Search results for ""Author Martin Manser""

Difficult conversations just got easierHow do you deal professionally with a colleague whose work is seriously below standard? A supplier who is always late? Saying 'no' graciously? Giving someone bad news? Many of us have been on the receiving end of business conversations that have been badly handled, poorly timed or scarcely prepared for by the person we're talking to. This practical book offers help to new and aspiring managers in a variety of business situations, such as delivering bad news in an appraisal, and how to work with a range of colleagues who may be lazy, negative orincompetent.Whether you choose to read it in a week or in a single sitting, Difficult Conversations In A Week is your fastest route to success:- Sunday: Why are some conversations difficult? We may tend to avoid difficult conversations: how else can you deal with them? - Monday: Manage your emotions Distinguish the facts of an incident and how colleagues feel about it and their sense of identity.- Tuesday: Prepare well The venue, atmosphere and timing of a difficult conversation are all important. It is essential that you prepare well, especially your opening words and the direction that you want the conversation to go in, including alternative ways to resolve the issue.- Wednesday: Listen carefully As you listen, you discover more about your colleague's background and motivation. You also need to learn how to ask incisive questions that get to the root of an issue.- Thursday: Treat colleagues with respect In a difficult conversation, you need to affirm your colleague and continue to listen until they feel heard. You will explain your point of view politely, yet firmly, being neither passive nor aggressive in tone.- Friday: Seek change Involve colleagues in a conversation; learn how to deal with certain kinds of colleagues, for example, those who are lazy, aggressive or shy.- Saturday: Build trusting relationships Work hard to develop strong working relationships, so that when you have to have a difficult conversation, you will be better placed to do sobecause you will know the person better.

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Managing projects just got easierThis book will help you come to grips with the basics of project management in a week. By the end of the week you will know your way through the process more clearly. For a start, you will have to consult your end users to work out their precise requirements. You will then need to work out the best way to deliver the required outputs, consider the size of the team you will need to meet those requirements and prepare a schedule for the project. Most importantly, you will need to firm up costs, work out a budget and develop monitoring procedures to keep to the agreed costs. You will learn tips for communicating well, especially when dealing with unexpected problems that may arise.Each day of the week covers a different area and the material is structured for ease of reference. An introduction gives you a 'heads-up' as to what the day is about. The main material then explains the key lessons to be learned. Important principles are clarified and backed up by case studies, quotations and tables. Each day concludes with a summary, next steps and multiple-choice questions, to reinforce the learning points.Sunday: Think clearly. Lay firm foundations for your project as you clarify and set parameters for the project.Monday: Plan your project carefully. Begin to make detailed arrangements for the various stages of the project.Tuesday: Cost your project wisely in the planning stage and ensure that you have rigorous controls in place to monitor costs and quality as you implement the project.Wednesday: Implement your project successfully. After all your planning and preparation, you are now ready to put the project into practice.Thursday: Communicate effectively. Good communication with all the colleagues involved in your project is vital to ensure that the team works successfully.Friday: Deal with change constructively. Here we look at why some projects go off track and how to manage changes.Saturday: Conclude and evaluate your project positively. How do you complete all the final stages of your project? What lessons can you learn as you evaluate the success of your project?

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An A-Z of Effective Vocabulary covers the meaning and usage of 1001 words that you really do need to know. Whether you need guidance for a letter, job application, essay, proposal, interview, or presentation, this book can help you choose the words you need to create the right effect. Each word is defined according to Oxford Languages' latest research and includes sample sentences of real usage drawn from the Oxford English Corpus (the world's largest language databank). The book also gives examples of pitfalls to avoid, hints on similar words, and advice on how to express yourself persuasively. Learn the words that will help you to describe an event, discuss a topic, speak in an interview, evaluate a point of view and write clearly using this book which contains essential information for anyone wanting to achieve greater success in any written or spoken task. This book has been reissued in an attractive new cover to sit alongside the other titles in this mini-series: the Oxford A-Z of Grammar and Punctuation, the Oxford Guide to Plain English, the Oxford A-Z of English Usage, and the Oxford A-Z of Better Spelling.

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Making decisions just got easierYou make decisions all the time in everyday life: what to eat, what clothes to wear, with whom you spend your leisure time and how you spend your money. In your business life you are also constantly making decisions: the different activities you - and your business colleagues - need to carry out in order to arrive at a sound decision. At work, you are deciding how to spend your time, which emails to answer, what subjects to raise at a meeting, when is the best time for your company to launch a new product, what companies you should invest in, what you are not willing to compromise on in negotiations, what policies to develop and how best to market your products and services. Some of these decisions may have already been made for you by other colleagues, usually those above you in your company or organization, and your task is merely to implement them. In other matters, however, you can exercise some control over the actual decision-making process.Each of the seven chapters in Decision Making In A Week covers a different aspect of the decision-making process:- Sunday: Know your aims clearly. What are you actually making a decision about?- Monday: Collect relevant information. Consider all the relevant factors as you gather the information you need.- Tuesday: Identify different options. Widen your thinking, challenge assumptions and consider creative solutions.- Wednesday: Work effectively as a team. Make decisions as a group so that colleagues will feel motivated to implement the decision.- Thursday: Evaluate different options. Set objective criteria against which you can examine the various options you have identified.- Friday: Make an informed decision and implement it, communicating it well to all the relevant parties.- Saturday: Review the decision carefully, evaluating the whole decision-making process, noting what went well and learning from mistakes.

