Great Books: “Good In A Room” Gives You The Edge!

If you can communicate your ideas concisely and effectively, you will have the edge no matter what industry you are in. Stephanie Palmer’s, GOOD IN A ROOM, is a great book on that subject that I highly recommend!

In GOOD IN A ROOM,former MGM Director of Creative Affairs, Stephanie Palmer, reveals the techniques used by Hollywood’s top writers, directors and producers to get financing for their projects. She explains how you can apply these techniques to be more successful in your own high-stakes meetings.  Palmer found that the strategies used to sell yourself and your ideas in Hollywood not only work in other businesses, they often work better.

Palmer has developed a system for helping people with good ideas get the attention and financing they deserve. This is important because technology and globalization have created exponential growth in the marketplace for ideas. If you can communicate your ideas concisely and effectively, you will have the edge no matter what industry you are in. Whether you intend to ask for a raise, sign a potential client, promote a new business, secure financing for a creative project, get sponsors for your charity walk or even ask someone on a date, GOOD IN A ROOM shows you how to:

• Master the five stages of the face-to-face meeting
• Avoid the secret deal breakers of the first ninety seconds
• Be confident in high-pressure situations
• Present yourself better and more effectively than you ever have before

GOOD IN A ROOM is a step-by-step guide to improving your performance in high-stakes meetings as well as in other areas of your professional life. You’ll learn insider secrets, cutting-edge techniques, and how to construct winning presentations that persuade decision-makers. That’s what being good in a room is all about.

My Thoughts:

In over three thousand meetings, Stephanie Palmer listened to people pitch their screenplays, projects or resumes. From that experience she distills the essence of what works and why. Her stories including some of the disastrous  and funny ways you can self-destruct and how to avoid them. The ideas that Stephanie shares about how to present yourself and strategies of communicating what’s really important about you, can be applied in any interactions between people – friends, family, organizations, and your business.

• The chapter on networking is unique and groundbreaking. It suggests that you STOP networking. Or at least, stop networking the way 95% of your competition does it. Palmer’s suggestions make networking sound fun and productive. Her ideas create a refreshing opportunity for everyone who thinks they just aren’t very good at self-promotion.

• The section on “purposely non-specific phrases” is absolutely great. This section helps you design phrases that describe you or your product in such a way that not only retain the right amount of mystery, but also lead to a strategic dialog with the buyer that allows you to connect with them on a whole new level. Most of us assume that when describing the services or widget we’re trying to sell, that more (rather than less) detail is the most effective approach. Palmer suggests going the opposite direction, and the outcome she describes in her book is surprisingly effective.

• “What’s your name?” “So, what do you do?” These are two very simple questions we’ve all answered a million times. The “what do you do?” question is the one I think that tongue ties us most. Rather than launching into a canned and hard sell elevator speech, Palmer gives great suggestions on how to respond to these two simple and often hard to answer questions. Her suggestions get people interested in you from the first moment you speak.

• Palmer also covers areas beyond just business and gives many examples of how her principles can be applied in a conversation, over the phone or in an email.

 Highly recommended. 5 Stars.