Why Just Do It Never Works and How to Get Over It All
Smart Conversation with Toby Bloomberg of Diva Foodies

Big Ideas in Books: Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott

Thinking being learning susan scott

She’s a fierce instructor. When you read her book, you learn that being fierce isn’t as awful as it sounds. In fact, you learn that fierce is a word you should begin applying to everything you do, from hereon in.

Big Ideas in Books, our weekly Book Review Series goes to communication this week. Susan Scott shares her phenomenal way of thinking and speaking and learning, in her book:

Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work & in Life, One Conversation at a Time.

Our version is the updated one, from 2004, and as you read it you will discover, everything she offers is applicable today, in 2019. We’ve come a long way, baby (yes, I mean we - the men and women of Nurturing Big Ideas), but when it comes to learning how to have a useful conversation, we have a long way to go!

I was drawn to this book precisely because I believe in the concept of fierce conversations. I admit, my original thought was how strong, passionate, even ‘barbarous’ that would be. But, in this book, Scott tells us, “In its simplest form, a fierce conversation is one in which we come out from behind ourselves into the conversation and make it real.”

Imagine a map, she explains further into her introduction. “I imagined that I was turning into a conversational cartographer, mapping a way toward deepening authenticity for myself and for those who wanted to join me.”

I can tell you, from my experiences, human beings are so self-centered, we seldom actually step outside of ourselves, to see others as they want to be seen. To ask the questions that might help us see ourselves, as we appear to others.

We learn early on in this book that reality is a shifting object. It never stays in one place.

We learn that authenticity and ‘being real’ are just words; people say them all the time, but few people get out of their own way to be real and authentic. Unless…unless they’ve read Susan’s book, and kept it close by as a reminder to being fierceness to their conversations.

Books fierce conversations

Radical Transparency

Susan has a fabulous TED talk that will both entertain you and teach you more about “radical transparency.”

I love her intro, where she shares the “apostrophe” her niece shared with her. Check it out. (she meant epiphany, of course)

Understand this important point - for Nurturing Big Ideas clients and prospects - we are all entrepreneurs and books like this talk to big business, CEOs, teams, so many things we are not…that we may think it’s not a book for us.

But it is. It’s required. Conversation isn’t owned by the talking heads you see on TV, or the celebrities in commercials and outrageous sitcoms. Conversation is a human experience. Learning to do it well, regardless of your intent (professional or personal), is worthwhile.

Leave a comment. I was intrigued and a bit challenged by some of this book, as you’ll see in the slide show video. I need your thoughts on those areas. Do you agree or disagree?

And, share. The video is on our own video page   with other videos about books, about life, about you, about me. Inspiration in 20 minutes. Enjoy.

 

 

Comments

Feed You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.

The comments to this entry are closed.