Contents -- Introduction: communicate to inspire -- The leaders interviewed for this book -- Part One Why you need to be a better communicator if you want to lead -- 01 Napoleon's leadership legacy -- The shots that echo through time -- 'Create leaders everywhere!' -- The importance of understanding the commander's intent -- Communication is the glue that binds strategy and delivery together -- Keep it simple -- Free people up with a tight framework -- Stand up for what you believe in -- Key points from Chapter 1 -- 02 Leadership transformed - life in the fishbowl -- Perpetual communication -- The questions that really matter -- The new partnership driving transparency -- Stories evolve at an incredible pace -- Internal e-mails can be very public -- Most leadership communication is not fit for purpose -- Businesses are like open democracies -- Leaders must create leaders -- Radical transparency needs radical thinking -- Key points from Chapter 2 -- 03 The 12 principles of leadership communication -- Be yourself, better -- Mission and values -- Future focus -- Bring the outside in -- Engage through conversations -- Audience centricity -- Listening -- Point of view -- Stories and anecdotes -- Signals -- Prepare properly for public platforms -- Learn, rehearse, review, improve -- Part Two The fundamentals -- 04 Learn to be yourself, better -- What followers want from leaders -- What do leaders want from the leaders they hire? -- Talking from the heart -- Be visible, be human and be straight -- To be seen as a hero, you have to be a hero -- All-round authenticity -- Have the confidence to be you -- Know your strengths to be yourself better -- How do you go about identifying your values and mission? -- A springboard to action, a leadership platform -- The need for emotion in business -- Key points from Chapter 4.

05 Provide a framework for leadership and action, through mission and values -- Values build trust -- Why people love a motivating mission -- Employees want a good mission statement -- Employees need to feel part of the story -- The need to raise people's sights -- Externally, a purpose wider than profit is needed -- Be an engine of progress for humankind -- Involve everyone in your mission -- Reputations at risk -- The need for speed and the need to create leaders -- Three examples of mission and values at work -- Make sure the values resonate -- The value of values -- Key points from Chapter 5 -- 06 Communicate the future to drive the present -- To talk about the future, you have to be very clear about the future -- Back to the future, over and over -- Keep people engaged in the future -- Your future must embrace all stakeholders -- Four examples of how leaders bring mission, values, vision and goals together -- Bring to life the customer's experience -- Key points from Chapter 6 -- 07 Bring the outside in and focus on building relationships and trust -- Loss of your 'licence to operate' -- Managing the intangible asset of relationships -- The virtuous circle in relationships -- The real value of trust -- Watch out for the reputation gap -- The three dimensions of trust -- Why leaders need to inject more character into their communication -- The health warning on building trust -- How to unlock the value in relationships -- Tuning in to the court of public opinion -- Get your hands dirty -- If need be, actually bring the client in -- The customer experience brings the vision alive -- How to develop quivering antennae -- But what do I do with the insights? -- Key points from Chapter 7 -- 08 Engage and align through conversations -- What is an engaged employee? -- Myth: 'People are our only asset' -- Engagement at the heart of strategy.

Choice, not change -- The ingredients of engagement -- Measure and monitor engagement -- Input equals buy-in -- Don't dominate the conversation -- If communication is so important, where is the training? -- Key points from Chapter 8 -- Part Three Communicate, communicate, communicate -- 09 It's all about them - the need for audience centricity -- It's not what you say -- it's what they hear -- What do you want them to think, feel and do? -- Don't change the message -- change the way you deliver it -- How audience centricity helped to establish Canary Wharf -- The story of the privy -- How to think about your audience -- Key points from Chapter 9 -- 10 The inspiring effect of listening leaders -- Be interested, be respectful and be patient -- What stops effective listening? -- Listen with your eyes, ears and heart -- Listen for solutions -- Why leaders should be passionate about bad news -- Leaders can listen in different ways -- When you listen, you must respond -- The killer questions leaders should ask -- Good listening + a bias to action = results -- Key points from Chapter 10 -- 11 Stand up to stand out - why you need a point of view -- Using a point of view to take a stand -- Why you need an answer that works instantly -- The corrosive effect of not taking a stand -- What makes a good point of view? -- Key points from Chapter 11 -- 12 The power of stories -- Stories tell us great truths -- Logic gets to the brain, stories get to the heart -- The four types of business stories -- Good stories are easy to find and easy to tell -- Choosing the right story -- One simple story can achieve more than a volume of rules -- Key POINTS from Chapter 12 -- 13 Watch out for the undermining signals beyond the words -- It's written on your face -- People watch your body language too -- When being visible is the message -- Model the behaviours you want.

The meaning between the lines -- Symbolic acts send lasting messages -- Speaking off the cuff -- Key POINTS from Chapter 13 -- 14 Prepare properly for public platforms -- Get the right training and do the right preparation -- Remember, every word counts -- Simple messages repeated often -- Top tips for dealing with the media -- The essence of good presentations and speeches -- Communicating in a crisis -- And what about the web and social media and Twitter and...? -- Key points from Chapter 14 -- Part Four Conclusion -- 15 Learn, rehearse, review, improve -- become fluent in the language of leaders -- A top-three skill of leadership, yet sadly neglected -- Strive to be an excellent communicator, and you will improve results -- 16 If you remember nothing else... -- The fundamentals -- Continuous improvement -- Meet the leaders interviewed for this book -- Thanks -- Index.