Having Difficult Conversations

HBR Emotional Intelligence

By: Harvard Business Review

Narrated by: Avery May, Christopher P. Brown

Build your ability to discuss tough topics at work.

At times in our careers, we face conversations that bring out tense emotions. Our instinct may be to avoid them entirely, but engaging in challenging conversations can create opportunities to build stronger work relationships, teams, and organizations.

This book will help you learn how to communicate productively under stress, offer and accept critical feedback, and ensure teams walk away from challenging conversations feeling united.

This volume includes the work of Amy Gallo, Rebecca Knight, Liane Davey, and Joseph Grenny.

HOW TO BE HUMAN AT WORK. The HBR Emotional Intelligence series features smart, essential reading on the human side of professional life from the pages of Harvard Business Review. Each book in the series offers proven research showing how our emotions impact our work lives, practical advice for managing difficult people and situations, and inspiring essays on what it means to tend to our emotional well-being at work. Uplifting and practical, these books describe the social skills that are critical for ambitious professionals to master.

©2025 Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation (P)2025 Ascent Audio

Great tips for tough convos for leaders at all levels

I was very impressed with the compilation of chapters - each complete with actionable items and specific strategies.