Words That Work

By: Dr. Frank Luntz

Narrated by: Dr. Frank Luntz

Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

The nation's premier communications expert shares his wisdom on how the words we choose can change the course of business, of politics, and of life in this country. In Words That Work, Luntz offers a behind-the-scenes look at how the tactical use of words and phrases affects what we buy, who we vote for, and even what we believe in. With chapters like "The 10 Rules of Successful Communication" and "The 21 Words and Phrases for the 21st Century", he examines how choosing the right words is essential.

Nobody is in a better position to explain than Frank Luntz; he has used his knowledge of words to help more than two dozen Fortune 500 companies grow. He tells us why Rupert Murdoch's six-billion-dollar decision to buy DirectTV was smart, because "satellite" was more cutting edge than "digital cable", and why pharmaceutical companies transitioned their message from "treatment" to "prevention" and "wellness".

If you've ever wanted to talk your way out of a traffic ticket or talk your way into a raise, this audiobook's for you.

©2007 Dr. Frank Luntz. All Rights Reserved (P)2007 Hyperion

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner, Business Information/Educational, 2008

"Too many words that DON'T work"

The first few chapters were decent and had useful information. The following chapters, however, were too many words strung together that did not work. I kept waiting for the author to get to a point that never arrived, and I was left lost and confused afterward. There was a lot of unrelated talk, talk, and more talk, followed by talk that made absolutely no sense. Perhaps he just likes to hear himself talk, but I severely doubt even the author would want to listen. It is a bunch of random thoughts that as it plays while I type this, leaves my head spinning wondering what the heck is going on?! I don't like to leave bad reviews. In most cases, the bad reviews are from ignorant people who just didn't grasp the concept, but this book is just hard to listen to after the first 2 chapters.

manipulating people for fun and politics :-/

It's weird listening to him brag about manipulating people to pass the GOP's most regressive and destructive policies of last 30 years. His 'clever' wordsmithing was behind most of the gross rhetoric that led to people distrusting the government, leading to the clown show that exist now. Yea, he's a brilliant marketer, but he's used it mostly for evil, so does that really make him all that brilliant to begin with?

Repetative vainglorious windbag

The main point and supporting material as already discovered by the end of the first chapter or two. Much of the material is repeated over and over and over and over... The author has many good points about word choice, but unfortunately often does not follow his own advice. His tone is often so self-aggrandizing that it is embarassing to listen. It is also a shame that much of the effort behind his choice of words is not to improve communication of ideas, but to obscure ideas in pretty wrapping so the (apparently ignorant) public may more easily consume them. I learned from the book, but it took too long, and I felt soiled after listening to it.

Interesting

As a Canadian I found some of the political content tedious. However, the narration from the author was superb! Indeed the words work.

If I could rate it lower I would....

Picked this up for a work book club and the kindest description I can give this book is that is for people who don't have communication skills but marketed toward those of us who do. The majority of us agree that if you know anything about communication or communication skills don't BUY it. Moreover, Frank's analysis and reasoning are antiquated at best and insulting at worse.

Returned to get my credit back.

Words That Work

I WUZ ROBBED! WHAT A CRASHING BORE! I WASTED A CREDIT AND WAS TRICKED BY THE TITLE INTO BELIEVING THE BOOK WOULD APPLY TO USING EFFECTIVE LANGUAGE IN BUSINESS AND SOCIAL SETTINGS. INSTEAD, IT IS SPOKEN IN A HIGH PITCH “WALTER WENCHEL-LIKE” STACCATO, DEVOTED MAINLY TO ADVERTISING AND MOVIE CHARACTER JINGLES AND SCRIPT LINES. IT DOES GIVE ATTENTION TO HOW POLITICAL HACKS ARE GIVEN WORDS BY THEIR SPEECH MAKERS JUST TO GET ELECTED. RIFE WITH NAME DROPPING AND DISSAPPOINTMENT.

waste of money and time

The author certainly uses many "words that work" to sell his book. I quit after an hour. It reminded me an endless TV informational, that one can count on at 3 a.m. I want to ask the author 'where is the beef?"

Sooo much taaalk...

It's not what people say, it's what they hear. You will learn this in the very beginning of the book. It is the best part of the entire book. This book has a lot of political talk which for me was not very intersting at all... I would have better enjoyed a little more info, a little less political example. He also very much enjoys talking about himself... For me, this book was 5% good information, 95% blah blah blah.

Hollow

It's not what you say it's what they hear; there, you've got it, no need to buy the book. Unless you want a 6 hour review of political word-smithing of past presidential campaigns. If you plan on running for President in 2008 this is a MUST read, otherwise this book does not live up to its title.

Where are the words!

It takes this guy 4 hours of blabbering to give you 21 "words that work" that are actually concepts...then he tells you 20 political phrases not to use and replaces them 20 other. 95% of this is wordy boring political stories.
WASTE OF TIME!