Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques

Now it's time to bring on our host, Strategic Communications Lecturer at Stanford Graduate School Business, author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter, and your host, Matt Abrahams.

And it pulls together a lot of concepts that we dig into on Think Fast, Talk Smart, the podcast, and my new book Think Faster, Talk Smarter.

We're going to start early with a bonus episode based on my Think Faster Talk Smarter book, discussing how to be a more confident communicator.

I'm super excited for our October Think Fast Talk Smart interviews. We're going to start early with a bonus episode based on my Think Faster Talk Smarter Book discussing how to be a more confident communicator.

To celebrate the anniversary of the release of my book Think Faster, Talk Smarter, I'd like to share a portion of the first chapter that provides specific guidance on how we can all become more confident and comfortable when we communicate.

Some specific suggestions from my book Think Faster Talks Martyr. On ways we can all shake our speaking anxiety.

To learn more about how to feel more comfortable and confident in spontaneous communication, like answering questions, small talk and giving feedback, Check out my audiobook. Think Faster Talks Martyr.

In my book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, I had the wonderful pleasure of interviewing many listening experts.

One of them was Collins Dobbs. Collins actually teaches with me at Stanford's Graduate School of Business. And he introduced me to the ideas of pace, space, and grace.

In celebration of the two-year anniversary of my book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, How to Speak Successfully When Put on the Spot, we're going to go back in our vault for a Rethinks episode where I speak with Jenny Luna, our original executive producer, about ways to feel more comfortable and confident when you have to speak in the moment.

Matt's new book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, How to Speak Successfully When You're Put on the Spot, launches at the end of this month.

I know you tell a great story about a martial arts experience you had as a young person. I'm wondering if you can tell that story again just while we have more listeners right now.

I remember back years ago when we were first thinking of this idea and brainstorming and wondering, would anybody ever listen, let alone want to be a guest on the podcast?

For even more resources and guidance, you can check out my book on spontaneous speaking. The title might sound a little familiar. It's called Think Faster, Talk Smarter.

To help us all feel and do better in these situations, I'd like to share the audio chapter from my latest book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, where I provide guidance on how to deliver toasts that tantalize and tributes that treat our honorees well.

Be brief and to the point. Long toasts, tributes, or introductions are usually bad ones.

When you're one of many speakers, think about your remarks in context of the event as a whole.

The audio excerpt is courtesy of Simon & Schuster Audio from Think Faster, Talk Smarter by me, Matt Abrahams.

When you write a book to help other people, you actually end up helping yourself more.

When I wrote my book, Think Faster, Talk Smarter, I was amazed to learn so much about storytelling.

The Big Short by bestselling author Michael Lewis tells the story of the buildup and burst of the U.S. housing market back in 2008.

The Big Short's story, what it means to bet against the market, and who really pays for an unchecked financial system, is as relevant today as it has ever been.

The Big Short by best-selling author Michael Lewis tells the story of the buildup and burst of the U.S. housing market back in 2008.

The Big Short's story, what it means to bet against the market, and who really pays for an unchecked financial system, is as relevant today as it has ever been.

The Big Short by bestselling author Michael Lewis tells the story of the buildup and burst of the U.S. housing market back in 2008.

Now, Michael Lewis is bringing it to life in a new audiobook, narrated by the author himself for the first time.

Michael Lewis, writer of books like Moneyball and The Big Short.

The Big Short by bestselling author Michael Lewis tells the story of the buildup and burst of the U.S. housing market back in 2008.

Get The Big Short now at pushkin.fm slash audiobooks or wherever audiobooks are sold.

Chris Voss's Book: Empathy and Understanding In Business

Based on the New York Times bestseller, Radical Candor, How to Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity, Kim Scott, Amy Sandler, and Jason Rozov deliver actionable insights each week to help you improve your career and relationships.

Be sure to add Radical Candor to your podcast playlist to get new episodes every Wednesday.

