A friendly guide that teaches you effective methods of communication to avoid common conflicts and make your voice heard in the office

Communicating Effectively For Dummiesshows you how to get your point across at work and interact productively with bosses and coworkers. Applying your knowledge and skill to your job is the easy part; working well with others is often the hard part. This helpful guide lets you maximize your personal interactions, even when resolving conflicts, dealing with customers, or giving difficult presentations.

Whether you're the CEO of a major corporation, a small business owner, or a team manager, effective and clear communication is imperative to your success. From keeping your listener engaged to learning to become a better listener,Communicating Effectively For Dummiesoffers all the strategies, tips, and advice you need to:

Learn how to become an active listenerAccentuate the positive in negative situationsFind win-win solutions for conflictsStay on track when writing e-mails and lettersHandle presentations, interviews, and other challengesSpeak forcefully and assertively without alienating others

This friendly and comprehensive guide gives you the keys to a thriving career with expert advice on effective verbal and nonverbal communication. From mastering your own facial expressions (and reading them in others) to being a happy boss, this book covers all the angles:

Becoming aware of your own assumptionsDealing with passive-aggressive communicatorsWhat to say to help someone open up to youCommunicating through eye contact and body languageMaintaining a positive attitudeDealing with sensitive issuesEffective conflict resolution modelsWhen to use e-mail, the phone, or a face-to-face meetingDealing with angry customersCoaching your staff to communicate better

In today's high-stress work environment, good communication skills are imperative for keeping your cool and getting your point across. With your own copy ofCommunicating Effectively For Dummies, you'll know what to say, how to say it, and that being a good listener can often be the difference between getting ahead and just getting by.

Marty Brounstein is the Principal of The Practical Solutions Group, a training and consulting firm based in the San Francisco Bay area that specializes in management and organizational effectiveness. Marty's consulting work includes one-on-one coaching with managers and executives, assistance to groups working to become productive teams, and guidance and direction for organizations establishing practices for high performance and employee retention. His training programs target management as well as employee-development issues including leadership, team development, customer service, and effective communication.

As a consultant, speaker, and trainer since 1991, Marty has served a wide variety of organizations from high tech to government, for profit to not-for-profit. He has a bachelor's degree in education and history and a master's degree in industrial relations. Prior to beginning his consulting career, he spent a couple of years as a human resources executive.

This is Marty's fourth book and second for Hungry Minds, Inc. He is the coauthor of Effective Recruiting Strategies: A Marketing Approach and author ofHandling the Difficult Employee: Solving Performance Problems. In 2000, he wrote Coaching and Mentoring For Dummies.

Introduction.

Table of Contents.

Introduction.

About This Book.

Conventions Used in This Book.

How This Book Is Organized.

Part I: Communicating Successfully.

Part II: Tuning In to the Power of Active Listening.

Part III: Speaking Assertively.

Part IV: Win-Win Conflict Resolution.

Part V: Tackling Communication Challenges.

Part VI: The Part of Tens.

Icons Used in This Book.

Where to Go from Here.

Part I: Communicating Successfully.

Chapter 1: Working at Communicating and Communicating at Work.

Chapter 2: Understanding How People Express Themselves to Others.

Chapter 3: Are You Really Listening?

Part II: Tuning In to the Power of Active Listening.

Chapter 4: Fixing Your Radar on the Speaker.

Chapter 5: Putting Active Listening Tools to Work.

Chapter 6: Giving a Dose of Empathy a la Mode.

Part III: Speaking Assertively.

Chapter 7: It Isn't Just What You Say, but How You Say It.

Chapter 8: Speaking in the Positive.

Chapter 9: Keeping Your Listener Engaged.

Part IV: Win-Win Conflict Resolution.

Chapter 10: Approaching Conflicts Constructively.

Chapter 11: Communicating to Keep Conflicts Cool.

Chapter 12: Bringing the Conflict to Resolution.

Part V: Tackling Communication Challenges.

Chapter 13: You've Got Mail: Managing E-Mail Communications.

Chapter 14: Oh, No! I Have to Do a Presentation!

Chapter 15: Hurdling Customer Challenges.

Chapter 16: Interviewing from Both Sides of the Table.

Chapter 17: Conquering the Challenges of Management.

Part VI: The Part of Tens.

Chapter 18: Ten Ideas for Effectively Handling Telephone Interactions.

Chapter 19: Ten Tips to Enhance Teamwork.

Chapter 20: Ten Actions that Lend Credibility to Your Communications.

Appendix.