3 Takeaways from “The Art of People”
By Dave Kerpen, an American author, entrepreneur, and speaker.
A number of foreword raised the expectation for this book, especially when one mentioned that this book is a better version of “How to Win Friends and Influence People” suited for today’s world.
The book is well structured into 11 progressive sections, with each successive section building upon the previous:
- Understanding yourself and understanding people
- Meeting the right people
- Reading people
- Connecting with people
- Influencing people
- Understanding people’s mind
- Teaching people
- Leading people
- Resolving conflict with people
- Inspiring people
- Keeping people happy
Top 3 takeaways:
- ‘Myers-Briggs means nothing; this means everything’ Myers-Briggs personality test is something which a few of my closer peers and myself enjoys, for it explains our behaviors, strengths, weaknesses, etc. well. This book introduces the Enneagram, while less famous, is a far more reliable version of personality assessment. Taking this test is the next on the to do list.
- ‘The most important question you’ll ever ask in a first meeting’ How can I help you? A simple question that puts the interest of the other party first, will help to establish long lasting trust and influence much better than any amount of convincing can achieve.
- ‘It’s better to be happy than right’ Something both my wife and I learnt over the years, sometimes we know we are right, but we do not insist on being right, for the unhappiness of being right is not worth it.
“How to Win Friends and Influence People” was a book that I enjoyed reading annually for a couple years, that book covered more why, while this book had more how and what, more examples on the applications on the concept, guess that’s why one of the foreword mention that this is better suited for today’s world.
This 2 books are highly recommended for anyone who wants to improve their social interaction, and I would recommend reading “How to Win Friends and Influence People” first before reading this book.
