Communication Books

The Premise: A crucial conversation is one where the stakes are high, differences of opinions exist and emotions run deep. If you can master the art of crucial conversations, you will (according to the authors) kick-start your career, strengthen your relationships and improve your health. They back it up by outlining the key ways you can improve dialogue by following the steps of: staying focused, learning to watch for cues, increasing “safety” and staying committed to finding common ground.

The book’s principles are broken down step-by-step with opportunities to do some self-analysis and practice along the way. The book is filled with relatable examples from both work and home that make it easy to follow. The final chapter offers an array of “tough case” scenarios from insubordination to dealing with someone with a personal hygiene issue, which reinforce their overarching thesis that any conversation – no matter how tricky – can be dealt with constructively.

The Bottom-line: Crucial Conversations is a management toolkit staple. We’ve all been in these discussions (sometimes several times a day) and, no matter how much you detest or enjoy this type of dialogue, this book will certainly help you add some tools to your leadership toolkit. I have to come clean and say that I am exceptionally adept at conflict avoidance so, personally, I found this book to be hugely useful. There are so many examples and scenarios that you can actually develop a new language for tackling the “tough stuff” as you read through it (love instant application!). Some people may not enjoy the use of personal as well as business examples, but if you like your professional development to do “double duty,” this book will help you with tough conversations on the job and on the home front too. The concept of creating a “safe” space for others to discuss hot bed issues is especially useful if you’re prone to getting caught up in the emotion of situations.

What would have boosted the books effectiveness for me would have been to have their overarching visual model presented earlier in the book (versus in Chapter 10) to tie the various tools and techniques together. I found myself flipping back to previous chapters to get my bearings.

The Premise: Tough economic times call for inspired leadership. In Fire Them Up!, Carmine Gallo, communications coach, author and journalist provides an easy-to-follow road map on how to inspire people to do their best. Drawing on interviews with leaders from companies such as Google, Travelocity, Cranium, Gymboree, The Ritz Carlton, and Cold Stone Creamery, Gallo pulls out the real secrets that inspire followership. The steps include: Ignite your enthusiasm (if you’re not excited, how do you expect others to be?); Navigate the way (have a clear vision); Sell the benefit (what’s in it for them/others?); Paint a picture (tell stories to bring the vision to life); Invite participation (bring your team into the picture); Reinforce an optimistic outlook (keep the momentum through inspiring); Encourage their potential (believe in your team, recognize progress and success). Overall, the book provides a great blueprint for any leader looking to inspire great results.

The Bottom-line: This book is a really enjoyable read filled with concrete tactics from other executives who’ve “been there.” He even manages to quote Tyra Banks in an America’s Next Top Model moment… fierce! No matter what your leadership level, you can expect to find lots of ideas to add to your leadership toolkit. And the inspiring stories from other leaders are sure to be a welcome shot in the arm to counter the effects of today’s current news headlines.

The Premise: Why is it that some ideas stick and others die before they even hit the boardroom table? Brothers Chip and Dan Heath explore the concept of “stickiness” (drilling down into some of Malcom Gladwell’s Tipping Point territory).

The Bottom-line: Getting your point across clearly and with staying power has probably never been more challenging than in this age of “communication abundance”. Made to Stick lays out the five factors that make a message “sticky”: SUCCESs – Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible and Storytelling. Think of it as a roadmap for increasing your odds of being not only heard, but remembered. Definitely worth the read… especially for leaders trying to drive big picture results. Eliminating your own “curse of knowledge” and getting your message back to basics will ensure your team understands and embraces the goals.

