Introduction -- About this book -- Conventions used in this book -- What you're not to read -- Foolish assumptions -- How this book is organized -- Part 1: Honing Your communication Skills -- Part 2: Being Receptive To Others -- Part 3: Putting Your Mind And Body Into Your Message -- Part 4: Managing Communication Challenges -- Part 5: Communicating Across Distances -- Part 6: Part Of Tens -- Icons used in this book -- Where to go from here -- Part 1: Honing Your Communication Skills: -- Grasping the finer points of great communication: -- Using your whole body to communicate: -- Getting into the right frame of mind -- Putting your eyes and ears to work -- Communicating with clarity: -- Sending a clear message -- Providing positive feedback -- Giving constructive feedback -- Being clear about your goals, needs and preferences -- Distinguishing between personal and business conversations -- Displaying respect for other people: -- Behaving respectfully -- Listening with an open mind -- Connecting with different types of people -- Handling challenging communications -- Knowing what you want to achieve: -- Communicating with a clear intention: -- Declaring your needs and preferences -- Saying what you mean: -- Passive intentions -- Active intentions -- Active intentions in action -- Meaning what you say -- Presenting a compelling case: --Tapping into what matters to the other person -- Speaking with credibility -- Removing potential barriers to achieving your aims: -- Avoiding criticizing -- Letting go of moralizing -- Casting aside blame -- Valuing different communication styles: -- Developing your awareness of different communication styles: -- Communicating with the loud and proud or the meek and mild: -- Giving the introvert time to think -- Letting the extrovert take the stage -- Taking in the wide view or preferring detail: -- Picking up on the big picture -- Focusing on the fine detail -- Adapting your style for clear communication: -- Helping others to understand what you mean -- Seeing things from someone else's point of view -- Part 2: Being Receptive To Others: -- Listening actively for total understanding: -- Listening with the intention to understand: -- Lowering your barriers -- Letting go of judgment -- Turning off your opinions -- Paying attention to people's words and behaviours -- Hearing what people don't say -- Getting into the other person's mindset: -- Asking questions to check your understanding -- Paraphrasing for clarity -- Letting people know they've been heard: -- Being open to being corrected -- Going beneath what's been said -- Respecting people's feelings -- Establishing rapport for effective communication: -- Building trust and camaraderie -- Demonstrating curiosity -- Finding common points of interest -- Seeking similarities -- Making your assumptions clear -- Acknowledging the impact of your behaviour -- Engaging with empathy: -- Appealing to people's feelings -- Standing in other people's shoes: -- Accepting others' emotions -- Acknowledging people's experiences -- Creating alignment to build rapport: -- Establishing rapport in the workplace -- Matching and mirroring posture and energy -- Listening for understanding -- Pacing and leading to advance the conversation -- Part 3: Putting Your Mind And Body Into Your Message: -- Choosing the right attitude: -- Speaking from the I-position: -- Discovering the I-position -- Using I-statements -- Appreciating the power of your actions: -- Letting go of accusations -- Sending a message that resonates -- Connecting with commitment: -- Wanting to engage with other people -- Networking effectively -- Speaking with conviction -- Telling a compelling story -- Speaking with clarity: -- Illuminating your intention -- Supporting your breathing: -- Putting your posture into the picture -- Filling yourself with air -- Adding quality to your voice: -- Articulating to be understood: -- Unlocking your jaw -- Loosening your lips -- Moving your tongue -- Emphasizing your points: -- Pitching -- Pacing --Pausing -- Picking words that resonate: -- Adding gusto and passion -- Cutting through the clutter -- Bridging to stay on track -- Conveying messages through movements: -- Letting your body do the talking: -- Discovering the five silent emotional displays -- Brining your body into play: -- Responsive mode (open/forward) -- Reflective mode (open/back) -- Fugitive mode (closed/back) -- Combative mode (closed/forward) -- Putting your face into your message: -- Engaging with your eyes -- Moving your mouth -- Positioning your body for best effect --

Part 4: Managing Communication Challenges: -- Getting yourself out of sticky situations: -- Dealing with conflict: -- Seeking to understand other people: -- Asking questions to check your understanding -- Analyzing expectations -- Recognising different perspectives -- Taking practical action: -- Watching for emotional triggers -- Controlling the situation -- De-escalating the conflict -- Managing difficult behaviour: -- Treating people with respect: -- Showing that you care about people -- Recognizing people's value -- Focusing on behaviour -- Taking practical action: -- Concentrating on required outcomes -- Keeping your commitments -- Being open and honest -- Going for the win-win -- Sticking to the point -- Negotiating with finesse: -- Preparing to negotiate: the basics: -- Establishing our uniqueness -- Gaining commitment in principle -- Aiming high -- Setting out your stall: -- Letting the other side go first -- Listing all your requirements upfront -- Defining clear goals -- Staying focused during the process: -- Being prepared to trade concessions -- Keeping the big picture in mind -- Respecting the relationship -- Determining the consequences -- Knowing who holds the power -- Considering all solutions -- Summarizing and clarifying as you go -- Closing the deal -- Communicating across cultures: -- Respecting cultural differences: --Stereotyping and generalizing -- Developing awareness of different cultures -- Appreciating norms, values and beliefs -- Acknowledging customs and religious practices -- Being flexible -- Following the locals -- Understanding context: -- Spelling things out: low-context cultures -- Inferring, suggesting and implying: high-context cultures -- Avoiding the pitfalls -- Part 5: Communicating Across Distances: -- Communicating successfully through technology: -- Getting your email etiquette right: -- Appearing your best in emails -- Thinking of your reader -- Creating a distinctive and descriptive subject line -- Registering a professional-sounding address -- Keeping your formatting simple -- Watching for danger points -- Making the most of social media: -- Representing yourself on Facebook -- Twittering and tweeting -- Getting Linkedln -- Employing other forms of electronic communication: -- Working your way around the web -- Keeping in touch with texts -- Finding your voice through VoIP -- Communicating over the phone: -- Calling with confidence: -- Preparing in advance -- Managing the opening efficiently -- Getting to your point -- Speaking clearly -- Asking for what you want -- Dealing professionally with received calls: -- Picking up promptly -- Greeting callers cheerfully -- Offering to help -- Responding to callers' needs -- Putting people on hold -- Listening with care and enthusiasm: -- Putting a smile in your voice -- Confirming your understanding -- Closing the call -- Putting pen to paper for positive effect: -- Re-introducing the art of letter-writing: -- Keeping the recipient in mind -- Proofreading and revising before sending -- Getting your personal letters right: -- Composing a condolence letter -- Jotting an invitation -- Sending a thank-you note -- Crafting successful business correspondence: -- Keeping your letters concise -- Sticking to the point -- Jettisoning the jargon -- Writing specific official letters: -- Composing a letter of interest -- Creating a CV cover letter -- Resigning in writing -- Providing a reference letter -- Sending thanks for an interview -- Sending a letter of farewell -- Part 6: Part Of Tens: -- Ten top tips for speaking face to face: -- Minding your attitude -- Engaging with your eyes -- Speaking clearly -- Putting energy into your voice -- Positioning yourself for best effect -- Listening with willingness -- Letting go of negativity -- Feeding back what you hear -- Paying attention to body language -- Minding your tone of voice -- Ten essential tips for effective communication: -- Treating the other person with respect -- Knowing the preferred form of commination -- Thinking before you speak -- Talking less and listening more -- Asking questions to understand -- Minding your non-verbal behaviour -- Handling disagreements with diplomacy -- Opening yourself to new ideas -- Following through on promises -- Recognising what's going on beneath the surface -- Index.