Communicate or Die: Getting Results Through Speaking and Listening

by Thomas D. Zweifel

Frustrated by endless fruitless discussions, misalignment and mistrust, blame games, toxic colleagues or family members, turf wars and/or weak performance? All of these are a result of bad communication.

Communicate or Die is not just a bestseller--it's your system to be a master communicator , take charge of negotiations or conflicts--in meetings, calls, emails or texts--and rise to the top. Simply by how you speak and listen.

Dr. Zweifel, former CEO, Columbia professor and award-winning author of bestsellers like Strategy-In-Action  and The Rabbi and the CEO , unpacks the toolbox he developed over three decades of working with heads of state (including Nelson Mandela), Nobel laureates like Amartya Sen or Joe Stiglitz, CEOs and C-level executives, but also 100,000s of ordinary people (including slum dwellers in Haiti and India), to reveal the communication secrets of successful people.
 
Often leaders have a great vision, but don't know how to communicate their strategies and turn them into results. Just as often, a company's staff has insight and ideas that never make it to the top. In short, the difference between a good and agreat company may lie in their communication.  In this action-packed, quick and fun read (yes, communication fiascos can be hilarious), Dr. Zweifel shows  
· How to prevent communication disasters at AOL, Bridgestone, DaimlerChrysler, Enron, Intel, Microsoft and Nike --but also the miscommunications that led to 9/11, which Dr. Zweifel witnessed first-hand, pp.xiii.
· How, in an age of highly mobile knowledgeworkers, you keep the loyalty of colleagues and customers , and have your team go into the trenches with you, p7.
 
· The 4 Quadrants of Communication as a diagnostic tool to leverage the full power of language to shape reality--like Gandhi, Kennedy, King or Mandela, but also CEOs like Michael Cowpland of Corel, p17.
 
· The 4 key conversations to have anyone, anywhere do what you want (without being pushy).  This killer-app will help you win any argument, negotiate effectively and build trust and win-wins, p21.
 
· How IBM, GE, Allied Signal and Abbott Laboratories built their listening muscle --perhaps their smartest investment--to turn around their companies, p31.
 
· The 7 levels of the Matterhorn ofMasterful Listening® (no, listening is not like a light switch to turn on or off). Dr. Zweifel shows you how to leverage the full repertoire of listening--a free commodity--to get what you want, p33.
 
·How to gain power in any conversation by reading between the lines, p44.
 
· The 8th level, the secret power of master orators like King that you won't find anywhere Step into your audience's shoes and shape how they listen to you. This is also the key to unstoppable leadership, p51.
 
· A hilarious cookie-break (and warning): You can actually listen too much --massive misunderstandings between women and men, p56.
 
· The 9 iron-clad rules for listening that gets results , p60.
 
· How to avoid the 4 Deadly Sins of Speaking and eliminating wasteful chatter --by moving people from gossip, complaints,judgment, blame or excuses to commitment and action, with use cases, p64.
 
· ... and finally, how to troubleshoot --from mistrust to performance gaps. Including the 6 keys for tackling a toxic boss and avoiding World War III, p91.
 
There is hardly an issue, from lawsuits to divorce, from failed mergers to strategy alignment, that cannot be solved through great communication. Get  Communicate or Die  today and, in a quick, easy and fun read, transform your capacity to get the results you want.
 
"There are simple things in this 80-page book for each of us--stories, tips and labs--that will greatly raise the effectiveness of our communication. Read this book-- it'sgoing to cost you next to nothing to read. You can substitute one evening of entertainment and make a difference in your life and work for years to come."
--Ali Velshi, Anchor, NBC

Genres: Communication, Nonfiction, Business

144 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2003

About the author

It was a perfectly clear day in September 2001, an Indian-summer morning when the sky was deep blue. Thomas was sitting on the Brooklyn Promenade--alone except for a few runners and dog walkers--and reading Michel Houellebecq's Les Particules Élémentaires (this is not an endorsement of that book) when he looked up at 8:46 a.m. and saw something he had never seen before: A plane hit the World Trade Center. Smoke and millions of tiny metallic glitters were in the air; a light wind swept them toward him. The glitters turned out to be countless papers, documents flying across the East River. One of them was a page from a civil law book, blackened on all four sides. Another was a FedEx envelope with a contract that someone had just signed a few minutes earlier.

