Great Communication Secrets of Great Leaders
The ""best practices"" of some of the greatest communicators.
Author(s): John Baldoni
Publisher: McGraw-Hill
Date of publication: 2003
Manageris opinion
What do Mother Theresa, Colin Powell, Oprah Winfrey and General George Marshall all have in common? All are or have been great communicators, each in their own particular style. The objective of this book is to reveal the inner workings of their oratory skill and teach us how to imitate them.
One of the fundamental messages is that communication is not designed just to convey information, but also to establish and reinforce the personal credibility of the speaker. This principle is found throughout the book and is particularly notable in chapters 2 and 3.
The author also emphasizes the need to adapt presentations to existing conditions. This requires knowing the audience very well (chapters 7 and 8), selecting the right communication channels and paying attention to the audience’s reactions (chapter 4).
Finally, many chapters are devoted to specific, more or less essential aspects of communication, e.g. supporting presentations with relevant stories (chapter 12), making the message more easily memorable (chapter 11), structuring a presentation effectively (chapter 6), playing on the emotions (chapter 9), communicating face to face (chapter 10), or using the internet appropriately in communication strategies (chapter 5).
