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From the host of the New York Times podcast Together Apart, an exciting new approach to how we gather that will transform the ways we spend our time together—at home, at work, in our communities, and beyond.
In The Art of Gathering, Priya Parker argues that the gatherings in our lives are lackluster and unproductive—which they don't have to be. We rely too much on routine and the conventions of gatherings when we should focus on distinctiveness and the people involved. At a time when coming together is more important than ever, Parker sets forth a human-centered approach to gathering that will help everyone create meaningful, memorable experiences, large and small, for work and for play.
Drawing on her expertise as a facilitator of high-powered gatherings around the world, Parker takes us inside events of all kinds to show what works, what doesn't, and why. She investigates a wide array of gatherings—conferences, meetings, a courtroom, a flash-mob party, an Arab-Israeli summer camp—and explains how simple, specific changes can invigorate any group experience.
The result is a book that's both journey and guide, full of exciting ideas with real-world applications. The Art of Gathering will forever alter the way you look at your next meeting, industry conference, dinner party, and backyard barbecue—and how you host and attend them.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
May 15, 2018 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780698410879
- File size: 1775 KB
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780698410879
- File size: 1775 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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April 1, 2018
Wherever two or more of you gather, you're probably doing it wrong.The reason that most of us hate meetings is that meetings are so hateful: They're too often aimless and endless, poorly conducted and seldom meaningfully concluded. Parker--founder of a company that specializes in "transformative gatherings" and a sort of Martha Stewart of the conference table--identifies the common errors that go into gathering, which she helpfully, if perhaps obviously, glosses as "the conscious bringing together of people for a reason." The "for a reason" bit is key, for the act of bringing people together can seem like an afterthought, seldom planned through from beginning to end and a font of missed opportunities. The first step, writes the author, is "committing to a bold, sharp purpose," with milestones along the way that include plenty of reminders for why the attendees are there in the first place. Parker nicely explores and sometimes explodes conventions: Must a baby shower be the exclusive turf of women? Can people who hate meetings be persuaded that they're something other than a "Massive Exciting Opportunity for a Panic Attack"? To the detriment of a book that focuses on sharp significance, the author sometimes allows her anecdotes on successful and unsuccessful gathering to run on until they're out of steam, violating her own principle: "If you are going to hold your guests captive, you had better do it well." And readers who detest business jargon won't be happy with phrases like, "we didn't gauge their buy-in." Fortunately, such lapses are outweighed by Parker's enthusiastically delivered formulas for better get-togethers, from "sprout speeches" to accepting that time is fleeting and that the good planner will strive to make a meeting different and memorable.Useful to those whose job it is to plan meetings, conferences, and the like and a worthy survival manual for consumers of the same.COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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