Patrick King - Conversationally Speaking: WHAT to Say, WHEN to Say It, and HOW to Never Run Out of Things to say

Ive been fortunate to have been exposed to a wide range of people that I would consider role models .

I have many of the typical ones that other entrepreneurs and authors do, but heres an unconventional one that might throw you for a curve.

Henry Kissinger .

First, some background.

Henry Kissinger is primarily known as an American diplomat who served under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. He went to Harvard, and currently runs Kissinger Associates, a consulting firm that brokers international negotiations and dealings.

So besides to an aspiring Senator, why exactly is he role model-worthy?

Well, his list of accomplishments has literally changed the course of history. Lets take a look.

Introduce a policy called dtente between the United States and the former Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War, which many historians consider the beginning of the end of the Cold War and mutual rising nuclear threat? Check .

Institute talks between the United States and communist China which eventually led to the recognition and formalization of relations between two nations, ending 23 years of poor relations? Check .

Oh, and negotiate the Paris Peace Accords to establish peace and end direct United States military involvement in Vietnam ? Check .

His body of work speaks for itself, but its really the manner and method through which he accomplished these feats that makes him a huge role model for me.

At his most basic level, Henry Kissinger was a master communicator, negotiator, and people person . This is how he was able to bring quarreling countries together no less than three separate times in history, and save literally millions of lives.

He was able to talk in ways that people would listen and see the benefit of his words. He knew just how to appeal to peoples differing motivations and intentions to work out an understanding that never could have developed otherwise. He broke political standstills and bridged ideological and philosophical differences in ways that both spared and ended great conflicts. He deeply understood how to bend peoples positions to embrace reality and compromise.

Finally, he just made things happen through sheer skill and will .

Can you imagine having that much social grace that you can literally bend the fate of nations with your conversations? Me neither, but that doesnt mean its not a worthy goal to strive for.

Its clear what the power of simple conversation can do if it can shape history, just imagine how much more enriching it can help our personal lives be?

Conversation is the bedrock of any relationship, and its exactly how and why you have bonded with every person in your closest social circles. There may have been some circumstantial luck involved from time to time, but my hope is that through the principles in this book, you will be able to strike up a conversation with anyone at any time, with nothing circumstantial required at all.

Youll understand how and why a conversation plays out the way it does, and see it for the science of pattern recognition that it really is.

I cover all phases of a typical conversation from icebreaking to leaving on a high note, and nearly every part inbetween not just WHAT to say, WHEN to say it, and HOW to never run out of things to say but WHY everything works the way it does.

Youll uncover a deep understanding of social mechanics that will make you, conversationally speaking, prepared for anything.

We might not be able to reunite the Koreas, but we can definitely make a difference in how fulfilled we are on a daily basis.