On Fierce Conversations

On Fierce Conversations, written by Susan Scott, is a very popular book within organizations right now. You can even find a description of Fierce Conversations on Wikipedia. In her book, Susan Scott describes ways organizations can build strong teams and working environments that are successful by having fierce conversations. The focus here is on speech. It is my contention that focusing on speech and the ability to talk are the basic foundation for the failure of our corporations and business communities. Susan Scott, in her book Fierce Conversations, infers that you can achieve success at work and in life by talking. Communication skills both oral and in writing are a fundamental line item in all job descriptions. We have based our ability to obtain employment by how well and how much you talk.

OK. Let’s step back and look at just what such a philosophy has done to our society, in general. We now have people in charge who don’t have a clue how to get a job done. They do, however, know how to talk about whatever the issue is at hand. For instance, suppose we have a woman who is in charge of selling flowers during the day and then passes the job off to an evening worker. This daytime flower seller talks a good game. She gathers freebies from the recycle by talking to the people in charge of the back room. She has extended talks with customers or family members and gossips with co-workers about how much harder she works than her co-workers. All the while, her responsibilities for getting portions of her job done are accumulating. Her paperwork doesn’t get copied or posted as required, her flower arrangements don’t get watered, her floral containers don’t get cleaned and she waits until the very last minute to stuff the containers in the display with product so she won’t have to groom the product on her shift. Talking all day is exhausting, of course, so she is extremely tired, overworked and always late taking her lunch break. The result… her containers are passed on to the evening worker for cleaning, as well as the grooming of the product for sale. The evening and weekend workers have to take care of paperwork copies, cleaning containers and the display, ensuring that there are full containers of clean water and doing their own jobs.

Apply this concept to most any job structure these days and you see that our management system is suffering from the imposed requirement for excellent oral communication skills. The sad part is that the people actually doing the job are not getting the credit they desire, the position they deserve or compensation for their efforts. It is all going to the one who talks all day long.

It can all be summed in three words… gossip, rumor and innuendo… the foundation of our workplace for advancement and employment. How well and how much can you talk? There is an adage: There are those who talk about doing and those who do… you cannot live up to your full potential if you are talking. Actions speak louder, and produce more in the workplace as well as in our lives, than words. Actions reveal the Real you.

Fierce conversations are just that… fierce. The definition of fierce from Merriam Webster Dictionary:

· Violently hostile or aggressive in temperament

· Given to fighting or killing

· Marked by unrestrained zeal or vehemence

· Extremely vexatious, disappointing, or intense

· Furiously active or determined

· Wild or menacing in appearance

None of the above definitions is admirable in nature. Fierce conversations hurt people, hurt lives, hurt jobs. Actions are what make us successful, productive and respected. Talk is cheap. Action is priceless.

Are you a talker or a doer?