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152 of 156 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
C'mon, this has to be a joke..., January 25, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: The Art of Mingling: Easy, Fun and Proven Techniques for Mastering Any Room (Paperback)
My thoughts after reading through this book was "It has to be a joke". At first it seems as though the author is only trying to use humor to break the ice and get the "minglephobic" out of their old ways of thinking. Unfortunately, as the chapters progress it becomes readily apparent that the author is not merely joking, and that the silly hints and lines suggested are the author's actual advice! For example, the ADVANCED mingling techniques in the book suggest physically bumping into people, purposely mistaking them for someone else, using foreign accents, and wearing conversation pieces (such as a feather hat). The author also instructs one for offensive escape maneuvers to preform the following: spill something on that person; step on the person's foot, or otherwise hurt him. Unless these techniques sound realistic to you (and are really possible in your world of mingling), you would be better served looking elsewhere for a more serious effort on the topic. In a perhaps strange twist, the text blatantly provokes the reader to lie in most situations. If I may quote directly from the book: "Being willing and able to tell a fib is the cornerstone of the art of mingling, the basis from which all techniques in this book are taught." Finally, the book is badly dated, with a whole chapter dedicated solely to mingling in the nineties. Sadly, the author's joke here is entirely on the reader.
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53 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
The Art of Lying, March 31, 2003
By A Customer
This review is from: The Art of Mingling: Easy, Fun and Proven Techniques for Mastering Any Room (Paperback)
I bought this book in hopes of picking up a few simple tips on how to mingle among a new crowd. As I read through the first chapter I was, to say the least, very disappointed with the first advice... "picture everybody naked." How many times have we heard that one? And, why am I paying money to hear it again? A little discouraged, I continuted to read on. Throughout the whole book it seems that all the author is teaching us is how to lie for the sake of conversation. I would hate to see what our society would become if we all side-stepped reality and only discussed 'safe' topics. To those of you that want some good advice on how to mingle, don't buy this book.
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67 of 76 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great ideas on how to get through tough mingling moments, December 4, 1999
This review is from: The Art of Mingling: Easy, Fun and Proven Techniques for Mastering Any Room (Paperback)
The Art of Mingling Written by Jeanne Martinet, 150 pages, 7 chapters Reviewed by Olivia R. Hendricks The Art of Mingling by Jeanne Martinet is a very beneficial book if read by an individual who had "minglephobia". In the book the author discusses many techniques to get a person started in a room full of strangers. She teaches and describes several scenarios to appeal to different people. She also gives some very helpful hints and examples for anyone on how to enter a room full of strangers and still feel comfortable. However some of the suggestions she made were a little strange, such as the idea of entering a room full of strangers and pretending to have your best friend by your side, imaginary of course. You would really get a good start there if people saw you talking to your imaginary friend. Many other points she made in the book were very good, such as whether or not to shake and how soon. She also gave a few example lines you could use for one liners to get the conversation started. " But where do you go from there?" you might ask. Ms. Martinet follows up with a chapter on how to continue the conversation once started. The reading of this chapter should be a must for everyone. She discusses about career talk whether or not to do it. Not! Career talk should never be discuss unless in situations like she discussed where you know about the career the person may be in or unless you are very interested in it, because if neither, you're on a dead end street for conversation. So save the career talk for work. Another thing the book has that is quite interesting is the use of the alphabet to strike up a conversation by choosing a letter of the alphabet and then a topic that starts with that letter. Great idea! As you move further into the book she tells you how to get out of a bad conversation smoothly without appearing to be a bad guy. This also is a must! Everyone has been in a situation where the conversation started off good, and then the next thing you know the person your talking to is telling you about their prostate. Yuck! Somebody throw a life preserver! The authors gives some terrific points on knowing the signs of a good conversation going bad and how to get out quick. She further goes on in the book to describe the advanced stages of mingling once you've got the basics down, such as "the art of piggybacking". This is very insulting to the average person. If you can't make your way around the room alone mingling, then you need to start back at the first chapter. Hanging on someone's shirt tale can often earn you the reputation as being a follower at a party, (someone everyone is annoyed by at the party). Towards the end of the book she talks about mingling in the nineties. She also gave some nineties topics to choose from when starting a conversation. She also gave some nineties buzzwords that everyone should be aware of. After you have read this book, you should be able to walk into any room with the confidence that you are going to make it and that everyone is there to see you. You should also feel as though you can talk to anyone and no longer have to mingle with the wallpaper. This book is not only entertaining but very informative. The reading of this book should be a must for anyone wishing for tips on good social skills.
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