All Think Fast, Talk Smart listeners looking for advice and guidance to improve their careers in communication need to check out the Radical Candor podcast. Based on the New York Times bestseller, Radical Candor, How to Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity, Kim Scott, Amy Sandler, and Jason Rozov deliver actionable insights each week to help you improve your career and relationships.

I definitely encourage you to listen to our episode on feedback with Kim Scott of Radical Candor fame.

Kim is amazing and her advice I think is just pure gold.

I am going to pick someone kind of out of the standard communication arena. And point to someone named Priya Parker, who some of you may know, others may not. She's the author of a book that is one of my all-time favorites called The Art of Gathering.

And her work focuses on reimagining how we spend our time together to create more meaning.

My first concert was Sweet Honey and the Rock... And it was my cool older stepsister who was 10 years older than me.

And she teaches an award-winning course called Talk, which also happens to be the name of her new book, Talk, the science of conversation and the art of being ourselves.

So, Allison, I'm going to start with you. You are on tour for this awesome book, Talk.

I'm so excited about my new book. It's called Talk, The Science of Conversation and the Art of Being Ourselves.

It follows the trajectory of the course that I developed at the Harvard Business School, also called Talk.

You just released a book that I know you wrote several chapters in called Brand Up, the ultimate playbook for college and career success in the digital world.

So disruption, it's a term that I learned from Clayton Christensen. He was a professor at the Harvard Business School and wrote a book called The Innovator's Dilemma.

He's the best-selling author of several books, including The Road to Character, The Social Animal, and his latest book is How to Know a Person.

To your point about power, Bob Green, Robert Green wrote this book, The 48 Laws of Power. And one of the top ones is powerful people always say less than they need to.

Michael Lewis, writer of books like Moneyball and The Big Short.

And the thing I love about Michael Lewis is that his prose doesn't call any attention to itself. that you feel like you have this clear window to the thing that's happening on the other side and the prose isn't in between you and the thing that he's describing.

And she has a new book out entitled, The Right Kind of Wrong, The Science of Failing Well.

Part of feeling psychologically safe is feeling okay making mistakes and admitting them. This idea of failure is the focus of your new book, Right Kind of Wrong. Can you talk to us about unproductive failure versus productive failure? And can you share your three archetypes of failure for us.

You know, one of the chapters in the new book is about the importance of context, the importance of situational awareness.

And I wish you best of luck with your new book, Right Kind of Wrong, The Science of Failing Well.

The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder

We've been talking about friction and your new book with Bob Sutton is The Friction Project.

Part of your introduction title is Why is Friction Terrible and Wonderful?

Can you help us understand the wonderful part? I can get the terrible part.

He's the author of Your Future Self, How to Make Tomorrow Better Today.

His newest book, Super Communicators Out Now, fits squarely in the focus of this podcast.

In super communicators, you do a really nice job of explaining the role of connection and alignment in successful communication.

Her book, Disrupt Yourself: Putting the Power of Disruptive Innovation to Work, reveals how shaking things up enables us to break free of the constraints we might not even know we're imposing on ourselves.

"Personal disruption [is] a process of deliberate self-innovation; a decision to step back from who you are to slingshot into who you can be,"

And he talked about it in the context of products and services and companies and countries.

And he wrote a book called The Innovator's Dilemma.

It was popularized by Everett Rogers back in the 1960s, and he used it to understand how groups change over time. It's sometimes referred to as the adoption curve.

Your new book is all about managing stress, which as you know, is something we talk a lot about on this podcast. Our focus tends to be on the anxiety that comes with communication. You focus more broadly.

Her newest book is Stress Resets, How to Soothe Your Body and Mind in Minutes.

The tools that I teach in my book really try to target resetting your mind, resetting your body and resetting your behavior.

I know your book is full of many of them, and I know you help your patients and friends, myself among them with some of these tools and tips.

Ford Coppola had this great thing when he was writing The Godfather and he printed it as a book all his notes every scene has something he calls the core so it might just be this person has to meet this person and they have to realize they have a disagreement but he knows what the purpose of everything is.

I mean, look at Harvey Weinstein. Read, you know, Catch and Kill. He intimidated the media and he got his misconduct hidden.