On GENERAL MANAGEMENT US$24.95 / CAN$27.50 HBR Guide Series FEATURING Classic ideas, enduring advice, the best thinkers— Looking for smart answers to your most Communication Communication “T he Necessary Art pressing work challenges? Try these and of Persuasion” all in one place other titles in the practical HBR Guide By Jay A. Conger series: HBR’s 10 Must Reads series is the HBR Guide to Better Business Writing definitive collection of ideas and best practices for aspiring and experienced HBR Guide to Finance Basics for Managers The best leaders know how to leaders alike. These books offer essential HBR Guide to Getting the Right Work Done reading selected from the pages of communicate clearly and persuasively. Harvard Business Review on topics HBR Guide to Managing Up and Across How do you stack up? critical to the success of every manager. HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations If you read nothing else on communicating effectively, Each book is packed with advice and HBR Guide to Project Management read these 10 articles. We’ve combed through inspiration from leading experts such hundreds of articles in the Harvard Business Review as Clayton Christensen, Peter Drucker, archive and selected the most important ones to help Rosabeth Moss Kanter, John Kotter, you express your ideas with clarity and impact—no Michael Porter, Daniel Goleman, matter what the situation. Theodore Levitt, and Rita Gunther McGrath. Leading experts such as Deborah Tannen, Jay Conger, and Nick Morgan provide the insights and advice you need to: Titles in this bestselling series include: Pitch your brilliant idea—successfully • • HB R’s 10 Must Reads: The Essentials Connect with your audience • • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Change Management Establish credibility • • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Leadership • Inspire others to carry out your vision On • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Making Smart Decisions Adapt to stakeholders’ decision-making styles • • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Managing People Frame goals around common interests • • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself Build consensus and win support • Communication • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Strategy • HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Teams If you read nothing else on communicating effectively, read these definitive articles from ISBN: 978-1-4221-8986-3 9 0 0 0 0 Harvard Business Review. Stay informed. Join the discussion. Visit hbr.org/books Follow @HarvardBiz on Twitter Find us on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Google+ hbr.org/books 9 7 8 1 4 2 2 1 8 9 8 6 3 This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. HBRMRCommunication11364_Mechanical.indd 1 1/10/13 2:52 PM 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page i 10HBR’S MUST READS On Communication This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page ii HBR’s 10 Must Reads series is the definitive collection of ideas and best practices for aspiring and experienced leaders alike. These books offer essential reading selected from the pages of Harvard Business Review on topics critical to the success of every manager. Titles include: HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Change Management HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Collaboration HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Communication HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Innovation HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Leadership HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Making Smart Decisions HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Managing People HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Strategic Marketing HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Strategy HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Teams HBR’s 10 Must Reads: The Essentials This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page iii 10HBR’S MUST READS On Communication HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW PRESS Boston, Massachusetts This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page iv Find more digital content or join the discussion on www.hbr.org. Copyright 2013 Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior permission of the publisher. Requests for permission should be directed to [email protected], or mailed to Permissions, Harvard Business School Publishing, 60 Harvard Way, Boston, Massachusetts 02163. The web addresses referenced in this book were live and correct at the time of the book’s publication but may be subject to change. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data HBR’s 10 must reads on communication. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN 978-1-4221-8986-3 (alk. paper) 1. Business communication. 2. Communication in management. 3. Interpersonal communication. I. Harvard business review. II. Title: HBR’s ten must reads on communication. III. Title: Harvard business review’s 10 must reads on communication. HF5718.H34 2013 658.4’5—dc23 2012037908 ISBN: 9781422189863 eISBN: 9781422191514 This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page v Contents Change the Way You Persuade 1 Gary A. Williams and Robert B. Miller Harnessing the Science of Persuasion 25 Robert B. Cialdini The Power of Talk 43 Deborah Tannen The Necessary Art of Persuasion 67 Jay A. Conger Is Silence Killing Your Company? 91 Leslie Perlow and Stephanie Williams How to Become an Authentic Speaker 105 Nick Morgan Telling Tales 115 Stephen Denning How to Pitch a Brilliant Idea 131 Kimberly D. Elsbach The Five Messages Leaders Must Manage 145 John Hamm Taking the Stress Out of Stressful Conversations 165 Holly Weeks About the Contributors 181 Index 183 v This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page vi This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page vii 10HBR’S MUST READS On Communication This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 00 i-viii r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:51 AM Page viii This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Please contact [email protected] or 800-988-0886 for additional copies. 171981 01 001-024 r0 md.qxd 1/5/13 7:55 AM Page 1 Change the Way You Persuade by Gary A. Williams and Robert B. Miller IT’S HAPPENED TO YOU BEFORE. You call a meeting to try to convince your boss and peers that your company needs to make an important move—for instance, funding a risky but promising venture. Your argu- ment is impassioned, your logic unassailable, your data bulletproof. Two weeks later, though, you learn that your brilliant proposal has been tabled. What went wrong? All too often, people make the mistake of focusing too much on the content of their argument and not enough on how they deliver that message. Indeed, far too many decisions go the wrong way because information is presented ineffectively. In our experience, people can Ivastly improve their chances of having their proposals succeed by determining who the chief decision maker is among the executives they are trying to persuade and then tailoring their arguments to that business leader’s decision-making style. Specifically, we have found that executives typically fall into one of five decision-making categories: Charismatics can be initially exu- berant about a new idea or proposal but will yield a final decision based on a balanced set of information. Thinkers can exhibit contra- dictory points of view within a single meeting and need to cautiously work through all the options before coming to a decision. Skeptics remain highly suspicious of data that don’t fit with their worldview and make decisions based on their gut feelings. Followers make deci- sions based on how other trusted executives, or they themselves, 1 This document is authorized for use only by BP PRAKASH ([email protected]). Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright.