straits Times. 11 September 2021. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  10. 1 2 Thomas-Corr, Johanna (9 October 2024). "Surrounded by Liars by Thomas Erikson review — astrology for the LinkedIn crowd". The Times. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  11. ↑ "Surrounded by Idiots – Ipswich Libraries – OverDrive". Ipswich Libraries. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  12. ↑ SURROUNDED BY PSYCHOPATHS | Kirkus Reviews.
  13. ↑ Erikson, Thomas; Bradbury, Rod (2021). Surrounded by setbacks: turning obstacles into success (when everything goes to hell). New York, NY: St. Martin's Essentials. ISBN 978-1-250-78951-8. OCLC 1249712177.
  14. ↑ "Extract: Surrounded by Narcissists by Thomas Erikson". Penguin Random House South Africa. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  15. ↑ "Surrounded by Energy Vampires: How to Slay the Time, Joy, and Soul Suckers in Your Life by Thomas Erikson". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  16. ↑ "Thomas Erikson | Authors | Macmillan". Macmillan Publishers. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  17. ↑ "Swedish Skeptics Awards for 2018". European Skeptics. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  18. ↑ "BLÄNDVERK - DAST Magazine". DAST Magazine. 7 September 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  19. ↑ "Av jord är du kommen – Christina Granbom • Thomas Erikson – Bok | Akademibokhandeln". www.akademibokhandeln.se (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 3 February 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  20. ↑ "Av jord är du kommen". Hoi Förlag Shop. Archived from the original on 8 August 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  21. ↑ "Dödgrävarens dotter HarperCollins Nordic". harpercollins.se. Archived from the original on 18 August 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2026.
  22. ↑ LundegårdhText, Peter (15 September 2019). "Läkemedelssäljaren sadlar om till Sveriges nya deckardrottning". Dagens industri (in Swedish). Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  23. ↑ "Svartå herrgård har nya ägare Tidigare ägaren satsar i Tivedsgården". Nerikes Allehanda (in Swedish). 9 October 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  24. ↑ Tallmyren, Anna-Stina (7 October 2021). "Författarparet om Svartå herrgård: Det här är ett drömobjekt". KT-Kuriren (in Swedish). Retrieved 18 July 2025.

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