Best Mate Seeking
-Six ways to make people like you. -Twelve ways to win people to your way of thinking. -Nine ways to change people without arousing resentment. Financial success, Carnegie believed, is due 15 percent to professional knowledge and 85 percent to "the ability to express ideas, to assume leadership, and to arouse enthusiasm among people." You learn how to make people like you, win people over to your way of thinking, and change people without causing offense or arousing resentment.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The realization that my marriage was being effected by my nearly empty toolbox of social skills promoted me to take personal responsibility and shoulder the blame myself for once instead of blaming everyone around me for everything. I grew up with a hypercritical Mother so I think I had promised myself that I would never be criticized again, even if that meant writing people off the instant I felt like I had made myself vulnerable enough to be hurt by them. The strategies are applicable to and helpful in all aspects of my life so far, from my marriage to my job, and even to the way I interact with clerks in gas stations."
"I did think several of the principles explained in the book are common sense, but I found that it could be easy for a person to react quickly to conflicts. The first principle emphasizes the importance of avoiding criticism and he describes working with people as: working with people of logic. With this principle, he describes the importance of self-expression and connects it to the importance of thinking in terms of the other person, so that they come up with your ideas on their own, which they will like more. Dale then describes the importance to recall a person's name in the third principle. He further explains this point in principle five: Talk in terms of the other person's interests. Dale describes in the third part of the book the steps to have a person think in terms of your own thoughts. He then explains the importance of agreement and having the person say "yes," at least twice. If all else fails, he explains the importance of competition and how it drives people to feel important and empowered to work efficiently and effectively. He then explains the importance of asking questions that direct the person you’re speaking to, to obtain your idea on their own. He emphasizes the importance of having the person be saved from embarrassment, and then explains the importance of praise again, even if it is small."
"The values and discussion are as relevant today as they have ever been and this book, despite its incredible acclaim, exceeded all expectations. This book is one of the most useful, important, and relevant pieces of work that I’ve ever read."
"Yes, there is nothing new here but I would say that much like the basket ball star who practices relentlessly the same foul shot over & over again so that when its crunch time, the ball hits the hoop to win the game no matter how much pressure is on."
"I'm happy to have read this--it flows well and many truths to it albeit they're of scientifically argued for."
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A timely and important new book that challenges everything we think we know about cultivating true belonging in our communities, organizations, and culture, from the #1 bestselling author of Rising Strong, Daring Greatly, and The Gifts of Imperfection HELLO SUNSHINE BOOK CLUB PICK “True belonging doesn’t require us to change who we are. She writes, “True belonging requires us to believe in and belong to ourselves so fully that we can find sacredness both in being a part of something and in standing alone when necessary. Praise for Brené Brown’s Rising Strong “[Brown’s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we’ve all had but haven’t quite known how to articulate. Thankfully, Brené Brown is there with an outstretched arm to help us up.” —Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why and Leaders Eat Last. Brené Brown, PhD, LMSW, is a research professor at the University of Houston where she holds the Huffington Foundation–Brené Brown Endowed Chair at the Graduate College of Social Work.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I started working toward being an Amazon Top 1000 reviewer about a year ago. And I chose it, because sad though it is, my reviews on Amazon and Goodreads are the last place in this entire world where I am willing to communicate, in any capacity, with other human beings. So lonely that as I type this I feel like crying, even though I accepted this as my reality a long time ago. I struggle to call and make appointments because it requires talking to strangers, and for this reason I also can't go to the grocery store, or the gas station, or any other list of a hundred places that normal people go to have normal lives. You see, I decided five years ago that I was done with fitting in, and that I'd rather be lonely and alone, than to continue immersing myself in a world I found caustic. I saw people ripping each other down through the medium of social media because they didn't have to look that person in the face, and see how their comments hurt them. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but as the years have passed, I've cut myself so far off from humanity that it feels like I'm the only person left in my world. But I didn't know how else to express the impact this book had on me, without first talking about how much pain I've been in, and how nefarious my reasons for reading it in the first place. I expected to write an honest, clinical review discussing its contents from a dispassionate point of view. But instead, here I am, still clumsily attempting to convey my feelings in the hopes that some part of this review might encourage even one other person to read this book."
"This is the best of all of her books, as well as a prescription for being alive now, of being a citizen, a human being, a kind and caring and loving person--now--at this time in history. I read it yesterday and today in two sittings and am going back again and again to the writing, the ideas, and the inspiration to me to life more authentically and to be able to connect with others in deeper and braver ways."