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Communication at work just got easierWe live in an age when the number of ways in which we communicate in business is constantly increasing. Years ago, we simply had face-to-face communication, phone and letter. Now we also have more, including email, websites, blogs... and yet, if we are honest, alongside this increase in the waysin which we communicate has come a decrease in the level of effective communication.This book is full of positive guidelines to help you communicate more effectively. You may not be able to change the way your company or organization works, but you can change the way in which you work.Whether you choose to read it in a week or in a single sitting, Business Communication In A Week is your fastest route to success:- Sunday: Know your aims. Who are you writing to/for? What is your message? What response do you want those you are communicating with to make?- Monday: Listen carefully as colleagues explain the challenges they are facing. When you listen, you show you value your colleagues as individuals.- Tuesday: Write clearly. Think creatively about what you want to express, organize your thoughts and then draft and edit your email or report.- Wednesday: Organize better meetings. The key to a successful meeting lies in its preparation, especially why you are holding it, who needs to be present and what you will consider.- Thursday: Give successful presentations. Prepare well, knowing your audience and your key messages, backed up if necessary by useful visual aids.- Friday: Build strong working relationships. Good working relationships are the glue that holds an organization together. How can you cultivate stronger working relationships?- Saturday: Engage effectively online by building - and maintaining - an accessible website and networking by means of social media.

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Managing yourself just got easierOne of the most important aspects of being a manager is being able to manage yourself and the first step to doing this effectively is becoming aware of yourself and evaluating your strengths and weaknesses. In Managing Yourself In A Week you will learn about good time management and organization skills including planning and setting priorities, dealing with time wasters, and practical steps on maintaining a diary and to-do lists. You will explore techniques such as managing your mind and learn about the power of positive thinking in developing strategies and making good decisions. You will learn about managing emotions, increasing confidence, dealing with nerves, motivating yourself and building strong relationships by applying good listening skills. The final chapter, on managing stress, looks at what produces stress in you and discusses ways of dealing with its consequences. Managing Yourself in a Week gives handy guidelines that will enable you to take a grip on yourself and re-evaluate your way of working and your priorities in life. It is a quick and reliable guide to the basics of self-management in the world of work.Over this week-long course you will cover:- Sunday: Know yourself well- Monday: Manage your focus clearly- Tuesday: Manage your time effectively- Wednesday: Manage your mind decisively- Thursday: Manage your emotions carefully - Friday: Manage your relationships successfully- Saturday: Manage stress thoroughly

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The meetings secrets that experts and top professionals use. Get results fast with this quick, easy guide to the fundamentals of business meetings.Includes:• Why have meetings?• Prepare well for meetings• Chairing a meeting• Taking minutes• Giving a presentation• Taking part in a meeting• After the meeting

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The Penguin Writer's Manual is the essential companion for anyone who wants to master the art of writing good English. Whether you're composing an essay, sending a business letter or an email to a colleague, or firing off an angry letter to a newspaper, this guide will help you to brush up you communication skills and write correct and confident English.

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If you want to be the best, you have to have the right skillset.From effective time management and efficient speed reading to managing yourself and stopping stress from slowing you down, THE ULTIMATE PRODUCTIVITY BOOK is a dynamic collection of tools, techniques, and strategies for success. Short, punchy chapters mean you can read up quickly and start applying what you've learned immediately.Discover the main themes, key ideas and tools you need and bring it all together with practical exercises.This is your complete course in being more productive.ABOUT THE SERIESULTIMATE books are for managers, leaders, and business executives who want to succeed at work. From marketing and sales to management and finance, each title gives comprehensive coverage of the essential business skills you need to get ahead in your career. Written in straightforward English, each book is designed to help you quickly master the subject, with fun quizzes embedded so that you can check how you're doing.

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Arranged in an easy-to-use A-Z form, THE NEW PENGUIN CONCISE THESAURUS offers a vast selection of synonyms for a whole host of words, ranging from the everyday to the comparatively esoteric and from standard vocabulary to contemporary slang and jargon ('e-tailer', 'chill out'). Each entry is simplicity itself to follow, and where a particular word has several different senses, these are clearly indicated and explained. A perfect companion to THE NEW PENGUIN CONCISE ENGLISH DICTIONARY.

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If you want to be the best, you have to have the right skillset. From managing and motivating people and teams to performance management and appraisals, THE ULTIMATE MANAGEMENT BOOK is a dynamic collection of tools, techniques, and strategies for success. Discover the main themes, key ideas and tools you need and bring it all together with practical exercises.This is your complete course in modern management. ABOUT THE SERIESULTIMATE books are for managers, leaders, and business executives who want to succeed at work. From marketing and sales to management and finance, each title gives comprehensive coverage of the essential business skills you need to get ahead in your career. Written in straightforward English, each book is designed to help you quickly master the subject, with fun quizzes embedded so that you can check how you're doing.

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If you want to be the best, you have to have the right skillset.From effective business writing and presentations to running productive meetings, THE ULTIMATE BUSINESS COMMUNICATION BOOK is a dynamic collection of tools, techniques, and strategies for success.Discover the main themes and key ideas, and bring it all together with practical exercises.This is your complete course in business communication.ABOUT THE SERIESULTIMATE books are for managers, leaders, and business executives who want to succeed at work. From marketing and sales to management and finance, each title gives comprehensive coverage of the essential business skills you need to get ahead in your career. Written in straightforward English, each book is designed to help you quickly master the subject, with fun quizzes embedded so that you can check how you're doing.

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