"Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work & in Life, One Conversation at a Time" by Susan Scott

The book "Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work & in Life, One Conversation at a Time" by Susan Scott, is a guide to tackling challenges and help enrich relationships with everyone important to one's success and happiness through principles, tools, and assignments. Each component is designed to direct the reader through their first "fierce conversation" with themselves on to the most challenging and important conversations that could be faced.

"A fierce conversation is not me telling you what I think. A fierce conversation is one that is passionate, effective, direct, thought provoking, intense, powerful, robust untamed, unbridled"(p. 7). A fierce conversation is a memorable one that challenges ideas and builds relationships. Scott takes the reader into a deep understanding of how to make one-to-one conversations with direct reports effective. She provides tools and guidance to start making a difference in conversations as soon as possible.

Within the book, there are three main ideas outlined with seven principles.

SCOTT BRIGGS

Conversations with Myself

Further Conversations with Myself

The three main ideas are: our lives succeed, or fail, one conversation at a time; the conversation is the relationship; and all conversations are with ones self, and sometimes they involve other people. With the first idea, our lives succeed or fail one conversation at a time (p.1). It is explained that conversations with people bolster relationships, reduce relationships or keep relationships at status quo, and always, one conversation at a time. Scott also takes the perspective that leadership is a "one-conversation-at-a-time" act.

The conversation is the relationship is the second idea proposed by Scott. This being that the conversations we have aren't really about our relationships. Those conversations are the relationship. They're the defining component of relationships. She notes that the most valuable currency and organization has are relationships and emotional capital (p. 6). And the last idea expresses, all conversations...