"I've only listened to the first chapter of the book so far and I've been in tears three times."
"This is the book that I needed now."
"Frank."
"The latest Brene Brown book, a must have for her fans and to continue along the path of personal growth and responsibility."
"Brown balances theoretical understanding with lived experience and stories that frame her core principles."
"Another great book by Brene!"
Passionately argued, superbly researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves. In our culture, which emphasizes group work from elementary school through the business world, everything seems geared toward extroverts. With Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking , Cain explores introversion through psychological research old and new, personal experiences, and even brain chemistry, in an engaging and highly-readable fashion. Introverts are to extroverts what women were to men at that time--second-class citizens with gigantic amounts of untapped talent. The bias against introversion leads to a colossal waste of talent, energy, and, ultimately, happiness. Q: What personal significance does the subject have for you?A: When I was in my twenties, I started practicing corporate law on Wall Street. At first I thought I was taking on an enormous challenge, because in my mind, the successful lawyer was comfortable in the spotlight, whereas I was introverted and occasionally shy. But I soon realized that my nature had a lot of advantages: I was good at building loyal alliances, one-on-one, behind the scenes; I could close my door, concentrate, and get the work done well; and like many introverts, I tended to ask a lot of questions and listen intently to the answers, which is an invaluable tool in negotiation. Here are two to consider: (1) Introverts perform best in quiet, private workspaces—but unfortunately we’re trending in precisely the opposite direction, toward open-plan offices. (2) If you want to get the best of all your employees’ brains, don’t simply throw them into a meeting and assume you’re hearing everyone’s ideas. Ask people to put their ideas in writing before the meeting, and make sure you give everyone time to speak. (3) Not calling them “shy”--they’ll believe the label and experience their nervousness as a fixed trait rather than an emotion they can learn to control. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking, reading to partying; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over brainstorming in teams. Although they are often labeled "quiet," it is to introverts that we owe many of the great contributions to society-from van Gogh’s sunflowers to the invention of the personal computer. Passionately argued, impressively researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet shows how dramatically we undervalue introverts, and how much we lose in doing so. QUIET talks about the New Groupthink, the value system holding that creativity and productivity emerge from group work rather than individual thought. QUIET talks about “restorative niches,” the places introverts go or the things they do to recharge their batteries. “A superbly researched, deeply insightful, and fascinating book that will change forever the way society views introverts .”. — Gretchen Rubin , author of The Happiness Project “ Susan Cain is the definer of a new and valuable paradigm . In this moving and original argument, she makes the case that we are losing immense reserves of talent and vision because of our culture's overvaluation of extroversion. Mark my words, this book will be a bestseller.”. — Guy Kawasaki , author of Enchantment “Susan Cain has done a superb job of sifting through decades of complex research.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"My entire life has been on hold since this started, I get home from work too exhausted to do anything except veg out for a couple hours and go to bed, and even weekends aren't much better. I learned that the job situation I'm currently in - the non-stop deadline demands, interruptions, never being able to work quietly or alone no matter how difficult a project was, phones ringing incessantly, people in my face all day long, etc. And as enlightening as it was to learn how many of the traits I've beat myself up for over the years are just a product of my introverted temperament (being highly sensitive, shutting down when subjected to stimulation overload, preferring to think a thing through before I speak - something I never get to do at work, as if it takes me more than 5 seconds to say something, I get interrupted and cut off), the most important thing I got from this book is that it's okay to be myself, it's okay to feel the way I do. I am not weak or a failure because I don't feel or behave like my extremely extroverted boss (who thrives in high-energy crisis mode, and is bored unless he's doing 10 things at once - and expects the rest of us to keep up). I also found the information on the history of the "rise of the Culture of Personality" completely fascinating, it really gave me a new insight as to just exactly how we 'grew' this tendency to value extroversion over introversion. I know I will meet resistance from my boss (I'd love for him to read this book, but unfortunately I know he won't), and I know I won't instantly fix everything in one day, and that I'll probably always need to be able to stretch myself a bit to do things that are not ideal for me ... but this book taught me that there are ways to make that work, too, if you understand and honor the need for recharging around such tasks, instead of trying to force yourself to do them 8 hours a day with no break. The wealth of information and insights in this book cannot be overstated - especially if you are an introverted type of person who has always felt there was something not quite right about you, or that you somehow needed to change to fit in or succeed. Thank you, Susan Cain, from the bottom of my heart (which is finally beating at a more normal speed because I'm not panicked about going to work for the first time in months)."
