Rebecca Weintraub - InCredible Communication: Uncover the Invaluable Art of Selling Yourself

Weintraub and Lewis InCredible Communication provides a blueprint by which each of us can learn to refine and leverage our communication skills at a time when they are needed more than ever.

Willow Bay, Dean,
USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

InCredible Communication is the book Ive been waiting for. This take-action book is filled with hands-on, practical communication tools to manage your reputation, your context and the story you want to tell about yourself.

Ron Ricci, Founder and CEO,
The Transparency Imperative

Weintraub and Lewis have laid out a clear plan for action for navigating todays very complicated world which requires even more finely honed communication skills than ever before. Its a book that I will refer to over and over again.

Carol Nygren, SVP,
Strategic Business Development, Cityneon Holdings

Whether you are just starting your career or are at the top of your game leading an organization, InCredible Communication will provide you with the insights and actionable tools necessary to be a credible and effective communicator and leader.

Vince Klaseus, President,
Universal Brand Development, NBCUniversal

We dedicate this book to our parents .

To the memories of my mothers, Goody Kallner Weintraub and Blossom Golin Weintraub who, as teachers, understood the importance of communication, and fostered my writing and speaking talents and by doing so, made this book possible.

Rebecca Weintraub

To my father Joe, who as an inventor, entrepreneur, and marketer always told me that the key to success was always the relationships you make, and the most meaningful relationships are always built on a foundation of honesty and clear messaging.

Steven Lewis

Contents

We want to begin by expressing our deepest thanks and admiration to two women without whom this book would have been infinitely poorer. Dr Stefanie Demetriades was finishing her PhD at USC when she was recommended to be our research assistant. Thanks to Dr Patti Riley for that auspicious recommendation. Stefanie was part collaborator, part researcher, part editor and eventually, part friend during the writing process. Her meticulousness, knowledge of the field and good humour smoothed many a road bump. Stefi was never ruffled. Despite juggling many balls besides this book, she was the picture of calm and it was a picture we often needed! In addition to all of these contributions, Stefanie found us our illustrator, Alexis Demetriades. Yes, Alexis is her sister, but there was nothing nepotistic about the recommendation. Alexis combines immense artistic talent with a wry sense of humour that brought our notions to life. She even graciously tolerated our attempts at art direction. We are immensely grateful to these two amazing women and know our lives are richer for their being in them.

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I wish to thank my mentor and Media Savvy former business partner Ramey Warren, who played a major role in bringing forth my skills to coach celebrities and executives to be their most genuine in every encounter. To John Bond, who provided support and counsel through the proposal and publishing process. To my parents, Jill and Joe, and sister Caren, whose love has always supported me and encouraged me to grow beyond my comfort zone. To my son William, who daily expands my mind to believe what is possible. And to my beloved Lois, for being the best wife, friend and shoulder anyone could ever dream of. To our two Curly Coated Retrievers, Cody and Cleo, who slept patiently at my feet for hundreds of hours when Im sure they would rather have been outside running and playing.

And to my co-author on this journey, Rebecca Weintraub. Our finding each other was pure serendipity and the results of our collaboration brought this project to exciting new heights.

Steven Lewis
Pacific Palisades, CA

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I wish to thank the people I worked with at Hughes Aircraft/Electronics for being the crucible in which my perspective and perceptions of strategic and effective communication moved from theory to application. C. Richard Jones, Tony Iorillo, Malcolm Currie and C. Michael Armstrong gave me opportunities to experiment, fail occasionally and grow exponentially. To my colleagues at the USC Annenberg School of Communication, my deepest thanks for all you taught me as I watched and learned from you. You are the cutting edge of communication research and theory and make the world a better place with each article you write, every undergraduate you teach, Masters student you inspire and PhD student you mentor. I remain in awe of you all.

To my family, daughters-by-marriage, their husbands and my grandchildren, thank you for your encouragement and support during this year of creation. To my five siblings, their spouses, children and my 97-year-old-father, thank you for being willing to listen to my trials and tribulations during our weekly Covid Zoom calls. Thanks especially to my brother Howard Stolz for being such an appreciative reader of chapters in process. I owe you all a copy of the book! And, of course, to my loving, supportive and irreverent husband, Richard Loftus. His suggestions were not always the most appropriate, but they kept me in stitches when deadlines loomed large or writers block set in. Without him, I might still be staring at a blank computer screen.

And last, but definitely not least, I must acknowledge my partner, my friend, my sounding board, my co-author Steven Lewis. Who knew what a lunch at USC could produce? I didnt then, but I certainly do now!

Rebecca Weintraub
Redondo Beach, CA

We remember great leaders by the words they use. More, we remember how those words made us feel. The power of storytelling, and the credibility and authenticity of how that story is delivered, can inspire, unite and serve as a catalyst for positive change.

The fundamental power of communication so adeptly and famously employed by great leaders and storytellers like Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, Dr Martin Luther King Jr and so many more is available to all of us. Personally, it has been the single most valuable instrument in my executive toolbox, because it is the only way for me to effectively engage, rally and unite a company of thousands around a shared mission.

I faced a leadership challenge on day one when I became CEO of Optiv Security. The former CEO had been in place for nearly two decades as a respected founding member of the company. I was coming in from one of the companys primary competitors and, to add icing to the cake, it was April 2020 which to many marked the early and deep impact associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and work-from-home economy. So, there I was, a new guy from a rival firm who couldnt even meet with his team in person. Not an ideal situation.

I turned to the most powerful tool at my disposal my voice.

In order to effectively communicate and reach my new employees, I knew I had to first embrace and connect with the corporate culture. Too many leaders come into new situations wanting to rip and replace the corporate culture with something they like better. The problem with this approach is, you cant force culture to change you can only lead it to change.

As this book states, understanding an organizations communication culture is key to being a credible and effective communicator within it. So I began to immerse myself in the corporate culture by listening to what people said, what motivated them, what frustrated them, what made them tick. I paid attention to how they spoke and how messages were written, delivered and received.