Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Posts Tagged ‘Relationships’

New Business Book Summary Available for The End of Absence

Posted in Book Summaries, Relationships, Technology, tagged , , , on March 22, 2016| Leave a Comment »

The End of AbsenceIn an always-on, constantly connected digital environment, the appreciation of solitude is becoming a dying art. Yet some of life’s richest rewards result from periods of solitude — or what author Michael Harris refers to as absence. In The End of Absence, Harris explores the benefits and risks of today’s digital existence. In doing so, he both warns readers of the consequences of the impending end of absence and offers thoughtful insights on how to recapture the solitude that threatens to be lost forever in a digital world.

According to Harris:

  • The digitization of society has created the end of absence. As digital technology becomes ubiquitous, individuals lose the opportunity to enjoy silence and solitude.
  • New technology is always a trade-off. Whenever there is new technology, consideration must always be given to what will be gained and what will be lost.
  • In the digital age, absence must be engineered. Because people (young people in particular) are constantly bombarded by digital input, individuals must plan periods of solitude. Solitude cannot be left to chance.
  • Technology changes the brain. The brain is “plastic” in the sense that its functioning can be altered. Using digital technology has been shown to change neural patterns in the brain.
  • The Internet dilutes expertise. Information- and opinion-sharing technology allows anyone, and thus, no one, to be an expert.
  • Access to everything encourages the exploration of nothing. Because the digital world serves up a constant deluge of increasingly personalized information, individuals have become passive and do not explore new material.
  • Absence is a choice. Controlling the use of digital technology is up to each individual.

To learn more, please visit http://www.bizsum.com

Read Full Post »

Resolving Conflicts at Work

Posted in Book Summaries, Conflict Management, Relationships, tagged , , , on December 22, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Resolving ConflictIn Resolving Conflicts at Work, Kenneth Cloke and Joan Goldsmith help readers understand the underlying causes of conflict and how to approach it in new ways. Conflicts at work arise because companies are made up of diverse group of people with different communication styles and differing expectations. Few people have been trained to resolve conflict in a healthy manner, which is why conflict is common in every workplace. Transformation does not occur until people first resolve how they became stuck in conflict and take time to develop new strategies. When an organization operates with a culture where conflicts are avoided, honesty and creativity is lost in the process. People need to take time to look inward and understand what conflict means to them and how their perceptions impact the way they respond to these situations.

According to the authors:

  • All conflict is influenced by an individual’s background and learned responses. When people understand this, they can work to uncover the hidden meanings behind any conflict.
  • When people listen to opponents with an open mind, their opponents will do the same for them.
  • The language used to describe a conflict reflects attitudes and assumptions. It can reveal the interests, emotions, and histories that are behind the surface-level issue.
  • Difficult behaviors are present in every workplace and, in some cases, are inadvertently encouraged through reward systems. When these behaviors are discussed in the open, there is opportunity to improve on all sides and develop perseverance.
  • Resistance is often the result of an underlying need, such as improved communication or greater involvement in decision making. When the reasons for resistance are explored, it becomes easier to collaborate and negotiate for a solution.
  • To prevent the same conflicts in the future, systems can be developed within an organization. This prevents conflicts and sets the standard for how they are to be managed when they do occur.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

 

Read Full Post »

New summary available for Becoming a Resonant Leader

Posted in Book Summaries, Emotional Intelligence, Relationships, tagged , , , , on March 4, 2014| 14 Comments »

94517720In Becoming a Resonant Leader, Annie McKee, Richard Boyatzis, and Frances Johnston describe how the most capable leaders have resonance, the ability to employ emotions effectively to achieve success while remaining attuned to the feelings and perceptions of others. Intellectual and technical knowledge are critical to effective leadership, but leaders’ abilities to manage themselves and connect with others are even more important. This is why emotional intelligence facilities like self-awareness and empathy are so valuable in relating to and communicating with others. The most effective leaders exude optimism and hope—feelings that are easily transmitted to others. Subordinates are quite aware and receptive to these positive sentiments and respond in kind, becoming more energetic and productive in the process.

