Everyone Connects review

John C. Maxwell’s Everyone Communicates, Few Connect: What the Most Effective People Do Differently.

I was fortunate enough to win a signed copy of this book from Michal Hyatt’s blog. I was especially excited about getting this book because I was in the middle of an independent study on preaching. This communication volume would be a little bit outside of the realm of traditional homiletics, but it would definitely speak to some common issues.

Here’s how I’d summarize the book: Maxwell writes this book on communication in the same style that Covey writes about being effective. Effective communication begins with my integrity. If I want people to hear my message, they need to feel that I am concerned about their best interest. If I want people to think that I’m concerned about their best interest, I need to be concerned about their best interest. Simple? Yes. Easy? Not always.

Maxwell is brutally honest: connecting with others takes work. Sometimes we have to investigate and dig to find ways to build a bridge. It takes energy and time. The result, though, is that when a real connection is formed, the potential we have to help each other skyrockets.

A neat feature of this book is that Maxwell posted it online for several weeks prior to its printing. During that time, he allowed people to comment on each chapter. The final edition of the book comes with the anecdotes, suggestions, and the thoughts of literally hundreds of people. Their contribution alone is worth reading the book.

This isn’t a ground-breaking, earth-shattering sort of book. It’s more like good fundamentals for a team, rather than advice on coaching a star player, and I appreciate that about it. I think you will, too.