Helio Fred Garcia is known as one of the most engaging and effective professors at NYU. Readers of this book will learn why. Only Fred could weave together tales about Abbott and Costello, the Marine Corps, and Cicero into a must-read for anyone who hopes to connect with the American public.

The Power of Communication is an absolutely terrific book on how to communicate and lead in complex and shifting situations. Helio Fred Garcia has compiled a wealth of compelling examples to illustrate and support a cogent and immensely practical set of principles for leadership communication. The result is a compelling guide for leaders in business and government settings alike

Foreword xv Introduction: Leadership, Discipline, and Effective Communication xxv PART I: Leadership and Communication: Connecting with Audiences Chapter 1: Words Matter 1 Chapter 2: Taking Audiences Seriously 23 Chapter 3: Words Aren,t Enough 55 Chapter 4: Speed, Focus, and the First Mover Advantage 75 Chapter 5: Initiative, Maneuver, and Disproportionality 105 PART II: Strategy and Communication: Planning and Execution Chapter 6: Goals, Strategies, and Tactics: Preparing and Planning 123 PART III: Building Skills: Getting Good at Communicating Well Chapter 7: Performance: The Physicality of Audience Engagement 159 Chapter 8: Content: Word Choice, Framing, and Meaning 185 Chapter 9: Audiences: Attention, Retention, and How Hearts and Minds Work 207 Chapter 10: Putting It All Together: Becoming a Habitually Strategic Communicator 233 Appendix: Warfighting Principles for Leadership Communication 251 Endnotes 263 Index 281

Communication is the absolutely indispensable leadership discipline. But, too often, leaders and professional communicators get mired in tactics, and fail to influence public attitudes in the ways that would help them most. The Power of Communication builds on the U.S. Marine Corps' legendary publication Warfighting , showing how to apply the Corps' proven leadership and strategy doctrine to all forms of public communication -- and achieve truly extraordinary results. World-renowned leadership communications expert, consultant, and speaker Helio Fred Garcia demonstrates how to orient on audiences, recognizing their centers of gravity and most critical concerns. Readers learn how to integrate and succeed with all three levels of communication: strategic, operational, and tactical. Garcia shows how to take the initiative and control the agenda... respond to events with speed and focus... use the power of maneuver... prepare and plan... and put it all together, becoming a habitually strategic communicator. Throughout, he profiles U.S. and global leaders who embody these principles and techniques.