Page 15 - Crucial Conversations

FOREWORD XIII

of dialogue, to clarifying what you really want to have happen and
focusing on what actually is happening, to creating conditions of
safety, to using self-awareness and self-knowledge. And finally, it
moves you to learning how to achieve such a level of mutual
understanding and creative synergy that people are emotionally
connected to the conclusions reached and are emotionally willing
and committed to effectively implementing them. In short, you
move from creating the right mind- and heart-set to developing
and utilizing the right skill-set.
In spite of the fact that I have spent many years writing and
teaching similar ideas, I f o und myself being deeply influenced,
motivated, and even inspired by this material-learning new ideas,
going deeper into old ideas, seeing new applications, and broaden­
ing my understanding. I've also learned how these new techniques,
skills, and tools work together in enabling crucial conversations
that truly create a break with the mediocrity or mistakes of the
past. Most breakthroughs in life truly are "break-withs."

When I first put my hands on this book, I was delighted to see
that dear friends and colleagues had drawn on their entire lives
and professional experiences to not only address a tremendously
important topic, but also to do it in a way that is so accessible, so
fun, so full of humor and illustration, so full of common sense
and practicality. They show how to effectively blend and use both
intellectual (1.0.) and emotional intelligence (E.O.) to enable
crucial conversations.
I remember one of the authors having a crucial conversation
with his professor in college. The professor felt that this student
was neither paying the price in class nor living up to his potential.
This student, my friend, listened carefully, restated the professor's
concern, expressed appreciation for the professor's affirmation of
his potential , and then smilingly and calmly said, "My focus is on