According to the authors:

  • Resonant leaders have an accurate sense of themselves. This includes clear insights about what they are good at, what is difficult for them, and what they need to learn to achieve their optimum performance.
  • The best leaders possess strong social and emotional intelligence. This means that they are able to manage themselves and connect effectively with others.
  • People are constantly assessing their leaders and trying to understand them. This is why it is important for leaders to be aware of changing emotional realities in their groups and relationships.
  • Good leaders are not necessarily those that appear impervious to stress. Good leaders reevaluate themselves periodically and undergo renewal in order to address their tasks with greater skill and energy.
  • Resonant leadership requires a solid understanding of how social systems and the people who occupy them have to work together to achieve complex objectives.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

Related book summaries in the BBS library: Put Emotional Intelligence to Work, Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Social Intelligence

Read Full Post »

New summary available for The Office Politics Handbook

Posted in Book Summaries, Communication, Conflict Management, Emotional Intelligence, Relationships, tagged , , , , on December 24, 2013| 1 Comment »

93255873Politics exist in organizations of all sizes. This is because people by their very nature are political animals that constantly engage in power-seeking behavior. When not fully understood, the politics at play in professional relationships can prevent a person from achieving success. In The Office Politics Handbook, author and political scientist Jack Godwin, PhD, examines the role power and politics play in all social relationships. Through an exploration of political theory and examples of eight different politically powerful archetypes, Godwin offers readers tools to gain more power in their lives and greater participation in decision making on personal and professional scales.

Despite the fact that politics are an intrinsic part of human nature, most people do not know how to navigate the politics of their personal and professional relationships. It is only when people learn the true nature of interpersonal politics, or “micropolitics,” that they can acquire more power and success in their lives. Godwin offers the following insights on micropolitics:

  • People are political animals, therefore politics exist anywhere people are present. Politics is about power. Politics exist in any social relationship that facilitates the control of one human over another.
  • Politics is a social affair rooted in human nature. Those who master micropolitics, or politics on the most basic and interpersonal level, do so by pushing their sense of objectivity outward into social space, and downward into their primitive human nature.
  • The “political mystique” is composed of the acquisition of power and the distribution of power. To better understand how power is acquisitioned and distributed, it is necessary to break micropolitics into its most basic components: political structures, power instruments, and complex systems.
  • In order for people to master micropolitics, they must first journey inward. For people to be able to gain more power in their personal and professional relationships, they must first get in touch with their inner political animals.
  • By putting forth a political persona, people protect themselves and make better strategic decisions. Political personas are masks, or the strategic way people present themselves to the world that can be used to conceal a person’s vulnerabilities, such as their motives and interests.
  • By mastering the eight “Gods of micropolitics” a person can learn how to win people over in any personal or professional situation. The “Gods of micropolitics” are archetypes that represent the different ways people can use power and protect themselves against an adversary.
  • Everyone must assign themselves their own roles in life. Many people are assigned roles in life that have little significance. People must act on the foundation of freedom that is accessible to all humans to assign their own roles in life and work humbly toward fulfilling this goal.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

Related book summaries in the BBS library: The Drama-Free Office, The Blame Game, Outsiders on the Inside

Read Full Post »

New summary available for Leading with Emotional Intelligence

Posted in Book Summaries, Emotional Intelligence, Relationships, tagged , , , on August 10, 2012| 1 Comment »

In Leading with Emotional Intelligence, Reldan S. Nadler presents a handbook filled with real-life examples and step-by-step strategies to raise Emotional Intelligence and help leaders coach their teams to become “Star Performers,” or performers with high emotional intelligence. Today, organizations are faced with complex daily dynamics that can result in chaos and low performance, even in the most intelligent workforces. This influences leadership and results in confusion, frustration, defensiveness, and over- or under-managing that affects employee performance. Ultimately, argues Nadler, the way out of this loop is to enhance Emotional Intelligence.

To download three free summaries, please visit our site.

Related book summaries in the BBS library: Put Emotional Intelligence to Work, Emotional Intelligence for Managing Results in a Diverse World, The Other Kind of Smart

Read Full Post »

Networking More Essential in Down Economy

Posted in Relationships, tagged , on March 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Now more than ever networking has become an essential tool for finding a new job. With the global economy still a year or more away from a turnaround and unemployment in the U.S. hovering near 10%, many are finding even interviews hard to come by these days.

In order to get a leg up in the job market, job seekers need to cast out their fear of networking, stop relying solely on traditional networking practices, and create their own personal brand that can be sold to employers. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal shows how job seekers can use both traditional, face-to-face forums and online social sites to effectively network in today’s diverse job market.

To be truly effective, job seekers must not only be willing to attend industry events, visit job fairs, and use their personal contacts, but must also be willing to create an online presence. A business card is a great tool in a job seeker’s networking efforts, but a business card should also include a website where potential employers can read a prospect’s resume, view photos, and learn something about the person behind the credentials.

Sprucing up your networking skills can go a long way in helping you land a job, but having a working knowledge on how to network will also help you advance once you’re in the job. Like most skills, networking becomes easier the more often you do it, so print some business cards, create a web presence, and start meeting people.

Related book summaries in the BBS library: The Connect Effect, Click

Read Full Post »