Preview

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

How to Have Impossible Conversations

By: Peter Boghossian, James Lindsay
Narrated by: Peter Boghossian
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $19.48

Buy for $19.48

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

From politics and religion to workplace negotiations, ace the high-stakes conversations in your life with this indispensable guide from a persuasion expert.

In our current political climate, it seems impossible to have a reasonable conversation with anyone who has a different opinion. Whether you're online, in a classroom, an office, a town hall—or just hoping to get through a family dinner with a stubborn relative—dialogue shuts down when perspectives clash. Heated debates often lead to insults and shaming, blocking any possibility of productive discourse. Everyone seems to be on a hair trigger.

In How to Have Impossible Conversations, Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay guide you through the straightforward, practical, conversational techniques necessary for every successful conversationwhether the issue is climate change, religious faith, gender identity, race, poverty, immigration, or gun control. Boghossian and Lindsay teach the subtle art of instilling doubts and opening minds. They cover everything from learning the fundamentals for good conversations to achieving expert-level techniques to deal with hardliners and extremists. This book is the manual everyone needs to foster a climate of civility, connection, and empathy.

"This is a self-help book on how to argue effectively, conciliate, and gently persuade. The authors admit to getting it wrong in their own past conversations. One by one, I recognize the same mistakes in me. The world would be a better place if everyone read this book."—Richard Dawkins, author of Science in the Soul and Outgrowing God

©2019 Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay (P)2019 Hachette Audio
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"This is a self-help book on how to argue effectively, conciliate, gently persuade. The authors admit to getting it wrong in their own past conversations. One by one, I recognize the same mistakes in me. The world would be a better place if everyone read this book."—Richard Dawkins, author of Science in the Soul and Outgrowing God

"In a Free Republic there would be no 'impossible conversations', which begs the question: are we truly free anymore? After reading, listening and conversing with Peter and James, I am convinced that they are the Galileo's, I. Kant and even William Tynsdale of our time."—Glenn Beck

"I thought I knew all I needed to know about conversations and arguments. I was wrong. I just knew a lot about debates and rows. In their insightful and highly readable new book, Peter Boghossian and James Lindsay offer all kinds of ingenious pathways to constructive dialogue. At a time when public discourse has degenerated into mud-slinging and when campuses favour every kind of diversity except viewpoint diversity, this is an invaluable contribution. I guarantee that reading it will make you more—much more—persuasive."—Niall Ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow, The Hoover Institution, Stanford

What listeners say about How to Have Impossible Conversations

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    792
  • 4 Stars
    255
  • 3 Stars
    111
  • 2 Stars
    44
  • 1 Stars
    42
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    706
  • 4 Stars
    212
  • 3 Stars
    74
  • 2 Stars
    24
  • 1 Stars
    18
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    645
  • 4 Stars
    228
  • 3 Stars
    84
  • 2 Stars
    39
  • 1 Stars
    34

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

prerequisite to civility

this book should be reading material for people of all backgrounds. in the age of Twitter president and cancel culture, it is of utmost importance to relearn the art of enjoying a conversation, no matter how much of difference of opinion exists.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

24 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Lots of Christian strawmen

It has a lot of good tips and techniques and I think that we would all have better interactions with people if we all studied and learned these techniques. That being said, the authors either haven't talked to very many Christians, haven't talked with educated Christians, or are being dishonest in their portrayal of Christians. The narrator also has some difficulty pronouncing certain words, such as similarly. I would still recommend this book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not terrible, just "meh".

The book had some useful information but wasn't easy to stay interested in. I like books where it ends and I'm left feeling like, "I wish it wasn't over!". This one kept me feeling like, "Let me just get through it". I didn't hate it, but I wouldn't recommend it to a friend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful book

A wonderful book. I’m on my second read!! I’m sure there will be a third read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good Read

I would suggest this to anyone who has been having a difficult time having conversations with people with different views. I learned that I have not been listening and trying to throw facts at people. This is where I plan to start in my practice of having good conversations. Thank you for writing this book. I'm sure I will re-read it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

56 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A must read in 2020

I am very thankful for the authors for this incredible audible. I found what I expected: useful tools to navigated difficult conversación, especially politics and religion.
If more people would apply this tecnics, I think we could live in a more civilized society...

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

What a fantastic book!

Thank you to the authors for writing this book. I've just finished the first listening and will start another shortly with my note taking at the ready. It is unusual to find a fairly prescriptive book for such a nebulous, complex topic. It's a wonderful work and I greatly appreciate your insights.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

a book a day!

I learned alot from this book. it was a struggle for me to keep up with the book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very Useful!

This is a workbook. I have the audio, however, I’ll be getting the digital copy as well. Some of these techniques need to be thought and worked through.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

If you ever find yourself in a frustrating conversation…

This should be required listening/reading. It has the tools necessary and is very unpartisan.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!