How to Talk to Anybody about Anything: Breaking the Ice with Everyone from Accountants to Zen Buddhists

This book should be used as a companion to her other book, "How to Talk to Anyone: 92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships." It seems that all the people who are giving this book bad reviews are actually looking for the material in this other book. Once you have read the other book, you will understand how this book is useful, and you will be very glad she wrote it because you will have a need for it. This book is almost more like an exercise that expands upon some of the points covered in this other book (which, by the way, is excellent).

PROS: This is a 4.5 star review, but I don't get that option. I found the content of this book to be an excellent resource for establishing rapport and understanding with people I meet. Yes, it's true that you won't memorize every single question that's in the book. At least though, when you meet someone like a pilot or musician, key phrases will pop into mind and jog your memory. You will understand where they come from, and you will be able to have honest conversation about THEM without the blank stare. As a martial arts instructor, I can instantly tell if someone understands slightly what I do based on their questions in conversation. If someone asks "What style do you practice?" or "What's your training lineage," I know that I'm talking to someone educated about it. CONS: My only qualm with this book is that its title is too close to Lowndes' other book, "How to Talk to Anyone." The title for this book should be "How to Break the Ice with Anyone: 150 questions to get people talking." It would have also helped if each section had a paragraph on what subjects and "outsider questions" to avoid. For me, nothing says "I don't know anything about your craft" like the question "How many boards can you break?" or "Hapkido? It's Karate right?" Overall, I highly recommend this book as a supplement to "How to Talk to Anyone: 92 Little Steps for Big Success in Relationships."

The other people who wrote scathing reviews of this book are buffoons. This is a very helpful book and here's why: No, it doesn't tell you "how to communicate." Get Dale Carnegie for that. What it does do is list "key words," general explanations and various other ways to *make others think that you're a part of their group*. Every closed group of people (accountants, athletes, the rich, filmmakers, etc.) have their own jargon that they use to recognize each other. Once you learn these key-words and are able to have even a minimal discussion about someone's special interest, you're in. They suddenly see you as a "kindred spirit." This is a book for people who are glib and interesting already and simply need a reference regarding a ton of specialists. Tremendous resource!

This is only a good book if you want to start a conversation with stranger! It is a good follow up to Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" where the point is "To be interested in other people so that others will be interested in you". However it doesn't outline what you should talk about from front to back. It only gives sample questions about what you should talk about with a list of a few hundred professions. So buy the book if your point is to "Start a conversation", but don't expect the book to carry you through the whole nine yards. So think of it as a reference guide, not a book about "conversation" per se.

If you want to become a better conversationalist this is the book for you. It goes through over 500 different occupations... giving you all the inside information you need to talk easily with anyone, anywhere, anytime. This isn't a book to be read cover to cover, it's a book that can be read 5 min. a day. However you read it this book may change your life forever.