Instead of thinking you are having a conversation about a relationship, be it professional or personal, imagine that the conversation IS the relationship.
Well, then Susan Scott, I’m all ears.
Engaging, honest, sometimes raw, funny and revealing conversations are the type that keep me connected to people even if the risk, as Susan puts it, is that “I will be known, I will be seen and I will be changed”.
Fierce Conversations has 7 Principles:
- Master the courage to interrogate reality “what is it we are pretending not to know?”
- Come out from behind yourself into the conversation and make it real
- Be here, prepared to be nowhere else
- Tackle your toughest challenge today
- Obey your instincts “Our radar works perfectly; it’s the operator who is in question”
- Take responsibility for your emotional wake
- Let silence do the heavy lifting
Words to live by especially for managers struggling to deal with internal issues which affect performance.
The book does three things well:
- It uses case studies so you learn how/when to ask “good” questions
- It provides tools and frameworks for having ‘fierce’ conversations.
- It’s funny and a pleasure to read
They make the book not just thought provoking but applicable as well. Tips like replacing ‘but’ with ‘and’ are simple but can change how you communicate with others. I recommend the book to anyone trying to have more meaningful conversations without getting lost in them.
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