The Premise: Known for his practical and inspirational style, Jim Clemmer is one of Canada’s most prolific leadership authors and consultants. In his latest release, Clemmer has taken a departure from his usual approach to create a fable that shares how one man – Pete Leonard – overcomes his fear of a bullying boss to reclaim his inner leader and ultimately his self-respect. The Moose on the Table (aka the Elephant in the Room) grows in organizations where communication starts to shut down and bad management, bad strategy, bad process, etc. are allowed to run rampant. One has to wonder how many moose were parading through the halls and boardrooms of some of Wall Street’s titans over the past couple of years. The key for any organization (especially ones in crisis) is how quickly they can confront the tough issues to ensure the moose on the table doesn’t continue to feed and breed.

The Bottom-line: Along with popular parables like Who Moved My Cheese? and The Wealthy Barber, The Moose on the Table is a light, entertaining read with some solid management wisdom peppered throughout. On a big picture level, the book reinforces the point that no boss should ever be allowed to run rampant over your self-esteem. If you’ve ever felt trapped in a never-ending workplace pity party due to an inept senior manager, then this book might give you the inspiration and courage to find your voice and get your leadership career back on track.

The Premise: If the word “intimacy” makes you squirm, join the club. Personal development consultant and coach Suzanne Aldis Routh doesn’t mince words in this book that explores better ways to build better relationships. And yes, the word intimacy figures throughout. By looking at various barriers to effective communication, Aldis Routh provides some practical strategies to help you improve communications in all areas of your life. The approach is a combination of interesting tidbits, personal observation and self-reflective coaching. In addition to what you can expect from this type of book (listening skills, conflict resolution strategies), there’s some fresh thinking on exploring what personal barriers may be standing in your way and how to effectively collaborate (versus compromise). Peppered with humourous cartoons, the writing style of this slim volume is both easy and approachable.

The Bottom-line: This book falls into my “multiple bangs for the buck” category. I always like it when I can use lessons learned at both work and home. This is certainly the case with Who’s Turn is it To be Right? The title of the book alone was a great tool for me to use with my other half over a particularly heated discussion recently. Aldis Routh’s creative approach is evident throughout with quotes, stats and theory easily flowing throughout the book. Her personal observations and examples bring the pitfalls vividly to life (I related to lots of the scenarios used) and peppered throughout are solid tips, checklists and techniques to help you improve your relationships. Our ability to connect with others is possibly one of the greatest gifts we have and for leaders looking at better ways to connect with key individuals in both their professional and personal lives, this book delivers some great techniques.

The Premise: As the title suggests, this is the second book from consultant David Grossman on mastering the art of communication. Leveraging his first-hand executive experience as Director of Communications for McDonalds, Grossman peppers the book with stories from his days in the leadership trenches and ties them into the book’s tips. Laid out in 11 quick read chapters, the book provides a mix of “stage setting” background set-ups, key tools and self-reflection/put the tools to work exercises. Covering a broad mix of topics as well as more targeted ones – such as how to communicate with Millennials and connecting with hard-to-reach employees – the book refreshes some communication basics as well as adding some new ideas to the mix. Laid out in full colour and loaded with graphics and strong text treatments, the book feels more like a PowerPoint presentation on steroids than a regular business book.

The Bottom-line: Grossman’s book is one of those that you can bounce in and out of to target the specific help you need. I particularly liked the chapter on the 7 Deadly Sins of Leadership (Myopia, Hypocrisy, Sloth, Detachment, Materialism, Presumption, and Irrelevance) and the Try It Today endings of each chapter were simple, yet effective, ways to see how one could move to action. Grossman has captured a lot in the book and it provides a high level view of some interesting areas (such as touching on how typical North American gestures can be misinterpreted in other countries). That being said, in many places you get a “taste” but not the full meal which, is reasonable given the scope of the topic. My only beef about the book would be the overuse of graphics. Personally, I love visuals, but in this case, they just felt overdone. I found it hard to keep track of where I was in each chapter as pictures, fonts and dynamic layouts competed with the overall message of the book. Lovely to look at, but ironically, the flashy approach got in the way of the content for this reader.

Recommendation: Definitely a solid resource to add to your collection. The classic tools and approaches are timeless.