Book Review - Why Business People Speak Like Idiots: A Bullfighter's Guide
Category Book Review Why Business People Speak Like Idiots: A Bullfighter's Guide Brian Fugere Chelsea Hardaway Jon Warshawsky
You know you've got too many books lying around (or your office area is too messy) when you stumble across a book in an unexpected area and think "where did *this* come from?" I have to admit that's what happened with Why Business People Speak Like Idiots: A Bullfighter's Guide by Brian Fugere, Chelsea Hardaway, and Jon Warshawsky. I'm guessing it got put down somewhere, was covered up by something else, and it took awhile for me to move that stack again. But, having "re-"discovered the book, I've found a real gem. Excellent for everyone who is fed up with people using big words with no content.
Contents:
Part 1 - The Obscurity Trap: The Fog of Business; The Smartest People Use the Dumbest Words; Size Matters, But Not How You Think; It Depends on What the Meaning of "Is" Is
Part 2 - The Anonymity Trap: You've Been Templatized; The Power of Imperfection; Being Funny Is Serious Business; Pick Up the Damn Phone
Part 3 - The Hard-Sell Trap: The Non-Sell Sell; Kick the Happy-Messenger Habit; Flop Penance
Part 4 - The Tedium Trap: Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll for Business People; Make Your Point by Making Theirs; An Actuary's Guide to Storytelling; The Substance of Style
Monday; Resources - A Bull Spotter's Guide
You've all heard (or done) it... Someone is making a presentation or is talking to others in their organization. In order to be thought intelligent, they resort to using big words and business catch-phrases that make them sound like an expert. But in reality, there's little substance behind the talk, and their audience is bored stiff. Bullfighter's Guide goes to the heart of communication and calls "BS!" to those who are wasting our time by inflating their own ego. Rather than put away the "real you" when you step into your office, try instead to use your own voice and style to get your message out. It's surprising how much more effective you can be.
The four Traps covered here pretty much cover the perils and pitfalls of business communication. The Obscurity Trap happens when the speaker exchanges their voice for jargon, wordiness, and evasiveness. They try to sound important by using words and phrases that aren't generally understood or have been stripped of any real meaning by overuse. Take that paradigm and bury it, please! The Anonymity Trap is where you try and fit in to the mold that's expected in the business world, thereby covering up any personality you might inject into your messages. These are the people who live and die by the template so that all communication is "standard". The Hard-Sell Trap means death to your efforts to get someone to buy your product. People like to buy things, but they don't want to be sold by someone who is only interested in their money. Instead, tell them the facts and listen to them explain what their needs are. And finally, there's the Tedium Trap.... boring, boring, boring. Don't make your audience sit through an hour of slides and slogans. Instead, tell them stories that make your point. Be different. Do the unexpected, and the audience will stay awake, wondering what you'll do next.
Bullfighter's Guide is not a large book, and it practices what they preach... get to the core of the message, and make it happen with your "own" voice. If you've ever tried to get a message across to someone (that should be about 99.999% of you), make sure you don't fall into any of these traps. Well worth reading, and I'm glad I found it... although I *still* don't know where I got it from...
You know you've got too many books lying around (or your office area is too messy) when you stumble across a book in an unexpected area and think "where did *this* come from?" I have to admit that's what happened with Why Business People Speak Like Idiots: A Bullfighter's Guide by Brian Fugere, Chelsea Hardaway, and Jon Warshawsky. I'm guessing it got put down somewhere, was covered up by something else, and it took awhile for me to move that stack again. But, having "re-"discovered the book, I've found a real gem. Excellent for everyone who is fed up with people using big words with no content.
Contents:
Part 1 - The Obscurity Trap: The Fog of Business; The Smartest People Use the Dumbest Words; Size Matters, But Not How You Think; It Depends on What the Meaning of "Is" Is
Part 2 - The Anonymity Trap: You've Been Templatized; The Power of Imperfection; Being Funny Is Serious Business; Pick Up the Damn Phone
Part 3 - The Hard-Sell Trap: The Non-Sell Sell; Kick the Happy-Messenger Habit; Flop Penance
Part 4 - The Tedium Trap: Sex, Drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll for Business People; Make Your Point by Making Theirs; An Actuary's Guide to Storytelling; The Substance of Style
Monday; Resources - A Bull Spotter's Guide
You've all heard (or done) it... Someone is making a presentation or is talking to others in their organization. In order to be thought intelligent, they resort to using big words and business catch-phrases that make them sound like an expert. But in reality, there's little substance behind the talk, and their audience is bored stiff. Bullfighter's Guide goes to the heart of communication and calls "BS!" to those who are wasting our time by inflating their own ego. Rather than put away the "real you" when you step into your office, try instead to use your own voice and style to get your message out. It's surprising how much more effective you can be.
The four Traps covered here pretty much cover the perils and pitfalls of business communication. The Obscurity Trap happens when the speaker exchanges their voice for jargon, wordiness, and evasiveness. They try to sound important by using words and phrases that aren't generally understood or have been stripped of any real meaning by overuse. Take that paradigm and bury it, please! The Anonymity Trap is where you try and fit in to the mold that's expected in the business world, thereby covering up any personality you might inject into your messages. These are the people who live and die by the template so that all communication is "standard". The Hard-Sell Trap means death to your efforts to get someone to buy your product. People like to buy things, but they don't want to be sold by someone who is only interested in their money. Instead, tell them the facts and listen to them explain what their needs are. And finally, there's the Tedium Trap.... boring, boring, boring. Don't make your audience sit through an hour of slides and slogans. Instead, tell them stories that make your point. Be different. Do the unexpected, and the audience will stay awake, wondering what you'll do next.
Bullfighter's Guide is not a large book, and it practices what they preach... get to the core of the message, and make it happen with your "own" voice. If you've ever tried to get a message across to someone (that should be about 99.999% of you), make sure you don't fall into any of these traps. Well worth reading, and I'm glad I found it... although I *still* don't know where I got it from...
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