Review: The Big Talk

The Fine Art of The Big Talk: How to Win Clients, Deliver Great Presentations, and Solve Conflicts at Work by Debra Fine

Having recently been given the opportunity to seek alternative work arrangements, I thought I'd bone up on my interview skills and technique. While at Borders one day, this book caught my eye. I hadn't heard about it before, nor did I know the author, but the liner notes and review quotes were interesting. I wasn't disappointed.

Debra Fine does a good job of summarizing all aspects of "big talk" - meaningful or important conversations - and how to both prepare for them and navigate them as they occur. She covers many topics, from sales pitches to delivering good/bad news to how to lead meetings. Like most books on these subjects, the messages boil down to using common sense. But time and time again, I'm reminded that common sense is certainly not common.

While I have learned most of the techniques and styles presented in this book before, as I read I thought about situations where I succeeded in applying them as well as completely forgot to apply them (and reflected on the consequences). Whether you are new to the art of tactful conversation or feel you could use a reminder, I highly recommend this book.

Given how useful I found this book to be, I'm looking forward to picking up Debra's previous book, The Fine Art of Small Talk: How To Start a Conversation, Keep It Going, Build Networking Skills -- and Leave a Positive Impression!. I could always use help on small talk, particularly with regard to keeping it going with people I have little in common with or have just met.