"As somebody who has been called at some point or another the gamut of terms associated with introversion, from "shy" (which I don't object) to "anti-social" (which I most certainly consider unfair), I found in Susan Cain's "Quiet," the validation and appreciation many introverts have been searching for. In "Quiet," Ms. Cain explains the rise of the Extrovert Ideal in the 1920s and how it is that today we associate talkative, risk-taking, and action-oriented people with intelligence, beauty, power and success. She interviews scientists who have conducted hundreds of studies to test different theories in an effort to determine how much of our temperament is a result of genetics and/or of our free will. For those still deciding on a career, the author reminds readers that research shows that introverts are not reward-seeking like extroverts, but rather motivated by the enjoyment they find in pursuing an activity; in other words, by being in what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls the "flow"."
"An engaging non-fiction book that doesn't just devolve into confirmation bias or a single note thesis."
"It was required faculty reading at my daughters' high school, and has challenged the school to look at different ways of encouraging class participation other than just raising your hand, the traditional way of participating."
"I recommend this to both introverts and extroverts."
Best Counseling
Mira Kirshenbaum ( I Love You, But I Don't Trust You ), an international bestselling author and world-renowned therapist, draws on years of counseling experience to lead readers through relationship ambivalence. Those who give certain answers to the diagnostic questions will be faced not only with a realization of how deep the problems may be but also with Kirshenbaum's repeated admonitions that "most people who answered the question the way you did were happy they left and unhappy they stayed." But Kirshenbaum does caution that "nothing in the book overrules what a good therapist...might tell you," and she will help readers sort out ambivalent feelings about relationships.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"When I got this book it was my plan to read through it and reaffirm my reasons to stay. To be able to move forward, fully committed and free of fear. Upon reading the beginning of the book, I saw all of the words about staying. Deliberately, trying to make the best of every single memory while remaining truly honest with myself in the process. I let time pass and read it again, trying to make sure it was the mood of the moment."
"A deeply thoughtful book."
"Excellent resource."
"If the Title causes you to think "maybe?""
"This is a very practical and thought provoking book for those who are very much on the fence... Great read, well written."
"Helped me realize i was in an abusive relationship that needed to end."
"good book for answering a tough question."
Best Business Management Science
The 10th-anniversary edition of the New York Times business bestseller-now updated with "Answers to Ten Questions People Ask" We attempt or avoid difficult conversations every day-whether dealing with an underperforming employee, disagreeing with a spouse, or negotiating with a client. It does.” —The New York Times “These talented communicators blend a daunting array of disciplines into highly readable and practical advice.” —Booklist. “ Difficult Conversations will be appreciated by readers who wish to improve oral communication in all aspects of their daily lives.” —Library Journal. “Stone, Patton, and Heen illustrate their points with anecdotes, scripted conversations and familiar examples in a clear, easy-to-browse format.” —Publishers Weekly. “The central insights of Difficult Conversations so resonate with common sense that it is easy to overlook just how remarkable of a book it is . “Stone, Patton, and Heen have written an extremely clear and unpretentious exposition of how to develop effective communication skills and a guide to achieving openness and constructive outcomes in dialogue . They have been consultants to businesspeople, governments, organizations, communities, and individuals around the world, and have written on negotiation and communication in publications ranging from the New York Times to Parents magazine.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I used to be such a people-pleaser, i didn't even know when I was angry... and then I would unknowingly turn all my anger on myself - in the form of depression and self-criticism. Now I'm committed to becoming aware when I don't like something - sooner and sooner - and setting boundary or at least expressing what I don't like. Enter this book."
"This is a book that everyone should read."
"A seminal book on reframing."
"Enjoyed the book and shed a number different perspectives that I was totally unaware of when working with anyone."
"Excellent insights with concrete examples and tools for implementation."
"Have only finished about 25% of the book so far, but I've already used some of the ways to perceive things differently during difficult conversations."
"Every person on the planet could benefit from this book."
"I purchased this book as part of a recommended reading list."
