A Concise Synopsis on “Crucial Conversations” Cristina Sanchez Lamar University October 5, 2017 The Authors Background The New York Times bestselling authors, Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler (2002), are well known for their collaboration in the book Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High. This book gained so much support from the audience, from the resources the authors developed to help people master crucial conversations. After all the positive feedback the authors received from their book Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are High, they decided to write three other books that were also a big success as well in the New York Times bestselling list. The …show more content…
Kerry Patterson a graduate from Stanford University, is known for his outstanding participation in organizational behavior. For his participation in outstanding organizational behavior he received the BYU Marriott School of Management Dyer Award. He has also authored several award-winning training programs leading to numerous long-term efforts of change (Patterson, et al., 2002). Joseph Grenny is the cofounder of a not-for-profit organization called Unitus Labs. This organization was established to help poor people around the world attain economic self-reliance. He is also a praised keynote speaker and consultant, who has applied corporate change initiatives throughout the years. Ron McMillan, vice president and cofounder of the Covey Leadership Center, was over the research and development department (Patterson, et al., 2002). McMillian’s experience as a consultant and a sought-after speaker, has helped him work with numerous influential leaders, high level managers, and executives. Lastly, Al Switzler is part of the Executive Development Center at the University of Michigan. Also as a consultant and speaker like the other authors, he directs special training and management initiatives with many leaders worldwide. Although the authors have similar yet different backgrounds, they support authority in the topics discussed from their book Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking when Stakes are
Hybels, Saundra, and Richard L. Weaver. Communicating effectively. 4. ed. New York [u.a.: McGraw-Hill, 1995. Print.
Stone, D., Patton, B., & Heen, S. (1999). Difficult conversations: How to discuss what matters most. New York, NY: Viking Press.
Petersen, I have realized there are many actions and changes I need to make in my life. One thing I struggle with the most is listening. In order to overcome this struggle, I am willing to incorporate the “talker-listener card” into my everyday conversations (Petersen, 2007, pp. 55-64). Using this tool will guide me in developing active listening skills. Whenever I have a disagreement with a friend or family member, I can utilize this card. According to Petersen (2007), “Using the TLC opens the door to more effective conversations when someone needs to ‘talk things over’” (p. 55). This method helps prevent screaming matches and forces people to respond calmly and rationally to disagreements they are
Leading Change was named the top management book of the year by Management General. There are three major sections in this book. The first section is ¡§the change of problem and its solution¡¨ ; which discusses why firms fail. The second one is ¡§the eight-stage process¡¨ that deals with methods of performing changes. Lastly, ¡§implications for the twenty-first century¡¨ is discussed as the conclusion. The eight stages of process are as followed: (1) Establishing a sense of urgency. (2) Creating the guiding coalition. (3) Developing a vision and a strategy. (4) Communicating the change of vision. (5) Empowering employees for broad-based action. (6) Generating short-term wins. (7) Consolidating gains and producing more changes. (8) Anchoring new approaches in the culture.
Difficult conversations happens every day in the workplace, it may involve a supervisor and staff communicating about low productive and work performance delivering feedback; or why this staff arrives late to work every morning. Difficult conversations can also include teammates not being able to work together on a project when the deadline is fast approaching. According to Engels, (2007a) No one relishes an uncomfortable conversation. (p.50) Nevertheless, “Executing important but unsettling conversations can be surprisingly effective when the sender follow clear guidelines. (p.50)
In today’s ever changing world people must adapt to change. If an organization wants to be successful or remain successful they must embrace change. This book helps us identify why people succeed and or fail at large scale change. A lot of companies have a problem with integrating change, The Heart of Change, outlines ways a company can integrate change. The text book Ivanceich’s Organizational Behavior and Kotter and Cohen’s The Heart of Change outlines how change can be a good thing within an organization. The Heart of Change introduces its readers to eight steps the authors feel are important in introducing a large scale organizational change. Today’s organizations have to deal with leadership change, change in the economy,
Pages 261- 267. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2011.10.006. Cameron, D. (2001). The 'Case Working with spoken discourse and communication. London: Thousand Oaks & Co. Carson, C., & Cupach, W. (2000).
Conversation Analysis (CA) is the study of talk-within-interaction that attempts to describe the orderliness, structure and sequential patterns of interaction in conversation. It is a method of qualitative analysis developed by Harvey Sacks with the aid of Emmanuel Schegloff and Gail Jefferson in the late 1960s to early 1970s. Using the CA frame of mind to view stories shows us that what we may think to be simplistic relaying of information or entertaining our friends is in fact a highly organised social phenomena that is finely tuned in a way that expresses the teller’s motivation behind the talk. (Hutchby & Wooffitt, 2011). It is suggested that CA relies on three main assumptions; talk is a form of social action, action is structurally organised, talk creates and maintains inter-subjectivity (Atkinson & Heritage, 1984).
In the late 1970's, W. Barnett Pearce and Vernon Cronen introduced their theory of Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM). Their primary findings indicated that talk creates the social environment in which we participate. Prior to Pearce and Cronen, the common method of observing communication was through a transmissional view. This taught theorists and scholars to focus on the pieces of conversation while ignoring the overall effect of the interaction. CMM theory examines interactions from a participants point of view, and is able to get a feel for the interaction as a whole through this process. Outside observation does lead to learning about the interaction, but participating in the interaction leads to more in depth study of communication patterns.
“Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail” is an article written by John P. Kotter in the Harvard Business Review, which outlines eight critical factors to help leaders successfully transform a business. Since leading requires the ability to influence other people to reach a goal, the leadership needs to take steps to cope with a new, more challenging global market environment. Kotter emphasizes the mistakes corporations make when implementing change and why those efforts create failure; therefore, it is essential that leaders learn to apply change effectively in order for it to be beneficial in the long-term (Kotter).
“Communication problems, beyond the obvious language differences, became a real barrier to honest dialogue”.
Kotter, J. P. (2007). ‘Leading change: Why transformation efforts fail’. Harvard Business Review, January: 96-103.
Dialogue is more than talking. It is not the straightforwardness of talking to or at, rather it is communicating with or between. It is "a relation between persons that is characterized in more or less degree by the element of inclusion" (Buber, 97). Inclusiveness is an acknowledgment of the other person, an event experienced between two persons, mutual respect for both views and a willingness to listen to the views of the other. These elements are the heart of dialogical relations. In this paper I will examine Martin Buber’s theory of communication, its relevance to my life and the critiques of the theory.
Carter, L., Ulrich, D., & Goldsmith, M. (2005). Best practices in leadership development and organization change: how the best companies ensure meaningful change and sustainable leadership. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley and Sons.
Hurley, Thomas and Juanita Brown. “Conversational Thinking: Thinking together for a Change.” Oxford Leadership Journal 1.2 (2010). http://www.oxfordleadership.com/journal/vol1_issue2/olj_vol1issue2.pdf