Glossary
Four Signals
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The Four Signals help you tell an adapted response from an authentic one: Rigidity, Automaticity, Driver and Timing.
1 min read · By Jay · Reviewed October 12, 2026
The Four Signals are four questions that help you tell an adapted response from an authentic one.
- Rigidity: an adapted response is the same in every context. An authentic one fits the situation.
- Automaticity: an adapted response happens before you choose. An authentic one is chosen, even when it's fast.
- Driver: an adapted response moves away from a threat. An authentic one moves towards a need or value.
- Timing: an adapted response fits the past. An authentic one fits the present.
A tiny example. In every disagreement, at home or at work, you are the first to apologise, even when you were right. It happens before you think, and it moves away from tension. Rigid, automatic, threat-driven.
The signals feed into Alignment. They are part of our model and haven't been tested as an assessment, so use them as a way of noticing, not a score.
Read more on Adapted or authentic: the Four Signals.