Best Parenting & Relationships
You would never guess that behind the closed doors of her family’s idyllic Long Island house hid teetering stacks of aging newspaper, broken computers, and boxes upon boxes of unused junk festering in every room—the product of her father’s painful and unending struggle with hoarding. A brilliant guy who ended up driving a bus, Miller’s father was an extreme hoarder, and the family’s normal-from-the-outside (at least for a while) Long Island home was a mess (or treasure trove, depending on your point of view) of useless (or fascinating) papers and junk (important stuff). In Coming Clean , Miller, an actor and writer, chronicles her weird childhood and adolescence, but what’s really unusual about this buoyant, winning memoir is that for all that the author describes the familial dysfunction in heartbreaking, copious detail—and for all that she sometimes lost patience with her parents—she never stops showing that she loves them.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"For a book about a child growing up in a hoarding environment, I found this to be surprisingly tragic. Like many others, I'm addicted the popular tv shows that feature, and some might argue exploit, this mental health issue. If you look around online, it's not hard to find articles and forum comments that are very judgmental, and often times vicious, toward the people who appear on these shows. She suffers with an extreme spinal condition because her parent's couldn't be bothered to get her a back brace as a child. Their first house burns down in a fire, spurred on by the mounds of paper, killing all the family pets."
"I love the historical format, & really respect how she was able to write about falling apart and losing hope over and over, yet still had such abiding love for her parents."
"I wish I could give Miller's book to every child living with a hoarding parent; I firmly believe it would help keep them from sinking into the despair which almost led Miller to commit suicide."
"How does a child manage to survive yet continue to love her parents who are hoarders."
"Most often it makes me sick to realize how they live in such a filthy mess."
"But this story focus on a hoarder and his family and the serious problems they face because he cannot beat his addiction (hoarding IS an addiction of sorts as the victim literally cannot make himself throw ANYTHING away)."
"This is the story of a girl who grew up with hoarders and what her life was like."
"I came across this book because I follow "A Slob Comes Clean" blog."
Best Communication Skills
Never Split the Difference Negotiating as If Your Life Depended on It.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"I've taken approximately 20 hours of graduate study in negotiation and conflict resolution. You will be best aided by these books by taking a chapter at a time and practice the ideas and techniques."
"The author begins the book by relating his experience at a prestigious seminar at Harvard University. The author discovered that the same techniques used in life and death situations could be generalized--they "made great sense intellectually, and they worked everywhere...In the twenty years I spent at the Bureau we’d designed a system that had successfully resolved almost every kidnapping we applied it to." NEVER SPLIT THE DIFFERENCE is not just about tricky negotiation tactics, or ways to "outwit" your adversary in battle. This also means careful listening, or what the author calls, the martial art of "Tactical Empathy." Each chapter in NEVER SPLIT THE DIFFERENCE begins with a real-life example from the author's involvement with hostage negotiations. The book's title reflects the author's position that compromise, or "Splitting the Difference" is actually a lazy way to conclude a negotiation. Instead of taking the easy way, Chris recommends working relentlessly to see "what is really motivating the other side." All in all, I found NEVER SPLIT THE DIFFERENCE to be an impressive book, filled with practical knowledge, tips, and just plain WISDOM about how to deal with people."
"I was pretty sure the negotiation outcomes we were getting to were subpar, both for me and for them: a lot of splitting the difference, mostly to make the negotiations — which felt uncomfortable for all parties — stop. Note, when I mean “negotiation”, I’m speaking pretty broadly: from “negotiating" with my fiancée on who should walk the dog tonight, to negotiating with an employee on why this feature needed to be built urgently, to negotiating with an angry customer who’d called me angry about something, to negotiating with my parents on wedding plans, the list goes on. The book exposed me to a whole different way of negotiating, questioning the rational toolkit I’d been given in business school and replacing it with a more human set of tools. Since reading this book, I have: - Forged a better relationship with my fiancée by actively listening to her before jointly finding solutions. - Negotiated successful resolutions to emotionally charged topics with parents and friends. - Brought angry customers — who felt we had failed them — back from the brink to trusting us again. - Forged a better relationship with my business partners by understanding how they value time, silence, relationships, surprises, etc…. - Gotten discounts on things that I didn’t think could be discounted, just by using my name. - Gotten to the front of the waiting line at busy restaurants. - Said no to bad deals, because no deal is better than a bad one. - the list goes on. Negotiation, in the broadest sense as described above, is something I want to become an expert in, because I now understand that every conversation is a negotiation."
