Books by Dale Carnegie
Dale Carnegie has two books in our library, and they cover the two halves of the same problem. One is about getting on with people at all, and the other is about holding a room once you have one. The first is the more useful book for most readers.
The reason the first book still circulates is that it is not really a technique manual. Its central move is to be genuinely interested in the other person, which is harder than any script and which no amount of technique can fake. The second book is the more mechanical of the two, and narrower.
How to read them. Read How to Win Friends and Influence People first and read it as a set of principles rather than as scripts. The Art of Public Speaking is worth picking up only if speaking to a group is the specific thing you avoid.
The two sit in different bundles, so the collection as a whole is in the complete library.
All 2 books
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Dale CarnegieThe founding text of practical persuasion, built on interest in the other person rather than on technique. Nearly a century old and still the book most others are arguing with, which is the strongest evidence for its usefulness.
What it argues- Become genuinely interested in other people rather than trying to seem interesting.
- Use the other person's name, and let them do most of the talking.
- Never win an argument outright, because winning it usually loses the relationship.
- Begin by emphasising what you agree on, then move to the disagreement.
- Let the other person believe the idea was theirs, which requires giving them the credit.
- Praise specifically and in public, and correct privately and gently.
Suited to anyone whose work depends on getting cooperation from people who do not have to give it. Read as a set of principles rather than as scripts, because the scripts have dated and the principles have not.
The Art of Public Speaking
Dale Carnegie and Joseph Berg EsenweinThe other half of the problem: presence in front of a group. Less quoted than the first book and more useful than its reputation suggests, particularly if speaking is the specific thing you avoid rather than a general social difficulty.
What it argues- Confidence in front of a group is built by practice rather than by preparation alone.
- Structure matters more than delivery: a clear spine survives a nervous speaker.
- Speak to be understood, and drop the register you use when you are writing.
- Nervousness does not disappear, it gets managed through familiarity with the material.
- End deliberately, because a weak close undoes a good opening.
Suited specifically to someone who is comfortable one to one and loses the room in front of a group. Skip it if speaking is already fine, since the other book is the broader and more useful one.
Where to start
Read How to Win Friends and Influence People first, and read one chapter at a time rather than straight through. The book works as a set of habits to try rather than as a narrative. Take The Art of Public Speaking only if presenting is a live problem for you.
Where this fits
These two cover communication in the widest sense, which is why they sit next to We Need to Talk and Just Listen on the shelf. Read Carnegie for the principles and Headlee or Goulston for what to do when a specific conversation has already gone wrong.
The rest of this shelf
The Career and Success shelf holds 5 books in total. These are the others, each condensed into a guide you can finish in about 15 minutes:
- Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey
- Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? by Seth Godin
- The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure by Grant Cardone
Both books, in the complete library
His two books sit in different genre bundles, so the honest answer to "both" is the complete library: all 50 books in one place, including How to Win Friends and Influence People and The Art of Public Speaking.
About 15 minutes per guide.
Explore The Complete LibraryBe genuinely interested, and the rest follows.