CONTENTS

Foreword

Introduction

1: Back Up to Go Forward

We are neglecting three vital communication habits

2: Invert Your Expectations

Expect less from technology and more from people

3: Lose Your “Friends”

Important relationships are being trumped by people you barely know

4: Stop Talking

Hypercommunication is the problem, not the solution

5: Don’t Be Yourself

It’s an excuse for Neanderthal behavior

6: Play Dumb

Don’t pin the tail on the donkey

7: Question Your Questions

Many questions make conversations worse

8: Ignore Your (Telltale) Heart

It wants you to talk without a plan

9: Don’t Solve Problems

You are messing around with far too many issues already

10: Blow Things Off

Protect what matters by letting go of what doesn’t

11: Let Difficult People Win

Stop trying to impose your will on tough communicators

12: Respond with Weakness

Bring a stick to a knife fight

13: Change Your Change Plan

Do last what you want to do first

14: Take Things Off the Table

Just because you can talk about something doesn’t mean that you should

15: Be Boring

Most conversations are exciting for all the wrong reasons

16: Give People What They Want

Few things connect like a story

Notes

Recommended Reading

Acknowledgments

Index