by Stephan Mardyks
Your Best Decision Ever!

TRAP TALES

“Trap Tales is a Triumph!” - Ken Blanchard

Outsmarting the 7 Hidden Obstacles to Success

David M. R. Covey & Stephan M. Mardyks

with foreword by Stephen M. R. Covey

Outsmart the traps that are holding you back from success!

Trap Tales is your guide to avoiding the seven obstacles that ensnare people every day. We all fall into traps, and we often don’t even realize it until we’re deeply entrenched. Like quicksand, traps are easy to step into, but difficult to escape—it seems that the harder we try to climb out, the deeper we sink. But what if there were another way? What if we knew the right strategies to escape the traps we have fallen into? What if we could spot traps from a distance, and avoid them entirely?

In this book, authors David M. R. Covey and Stephan M. Mardyks train you in the art of Trapology. You’ll meet Alex and Victoria, who have fallen into traps you’re sure to recognize. As you read their stories, you’ll learn about the seven most common traps in life and work, and how even the smartest and seemingly most accomplished people find themselves stuck and unable to see their way out. Traps are masters of disguise, but there are telltale signs that give them away every time. If you discover that you’re actually trapped right now, consider this book your lifeline—the lessons contained in Trap Tales will teach you how to escape these traps and how to sidestep them in the future.

This book, unlike most books, offers counter-intuitive strategies and unconventional wisdom to:

• Learn the seven biggest traps in life and work that catch people unaware

• Identify the traps that are holding you back right now

• Discover your escape route and climb out of the quicksand

• Become a “Trapologist” and avoid traps altogether

The core message of Trap Tales is hope—the belief that anybody can change the trajectory of their life, at any stage of their life. Stop letting traps steal your time, money, energy, and happiness—Trap Tales provides survival training of a different sort, allowing you to write your own tale of success.

“Perhaps the greatest gift of this book is hope. If, like the protagonist of this story, you find yourself in one of these traps you may wish you had never fallen into it, it’s important to realize that you can get out. And stay out. And help the people you care about do the same.”

From the Foreword by Stephen M. R. Covey, bestselling author of The Speed of Trust

“Trap Tales is a triumph! The book reveals the 7 traps that can turn life’s journey into an obstacle course. With clear examples and calls to actions, David M. R. Covey and Stephan M. Mardyks give you tools to escape and avoid these harmful traps. Read this book, apply its wisdom, and live your best life.”

Ken Blanchard, bestselling coauthor of The New One Minute Manager and Leading At A Higher Level

Published by Wiley

QUANTUM NEGOTIATION

Are You Getting What You Need?

Dr. Karen S. Walch, Stephan M. Mardyks and Joerg Schmitz

with foreword by Michael Wheeler, Professor
Harvard Business School

For most of us the idea of participating in a negotiation provokes anxiety, if not downright panic. That's because we have been conditioned to believe that every negotiation is a potentially ego-shattering exercise fraught with distrust, confrontation, and the risk of personal and professional disaster. This isn't helped by the fact that most books on the subject, while they claim to be about achieving win-win outcomes, address negotiation as a form of warfare requiring strategies and tactics for vanquishing your opponent. But it doesn't have to be that way. As the authors vividly demonstrate in this important new book, the most successful negotiators don't rely on control strategies and manipulative tactics.

At the heart of the revolutionary Quantum Negotiation philosophy is the conviction that, just as quantum physics has revealed the interconnectedness of all matter at the subatomic level, those on either side of the negotiating relationship are not separate and isolated, but, rather, interdependent. While this idea may seem counterintuitive at first glance, as you look deeper into it within the context of negotiations and leadership—from the small, day-to-day give-and-take of working in teams to multi-billion-dollar business deals—you'll see that it provides powerful insights into what you, and all people, need and expects, and how best to get it.

Drawing on recent findings in the neurosciences, cognitive psychology, political science, and anthropology, among other fields, the authors develop the Quantum Negotiation model and practice which captures who we are as negotiators in the context of our social conditioning. Using realistic scenarios, along with several real-life cases of some of the world's great dealmakers, the authors show how Quantum Negotiators—men and women with a strong sense of self and social identity and who are firmly anchored to their own values—possess the curiosity, resilience and intelligence needed to understand others' interests and points of view and know how to leverage that understanding to bring every negotiation to a mutually satisfying conclusion.

Negotiation doesn't have to be intimidating and angst-ridden. Read Quantum Negotiation and discover an exciting new paradigm for getting more of what you need and for making your own and everyone else's life better in the process.

Published by Wiley

LEADING IN ENGLISH

Communicating with Confidence and Inspiring Others in the International Workplace

D. Vincent Varallo, Joerg Schmitz and Stephan M. Mardyks

Leading in English provides a valuable resource for more effective international business communication. Whether you're a non-native English speaker working in English every day, or a native speaker working with non-native speakers, this book levels the playing field with a host of  insights and tips using real-time examples. Through shared experiences and an engaging narrative, you'll gain confidence as you build the skills you need to communicate more effectively in the workplace. Impart information, relate to coworkers, or just have a friendly chat—this book helps remove uncertainty and streamline interactions. Whether language is a small stumbling block or a large hurdle in your workplace, this book can help you overcome the issues and be happier, more confident, and more effective at your job.  

Communication is tremendously important in the workplace.  When English presents a barrier, removing that obstacle must be priority number one. This book helps you do that, with expert insight, practical tips, and a bit of humor to help shift your perspective.

Published by Wiley

SAID & DONE

The Power of Saying More with Less

Jason Franzen, Stephan M. Mardyks and David M.R. Covey
with foreword by David Allen, author of 'Getting Things Done'

Learn how to apply the principles of Focused Communication to transform your ideas into results. SAID & DONE presents a collection of best practices that will help you immediately start delivering streamlined email, presentations, documents, calls and meetings.

Published by FIRST FI5TEEN