Best Social Science Reference
Using actual case histories of innocent men and women exonerated after decades in prison because of information they voluntarily gave to police, Professor Duane demonstrates the critical importance of a constitutional right not well or widely understood by the average American. “James Duane’s amazing but true stories of innocent people exonerated after decades of wrongful imprisonment (which could have been avoided if they had just insisted on their fundamental right to avoid self-incrimination) are riveting reminders of the high price we pay, as individuals and as a society, when we fail to assert our constitutional rights.” —Laurence H. Tribe, Harvard Law School. You Have the Right to Remain Innocent describes a stream of miscarriages of justice that occurred only because innocent suspects cooperated with deceptive officers preying on their ignorance and good intentions. “Well-informed, scary, sobering, and sure to tick off police officers and prosecutors even as it contributes to keeping innocent people out of jail.” — Kirkus Reviews.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Prof. Duane mixes his brilliant legal scholarship with his trademark humor in this brief overview of what to do when a police officer asks cheerfully, "You don't mind answering a few questions, do you?""
"I knew these tactics and techniques were used by law enforcement, I never knew how much simple statements could be woven into a guilty sentence for the most innocent."
"Once you start looking, it's alarming to realize how many innocent people go to jail because they don't understand the system and they thought if they just told the truth to the arresting officers that everything would be ok. Three felony's a day... Know your rights, the don't and do's of using the 5th, when and when not to keep your mouth shut."
"Every citizen owes it to her or himself to read this book."
"Some very important points made in this book about you (as a suspect, a person being questioned, a random person) and how you should deal with the police if they come to you."
"If you don't know about the lobster law or you even vaguely believe what you might have seen regarding forensics on TV, you should read this book."
"This text clearly shows the dangers of talking to the police."
"Even a single sentence shared with police before remaining silent can be construed into a confession, allowing police to bypass the investigatory work of finding a true culprit."
Best Stepparenting & Blended Families
An honest and groundbreaking guide to understanding the complicated emotions that develop between stepmothers and children. The author of Stepmonster and the instant #1 New York Times bestseller Primates of Park Avenue, she has appeared as a step/parenting expert on CNN, NPR, BBC, Today, and GMA and has written for the New York Times and Psychology Today.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"This book is VALIDATION."
"You absolutely must read this book immediately if you are a stepmom or going to be a stepmom. But really, it is absolutely THE text book for stepmom everything."
"I love this book."
"Even though I have a good relationship with my stepson, the transition of all of a sudden having an adolescent in my home was a bit of an adjustment."
"If the father does right by you and supports your relationship first with respect, love and understanding that this relationship needs to be the core and foundation o your family, doesn't fall into the Disney Dad role and demonstrates true love and how a marriage should be first and foremost, so many other issues disappear."
"Hey stepmom's feel like you are going crazy, guess what you are not alone. Being a stepmother is the most difficult position to be in, especially if your spouse has their head in the sand regarding their "angelic" children."
"I think we create an idea of how things should be and we bang our heads against the wall, and ruin our own health and happiness to make it so."
"I could have been spared several years of mental and emotional suffering if I had read this first and been able to better prepare for his kids' negative effects on my life."
Best Business Conflict Resolution & Mediation
The key text on problem-solving negotiation-updated and revised Since its original publication nearly thirty years ago, Getting to Yes has helped millions of people learn a better way to negotiate. “The authors have packed a lot of commonsensical observation and advice into a concise, clearly written little book.” — Businessweek. No other book in the field comes close to its impact on the way practitioners, teachers, researchers, and the public approach negotiation.” —National Institute for Dispute Resolution Forum. All of us, as negotiators dealing with personal, community, and business problems need to improve our skills in conflict resolution and agreement making.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Maybe I missed the other great truths, but nothing special compared to other books on the topic."
"As the authors themselves admit, it's largely common sense, but they present it very straightforwardly and usefully."
"Good book."
"Best I have ever read on the subject."
"I bought this book because it was required reading for my Conflict Management class, but I ended up lending it to a couple friends, because it is honestly valuable knowledge for anyone who is looking to communicate better with the people in their lives."
"An interesting and easy read with negotiating tactics that can be useful and applied in many, many scenarios."
"The theme of this books falls into 4 steps: (1)disentangle people from problems (2)attend to mutual interests that are similar, different, or can be dovetailed."
"This is a timeless book on the basics of establishing good negotiations."