University of Minnesota - UMN Executive Leadership Insights
Fierce Conversations
Book

Fierce Conversations

Achieving Success at Work and in Life, One Conversation at a Time

Susan Scott
Berkley, 2004
First Edition: 2002
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

This book offers numerous useful principles that will help anyone become a better conversationalist and a more responsive listener. Read carefully because gems of very valuable content are scattered through the entire book, a sentence here, a quotation there, buried in long, interesting digressions about the author’s life, people she’s known and clients she’s worked with over time. A judicious editor could have made a very sharp and effective pocket book out of this material about managing intense, strong discussions with skill. As it is, you’ll have to do some digging, but you’ll have a perfectly good time doing it, particularly if you are a fan of New Age mantras and can handle a little touchy-feely vocabulary. getAbstract assures you that the lessons you’ll learn about conversations – including fierce ones – will stand you in good stead.

Summary

Principles to Speak by

The seven principles of conversation are:

  1. Be courageous and check the facts.
  2. Choose to be authentic.
  3. Live in this moment, now, listening to and speaking to this person, now.
  4. Face your problems today, solve them and move on.
  5. Go with your gut instinct. Obey your intuition.
  6. Conversations are relationships. Take responsibility. Nothing you say is trivial.
  7. Shut up and let silence do its necessary work.

Maybe times are tough for you. One conversation at a time brought you to wherever you happen to be. Spend some effort remembering how it happened. You can’t change unless you accept responsibility. Maybe times are great for you. You still got to this point one conversation at a time. Are things great at home and at work? Think about it. Workplace conversations should be just as fierce as home conversations.

Fierce means real. Fierceness is not about barbarity, but about intensity, strength, power and passion. Getting fierce means getting real. Tell the truth and let the truth be told. Every conversation builds ...

About the Author

Susan Scott is an educator and owner of corporate-training firm that focuses on achieving results through dialogue.

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