Book: Power Talk - Notes to Remember

Notes to remember from the book:

Power Talk - Using Language to Build Authority and Influence

- Language from the center directs rather than responds, makes statements, contextualizes with authority, contradicts, argues, and disagrees, and practices affect of control. It sounds like competence, knowledge, and authority.

- Language from the edge responds rather than directs, asks questions, contextualizes with protective strategies, avoids open argument, and practices conversational maintenance.

- Think about your goal or intention before a conversation.

- Consider analyzing yourself after conversation with either of the two styles of language.

- Match your style with your intention.

- Your voice message tells stuff about you.

- The language of your work setting can be like a "foreign language" to be learned. Listen to the words and styles in the meetings and learn.

- After the meetings do some research to learn what was heard and what was remembered.

- Figure out the language of your work, then figure out if you can adopt it, then figure out if you want to adopt it. If positive, practice and practice.

- Work and its daily politics is like war. One must choose her battles and her weapons.

- Early in the meeting most want to talk about their opinions so they don't listen. Bring up your strong and new ideas in the middle.

- "Neutrality complements authority"

- If you are committed to the value of your opinion, rephrase it and say it again. Be concise and don't give up.

- Direct when you can and step back when you should.

- "This (job) is war.  You want to win. There will be costs. Choose your battles - and your weapons."

- "You can call your style 'team management' if you want but remember that teams are full of internal politics, turf wars, competitiveness, and resentment. Teams need a captain, a leader, or a cox. They want their leader to be wise, fair, and enthusiastic."

- "Since words produce something only approximately like what we mean, meeting face-to-face offers the best chance of clear communication."

- " E-mail is not private."

- "If the idea is thirty second old, it's probably too hot to pass along. Reflect, let things cool, then share."