There’s a common perception that nice people finish last. But according to Dawna Stone, winner of The Apprentice: Martha Stewart and founder and publisher of Her Sports + Fitness magazine, this conventional wisdom is dead wrong. “Being genuinely nice can help you get ahead in your career, open doors that may have previously been shut, and create powerful opportunities that may have been otherwise unavailable,” she contends. In her new book, Winning Nice: How To Succeed In Business and Life Without Waging War (Center Street, August 29, 2007), this successful athlete, executive, entrepreneur, and public speaker shares her secrets to achieving extraordinary career success by “winning nice.”
Whether looking for a first job, seeking more responsibility at work, making a career change, or pursuing a passion, Stone’s “winning nice” philosophy—which has driven her own swift rise up the career ladder—holds the keys to success for anyone coming up through the ranks. Fundamentally, it’s about having confidence, respecting others, and doing the right thing. In Winning Nice, Stone reveals how to put these values into practice, creating positive results for everyone involved, and paving the way for accomplishing great things. “Being nice doesn’t mean you’re a pushover or weak,” Stone explains. “You can be powerful and nice, confident and nice, influential and nice, and even authoritative and nice.”
The winning nice philosophy begins with believing in yourself. By including powerful anecdotes from her own life as well as from the lives of such inspirational people as Katherine Graham—who was suddenly thrust into the role of publisher of The Washington Post when her husband died—Stone offers potent insights and actionable tips for staying positive, overcoming doubts, finding the silver lining, and embracing the small things.
Winning Nice also addresses communication skills—which become increasingly important on the road to success. Stone offers specific tips on becoming an active listener, dealing with interruptions, conveying energy and enthusiasm, and writing an email that gets noticed. Stone’s “winning nice” building blocks also include:
- Giving Recognition. Praise is a powerful motivator. Stone explains how to offer affirmative, sincere, and specific recognition—whether it’s sending an email thanking an old boss or employee, calling someone who made a difference in your life, or dropping by a coworker’s office to let the person know you enjoy working with him or her.