That moment changed Thomas' world, and his life, forever. He set out on a journey to himself. And he started to worry about what kind of legacy to leave. One answer: to write books that help leaders of all stripes build successful companies and/or lives.

Dr. Thomas D. Zweifel is is a board member, strategy and performance expert, TED speaker and award-winning author of 11 books, including "Strategy-In-Action" (with Edward J. Borey), "Communicate or Die," "The Rabbi and the CEO" (with Aaron L. Raskin) and "Gorilla in the Cockpit" (with Vip Vyas).

Since 1984, living in Europe, India, Japan, and the United States, Thomas has helped clients align on strategy, boost leadership, and build high-performance teams in the action of meeting strategic and/or breakthrough objectives.

From 1997 to 2011, Thomas was the CEO of Swiss Consulting Group, named a "Fast Company" by Fast Company magazine and awarded "Best of Business in New York for Management Consulting" by SBCA.

Strategies based on his books are used by 30+ Fortune 500 companies, the UN Development Programme, the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and the U.S. Air Force Academy, to help their teams meet strategic imperatives.

Since 2001, Thomas has taught leadership to 1,500+ students at Columbia University and St. Gallen University to prepare them for executive leadership positions.

He often appears in the media, including ABC News, Bloomberg TV, and CNN. A speaker for ten speaker bureaus, his interdisciplinary and action-packed keynotes inspire business leaders.

Born in Paris, Thomas was educated in Switzerland, Germany and the United States, and holds a Ph.D. in International Political Economy from New York University.

In 1996 he realized his dream of breaking three hours in the New York City Marathon, and in 1997 was recognized as "fastest CEO in the New York City Marathon." He lives in Zurich with his wife and their two daughters (and a dog called Motek, the only other man in the house).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_...

Reviews

[Kkraemer · Rating 1 out of 5]

A business book, under 100 pages. It gives platitudes like "listen to your clients," but no steps for helping accomplish them (like taking notes). It spends a lot of print telling you what you already knew or wouldn't have opened the book: speaking and listening are really important.

The best thing about this book is the author's name. He says that Zwiefel means "to doubt." His parents named him Thomas. I like those people.

Oh..and by the way, I accomplished one of his suggestions: I found something to laugh at today.

[WSmythe · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is another phony advice book written by a phony. In an age where disinformation and outright lies run rampant, products like this are having their heyday. Don’t waste your money or time on this book or anything else produced by its author. If you glance through a copy in the cutout bins of a bookstore, you will see that there is no substance here, just facade.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everyone needs a “tune up” on communication. This is a fast read to serve as a refresher. Nothing is overly enlightening (I hope), but good reminders.

[Syafii Siregar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku yang bagus, banyak contoh dan pelajaran untuk menjadi pemimpin yang baik disegala bidang

[♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

even though this is mainly for business purpose, but it's also suitable for daily life. very recommended for those who has interest in business and management

[Carlos Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Could be leaner if it skipped repetitive stories, but, overall, good tips and good book.

[Hery]

Buku ini pada awalnya menceritakan bagaimana sebuah komunikasi sangat penting untuk masa saat sekarang. Ditampilkannya keadaan indutri yang berkjembang dewasa ini yang menuntut adanya kecakapan berkomunikasi yang disertai dengan contoh.

Aku membaca buku ini yang versi terjemahan Indonesia (blom lancar baca yg bahasa inggris)
Buku ini aku pinjam dari perpustakaan

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book that adds intensity to the need to communicate in the workplace.

[Toto Prasetyo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buku yang recommended untuk dibaca, dari buku ini kita banyak mempelajari bagaimana cara berkomunikasi dengan baik dan benar, juga bagaimana leadership yang tepat.