A proactive take on relating more effectively at work.
Latting and Ramsey offer a step-by-step guide to improving work relationships.
In this nonfiction book, readers are encouraged to learn to manage their emotions, resolve conflict, and promote positive changes in their professional environments. The authors (Latting is a University of Houston professor emerita and president of a leadership consulting group; Ramsey is a writer and former professor of management at Texas Southern University) use behavioral science theories and empirical research to inform their practical recommendations. They state, “Changing the outcome of problematic situations requires making conscious decisions to try something different. Using these skills seldom comes naturally.” Their Conscious Change model is built on six principles, each with its own skill set. According to the first principle, one must test negative assumptions: The authors state that readers should “consider the possibility that you may be making up stories about what happened during an interaction or exchange.” With the second principle, the authors counsel readers to clear their emotions and aspire toward a neutral or positive emotional state. The third principle directs readers to build effective relationships through listening, inquiry, and feedback exchange. Using the fourth principle, readers will be prepared to foster equitable and inclusive work environments by learning to bridge differences. The fifth principle, the conscious use of the self, emphasizes accepting responsibility and maintaining integrity. Finally, to initiate change, the authors urge readers to use the sixth principle by committing to their own transformations and addressing systemic issues. Throughout the book, 19 contributors share their experiences using the skills described here. The advice is clear and simple, such as this guidance for effective apologies: “An effective apology has three ingredients: authentic expression of regret, genuine reflection of the harm or inconvenience caused, and an offer to make restitution.” The emphasis on fostering diversity and examining the systems in which people work is highly relevant to the modern workplace. The skill names could have used some polish, however—examples such as “Move From the Answer Into the Question” read awkwardly and fail to stick in the mind. In a graphic at the beginning of the book, the authors list all 36 skills, which may be information overload for some. Still, professionals will find many tips worth trying in this book.
A proactive take on relating more effectively at work.Pub Date: July 9, 2024
ISBN: 9781647427085
Page Count: 256
Publisher: She Writes Press
Review Posted Online: March 27, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
IN THE NEWS
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
