Kerry Patterson et al. · printable PDF
Crucial Conversations cheat sheet
Patterson and co-authors wrote the playbook I still use when the conversation has high stakes, opposing views, and strong emotion. This is the one-pager from that playbook, for work, not a classroom.
Notes by Toby Sinclair. Pair with the full Crucial Conversations summary.
What's on the sheet
- 01 Start with HeartBefore you speak, ask what you really want for you, for them, and for the relationship.
- 02 STATE your pathShare facts, tell your story, ask for their path, talk tentatively, encourage testing.
- 03 Mutual purposeName a goal you both care about before you argue the method.
- 04 Make it safeIf they go silent or violent, restore respect and purpose before you add content.
- 05 Invite dialogueState your path, then genuinely want theirs. People who only dump get resistance.
- 06 Who does what by whenDocument who does what by when, and how you will follow up.
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Practice, not theory
You've just read how to have the conversation. Reading isn't practising.
Crucial Conversations is a playbook. Real Talk Studio is the driving test — try the same conversation against an AI counterpart before it happens for real.