As Alan Gregerman explains in The Necessity of Strangers, strangers rarely figure into one’s thinking about business or personal success. However, the ability to engage, learn from, and collaborate with strangers who are very different is the real key to creating remarkable breakthroughs, growing enterprises, finding and delighting new customers, and making the most of life. Strangers are essential to greater success. They lead people to new ways of doing things, help bring out the very best in others, and influence others’ thinking about how they can grow their enterprises. The ability to engage the right strangers in the right ways can determine whether or not people ever reach their full potential.
As We Speak provides the tools and techniques that will help speakers improve their communications with others, whether it be at a meeting, a large presentation, or in one-on-one interactions. By learning to speak with intent and clearly understand what the listener cares about, a speaker can learn to establish a bond with the listener, which is critical if the speaker wishes to influence. Peter Meyers and Shann Nix explain the variety of opportunities speakers have to communicate with their audiences beyond the spoken word, including their eye contact, vocal techniques, facial expressions, and body language. This valuable knowledge can assist any individual in strengthening their communications skills.
In I Hear You, Donny Ebenstein presents a blueprint for business professionals that outlines how they can learn how to communicate in a kind and constructive manner that helps to get things done. By showing people how to alter established mental patterns, Ebenstein sets the stage for business professionals at all stages of their careers to become better at the difficult conversations that can cause conflict in the workplace. He teaches people how to shift perspective, overcome their own defenses, and make important changes happen in the workplace.
In The Face-to-Face Book, Ed Keller and Brad Fay seek to expand the definition of “social marketing” to include websites like Facebook and Twitter along with face-to-face conversations and other forms of word-of-mouth communication. They review topics such as new research and understanding of how social influence helps determine consumers’ responses to advertisements, how to make a brand more “talkworthy,” and how engaging “influencers” can benefit a brand. They also discuss the often under-recognized role that social influence plays in determining the success of marketing and advertising of brands, products, services, and companies.
Effective communication skills are essential in every aspect of life. When done well, communication can lead people to the mutual understanding that is needed to make progress. Unfortunately, many people feel that they do not have the confidence or skills required to talk with others. This may be due to fear of rejection, concerns about how one appears to others, or a lack of comfort talking to people one does not know. In How to Talk to Absolutely Anyone, Mark Rhodes provides a four-stage framework for personal interactions and provides practical tools to help people become better at talking to others in any environment.
Companies fail to innovate when they put more energy and resources into generating “big ideas” than they do implementing them. In The Other Side of Innovation, Vijay Govindarajan and Chris Trimble demonstrate how the execution of an innovation initiative is just as important to the process as generating the idea itself. Drawn from their ten years of innovation research on the world’s most respected companies, the authors offer innovation leaders the framework to build teams and plans capable of facilitating the successful execution of any innovation initiative.
The HBR Guide to Getting the Right Work Done brings together more than two dozen articles on personal productivity, including many excerpts from the pages of the Harvard Business Review. The Harvard Business School Publishing collection provides advice on prioritizing work, avoiding distractions and procrastination, managing mental and emotional energy, and developing good work habits. It teaches how to delegate effectively and secure a pay raise by aligning work with corporate objectives. Readers can choose from a number of simple tools, such as to-do lists and e-mail automation, to reduce stress.
