Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma [Hardcover]

Nick Morgan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 2008

Nick Morgan shows how anyone can be an effective speaker by presenting an image of authenticity and respect for their audience, whether in a group presentation or a one-on-one conversation. He presents a four-step process, perfected in his teaching at Harvard, that enables the reader to use their own personal speaking style while becoming a more persuasive and charismatic communicator and leader. The basis of this process is the fact that when words and body language are in conflict, body language wins every time. This isn't easy to overcome, because normally body language is immediate, while the words lag slightly behind, and even a momentary conflict is perceptible to the audience. The key to success is to train your body language to unconsciously align with your message.

The four steps:

• Form the attitude and intent to be open, and then let your body naturally express that intent. This feeling of openness will naturally affect the content of what you are saying, and it's that natural evolution that is at the heart of the process.
• Become connected to your audience. This creates a mutual energy, and you will naturally begin to think in terms of what the audience wants and needs in shaping your content.
• Ask yourself, what's my underlying emotion? Why does this matter to me? Becoming passionate about what you have to say naturally makes your audience care about it too.
• Really listen to the audience. Understanding their needs and reactions will enable you to direct your communication in mutually beneficial ways.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Nick Morgan’s Trust Me approaches corporate and executive communication from a new and different perspective, that of the professional performer. His approach acknowledges the realities of modern business and, once you get beyond the first few uncomfortable steps where you’re thinking of a thousand things at once, you will communicate more openly, authentically, and charismatically." —Technology & Society (www.techsoc.com/trustme.htm )

From the Inside Flap

Trust Me

"Every communication is two conversations: the verbal one—the content—and the nonverbal one—the body language. If the two are aligned, you can be a persuasive, authentic communicator. You may even come across as charismatic. If the two are not aligned, people believe the nonverbal communication every time."—From the Introduction

In this book, acclaimed communications coach Nick Morgan shows how you can become an effective, charismatic speaker by communicating with authenticity and respect for your audience. Trust Me presents a four-step process (which Morgan perfected while teaching at Harvard) that enables you to find your own best personal communication style to maximize your persuasiveness and presence. This proven process works whether you're speaking to a group or in a one-on-one conversation.

As Morgan explains, we are all unconscious experts in reading each other's body language. When words and body language are in conflict, we believe the body language every time. This makes conscious efforts to change our unconscious behavior difficult. Even momentary lapses are perceptible to the audience. The key to success is to train your body language to unconsciously align with your message.

Trust Me outlines the four steps to communication success:

• Openness

• Connection

• Passion

• Listening

In addition, the book offers an in-depth analysis of the research that underlies the four-step process and includes tips for controlling fear when communicating.

At a time when there is little tolerance for hype and spin, this book offers a practical, clear guide for becoming a persuasive and authentic communicator.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (December 31, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470404353
• ISBN-13: 978-0470404355
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,195 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dr. Nick Morgan is one of America's top communication theorists and coaches. A passionate teacher, he is committed to helping people find clarity in their thinking and ideas - and then delivering them with panache. He has been commissioned by Fortune 50 companies to write for many CEOs and presidents. He has coached people to give Congressional testimony, to appear on the Today Show, and to take on the investment community. He has worked widely with political and educational leaders. And he has himself spoken, led conferences, and moderated panels at venues around the world.
Nick's methods, which are well known for challenging conventional thinking, have been published worldwide. His acclaimed book on public speaking, Working the Room: How to Move People to Action through Audience-Centered Speaking, was published by Harvard in 2003 and reprinted in paperback in 2005 as Give Your Speech, Change the World: How to Move Your Audience to Action. His new book on authentic communications, Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma, was published by Jossey-Bass in January 2009. He has written hundreds of articles for local and national publications.
Nick served as editor of the Harvard Management Communication Letter from 1998 - 2003. He is a former Fellow at the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. After earning his PhD. in literature and rhetoric, Nick spent a number of years teaching Shakespeare and Public Speaking at the University of Virginia, Lehigh University, and Princeton University. He first started writing speeches for Virginia Governor Charles S. Robb and went on to found his own communications consulting organization, Public Words, in 1997.
Nick attributes his success to his honest and direct approach that challenges even the most confident orators to rethink how they communicate.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cracking the code for powerful communication, February 4, 2009

By 

J. P. Johnson (Ewing, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma (Hardcover)

I work for a large consulting and accounting organization, and I see non-authentic, non-charismatic communication every day. By contrast, it's incredibly powerful when a business leader steps up and communicates passionately, honestly, directly, and in a way that connects deeply with the audience and generates trust.

