How do you utilize resources to enhance your communication skills outside of working hours? Whether you’re a reader, podcast aficionado, web surfer or you take your coffee with a side of morning newspaper, there are plenty of ways to engage in ongoing learning out of the office and to collaborate with IABC members while doing so.

In a recent discussion on The Hub, IABC member Susan Jackson queried members for book recommendations that focus on bringing your authentic self to work and adapting your communication style to best fit your audience.

Check out these five communication-related book recommendations — and a few useful resources — to help communicate your message to any audience.

'Messengers: Who We Listen To, Who We Don't, and Why'

By Stephen Martin and Joseph Marks, Recommended by Jenni Field

In our ambiguous world, the messenger is increasingly the message. In “Messengers,” Martin and Marks uncover the forces behind the many phenomena of the modern era, including fake news and the spread of misinformation. Learn more.

'The Name of Your Game: Four Game Plans for Success at Home and at Work'

By Stuart Atkins, Recommended by Jim Shaffer, IABC Fellow

Recommended by IABC member Jim Shaffer, this read introduces four communication plans for success at home and at work, enabling you to “understand your own communication style and how to manage it with people of similar or different communication styles.” Learn more.

'How to Have Meaningful Conversations'

By Sarah Rozenthuler, Recommended by Birgit Schonafinger

How often do you feel you have missed an opportunity or failed to express what mattered most to you? This book lays out a seven-point plan to help you grow in confidence and achieve lasting results. Through real-life case studies of people who transformed their lives through conversation and examples of simple changes that create trust, openness and new possibilities, learn how to bring about real change and growth in your personal and professional life. Learn more.  

'How to Communicate Like a Buddhist'

By Cynthia Kane, Recommended by Mindy Kantor

In this book, recommended by IABC member Mindy Kantor, Kane takes the four elements of right speech and develops them into a modern practice based on mindful listening, mindful speech and mindful silence. This is not intended to be a study of Buddhist thought, but an entry point for modern people who want to break the stress of ineffective communication in important relationships. Learn more.

'QBQ! The Question Behind the Question: Practicing Personal Accountability in Work and in Life'

By John G. Miller and David L. Levin, Recommended by Mindy Kantor

Real solutions are discovered when each of us recognizes the power of personal accountability. Here, Miller and Levin explain how negative questions represent a lack of this accountability and encourage us to ask better questions that will transform our lives and our organizations. Learn more.

Looking for something other than a book? Check out these member-recommended resources:

Sunni Goodman recommends the DiSC assessment, which identifies your communication style and provides guidance on how different styles can best communicate with each other.

Kristen Dyck believes in supporting clients to bring their authentic self to work. When they discuss adapting to their audience, whether that be a leadership team, supervisor, colleague, direct report or another department, Dyck advises clients to understand the audience’s pain points or challenges and to consider what the audience needs to know about you in order to trust you.

Find more recommendations to dive into over your morning coffee and add your own by following the full discussion on The Hub.

Thank you to Jenni Field, Jim Shaffer, Birgit Schonafinger, Sunni Goodman, Kristen Dyck and Mindy Kantor for sharing their recommendations, and a special thank you to Susan Jackson for starting the conversation.

Interested in providing your own list of recommended resources to feature on Catalyst? Reach out to the editors at catalyst@iabc.com.

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