I read a lot of books. I also listen to a lot of books. Listening to Audiobooks in the shower is a true power move if you haven't tried it. I was sceptical until I realized that my medium-term memory was as good or better than for books I'd read.
Anyhow, few books have made as significant an impact on my life in both personal and professional circumstances than "Difficult Conversations" by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen.
A learned habit to stop and empathize with the motivations behind people's emotional upset has completely changed the way I interact with everyone in my life. I used to think that I was rational and a great communicator. I've come to understand that I've missed countless opportunities to comfort those I care about while saving myself literally years of stress.
Many of my regrets are based on retroactive realizations of how avoidable some of my communications failures actually were, given the long term damage that they helped to cause.
Please, read Difficult Conversations and give copies to people that you love.
Anyhow, few books have made as significant an impact on my life in both personal and professional circumstances than "Difficult Conversations" by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen.
A learned habit to stop and empathize with the motivations behind people's emotional upset has completely changed the way I interact with everyone in my life. I used to think that I was rational and a great communicator. I've come to understand that I've missed countless opportunities to comfort those I care about while saving myself literally years of stress.
Many of my regrets are based on retroactive realizations of how avoidable some of my communications failures actually were, given the long term damage that they helped to cause.
Please, read Difficult Conversations and give copies to people that you love.