It is generally accepted by linguists, anthropologists, and the rest of the scientific community that human beings developed language between 150,000 and 200,000 years ago. People, in other words, have had two thousand centuries to perfect their communication. Yet we still get it wrong. Words are misspoken. Intentions are misjudged. Meaning is missed. Feelings get hurt. This is where Michelle Gladieux comes in. A veteran coach and consultant, she teaches people to send and receive messages with confidence and clarity. COMMUNICATE WITH COURAGE is the distillation of her approach. She calls her book a “bravery manual” to help readers reach their potential as communicators. This involves overcoming four “sneaky” obstacles: hiding (the fear of exposing one’s weaknesses); defining (relying too much on assumptions and being quick to judge); rationalizing (passing up potentially rewarding risks); and settling (stopping at “good enough”). Each chapter ends with a “pro move” as well as a longer “exercise” to help the reader put ideas into practice.

Books like this often cater to business executives, focusing on some aspect of workplace communication–sales, for instance, or giving performance feedback. Gladieux’s book certainly has workplace applications, but she doesn’t limit herself to that arena. Her main idea is that everyone is a communicator, and everyone could, and should, improve their communication skills. What stands in the way of that improvement? Fear. To some this may sound woo-woo, but Gladieux’s refreshingly direct writing style keeps the reader on track. She eschews business jargon and writes in a way that any reader can relate to (“Hidden challenges are sometimes (for me) less fun to talk about than courage and risk, maybe because they smack of “here’s another thing to do that’s not going to be easy”). The pro moves are the best examples of this. Each one is a short, actionable statement. For example: Don’t overthink things. Overthinking is rationalizing, which is one of those four sneaky obstacles. Readers who just can’t help overthinking things, however, may be reassured by the copious references that appear throughout the text. This is not just a book for business people and seminar leaders; it is a book for everyone.

Veteran coach and consultant Michelle Gladieux’s COMMUNICATE WITH COURAGE provides a much-needed corrective to the struggles of effective communication that is both entertaining and informative.

~Anthony Aycock for IndieReader