In this book, Nick Morgan "cracks the code". It's *not* a matter of chance whether you communicate the right way or the bad way. And it's *not* that "some people are born that way."

There are teachable steps you can take to up your game.

The thrust of the book is to identify 2 "conversations" that happen every time you interact with someone: the words you say (the verbal) and the nonverbal messages you send. Nick Morgan's project is to identify how you can make both of those conversations as strong as possible. He also lays out how you can make both conversations match the other, since our nonverbals often undermine our spoken messages.

Along the way, Nick lays out four aspects of achieving powerful communications. With each of these, he discusses tips and tricks for both the verbal and also the nonverbal. The four aspects are:

- Openness (sincerity, inviting the audience in, warmth)
- Connectedness (to your audience)
- Passion (for the subject at hand)
- Listening (understanding the journey you want to take your audience on, and gathering feedback all through your communication about where they are, so you can make judgments about how to move them along)

They key to aligning your nonverbals and your verbals is this insight: your nonverbals happen a split second before the synapses fire for speaking. In other words, you can't fake it. (There are parallels to method acting here.) Both the nonverbals and the verbal communication have to flow authentically from the same place.

Nick has a great writing style: intelligent and engaging. He also keeps the book lively through the generous use of illustrations and anecdotes. He is informed by the latest brain research, and lays out a sound theoretical basis for the 2 conversations. But Nick never loses sight of the practical. There are passages where you can imagine the implications have to be worked out in 1-on-1 coaching, but overall the book itself will go a long way towards helping even the most experienced communicator.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I was a good speaker, now I'm a pro, June 15, 2009

By 

David M. Scott "David Meerman Scott" (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma (Hardcover)

Nick Morgan's ideas in Trust Me have transformed my speaking.

Prior to reading the book, I was a good speaker. I was frequently booked by conference organizers and often got good scores on feedback from participants.

But after I read the book and applied the ideas, my speaking was transformed. The ideas were so powerful that I reached out to Nick and got some one-on-one coaching.

Now I am a professional speaker. And my feedback is not just good - now it is great. I am nearly always rated one of the highest speakers at the events I present to.

If you are a beginner or a pro like I now am. Trust Me will help you to become as good as you want to. (Or as good as you dare to).

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to create and deliver ideas that are heard, remembered, and acted upon, March 28, 2010

By 

Sally Hogshead (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Trust Me: Four Steps to Authenticity and Charisma (Hardcover)

Every day, in order to succeed, we must persuade others through our communication. In some cases, our "audience" might be an auditorium full of sales reps, or board room of executives. Other time, the "audience" could be a key new business prospect, or a single person sitting on the other side of the desk in a job interview. In every situation, we must persuade the audience's opinions, and influence its actions, in order to achieve any type of meaningful result.

This is where TRUST ME comes in.

This book is an elegant-yet-practical guide to authentic communication. Rather than addressing only the theory and pragmatics of a great speech, Nick Morgan deftly draws upon his impressive track record of coaching Fortune 100 leaders to show us exactly how the greatest pieces of communication are developed and executed.

In addition to the nuances of presentation how-to, Morgan also investigates the heart and soul of every conversation. We learn how to craft a message with grace and intent ("Verbal restraint can be a more powerful indicator of depth of feeling than excess") and share our most deeply-held beliefs in a more authentic way ("The first place people look to find passion is in the voice").

One of the most practical and profound aspects of the book is Morgan's description of the subtle ways in which we can unwittingly sabotage our one-to-one conversations, such as with unintentional voice cues, or alienating body posture. It doesn't matter how carefully we conceive a message if our non-verbal communication contradicts what we want to convey.

As you might imagine, the application for this instruction goes far beyond the realm of business. Whether you lead an organization that sells pharmaceuticals or farm equipment, whether you're speaking to a group as a politician or a parent, Morgan's insight will how how even subtle changes in communication style can help your message stand out and make a difference.

There are many books on the topic of how to give a speech. Nick Morgan's teaches us how to powerfully wield our communication with the ultimate purpose of strengthening relationships, influencing results, and making our ideas matter out in the world.