Radical candor

I already knew a lot of the main talking points here from co-workers and I like to think that I'm both empathetic and honest in my conversations with others already, but the book has a lot of little tips on how to be more constructive with feedback without being mean and highlights a lot of a good examples of how to use Radical Candor in different situations.

Kim Scott has had an interesting career, working for several different high profile companies, so it's interesting to hear her perspective on how some of them operate drastically differently while still being successful.

I got the audiobook from the library after a few month waiting period and learned that you can't renew a book on Libby when it has that long of a wait list, so I ended up listening to the last half of it on ~1.5x speed, which I never do. It's read by the author herself though, and she can be a little slow and monotonous, so I didn't feel too bad about it.

I'm not a boss. This book is technically not for me.

However, I listened to the podcast, and I truly enjoyed the way that questions were handled on that show. This book offers more details on the foundations of Kim's thinking towards radical candor as well as many examples.

It's a helpful how to for different situations.

Although I'm no longer managing people, I've heard enough people mention this book that I wanted to check it out. The focus is around communicating clearly with people and teams as the way to be the most effective. Opting for empathy over insincerity and candor over aggression. The goal is to actually CARE while challenging people directly.

Honestly, this book was kind of a disappointment. A lot of people advised and it often goes on top of the recommended business book, but I found it to offer nothing really enlightening. Worse, it really made me wonder what is the exact mindset of a lot of managers to be in need of such basic advice that kinda be resumed into “be a fucking human”.

Worst, I saw this book provoke a kind of “radical wounding” way of talking for some of its readers, kinda forgetting the warning its author makes on doing “radical kindness” in a violent way and misusing the term.

Still there are some nuggets interesting to find here and there, but not really worth the time to go through the whole read tbh.

Why, oh why do business and self-help books feel like they have to name drop to be legitimate sources of good practices? I can't stand all of the stories and the name dropping. Even if the content is good, which in truth, it is, I just do not like business books.

Summed up from another reviewer:
1. Radical candor = Care personally + challenge directly
2. Care personally starts with career discussions and good 1:1s
3. Challenge directly starts with asking for and taking criticism well yourself
4. Listen -> Clarify -> Debate -> Decide -> Persuade -> Learn, in that order

Although I'm no longer managing people, I've heard enough people mention this book that I wanted to check it out. The focus is around communicating clearly with people and teams as the way to be the most effective. Opting for empathy over insincerity and candor over aggression. The goal is to actually CARE while challenging people directly.

This book became far more difficult to finish that I expected. I was excited to read it, had heard good reviews of it from colleagues, loved the title, etc. Unfortunately, it just didn't land for me.

This review is also more difficult than it should be to compose. It's hard to say that the book is fine, but I didn't care much for it!

I don't mean that as a criticism of the author or editor. The book is well-written and presented, and the language is accessible and effective. It is, though, a book for a targeted audience. I've led an organization for nearly 20 years, and I often tell people I'm the most reluctant entrepreneur one could meet. I enjoy reading management books because (a) I'm a little strange, and (b) it's an area where I feel like I can always improve. In that sense, there's nothing new in the pages of Radical Candor that I haven't read before. There are some excellent take-away snippets (like the “Get Stuff Done” Wheel and the chapter on improving meetings), and the overall theme of communicating development feedback continually is common yet continues to be good advice.

The problem for me is what feels like the unintended target audience: those with tech leadership proclivities. I'm not particularly enamored with Silicon Valley. The tech is fine, and the innovations of the past several years have enriched my life (as with everyone else). While I appreciated Scott's personal stories, and I understand that her experience is going to color the book with the Silicon Valley hue, it became difficult for me not to read this as an entreaty to “Just copy tech companies and experience success.” There's more to it, of course, and the Scott tries to convey that.

So I rate this one with three stars - straight down the middle. I suspect others will read it and love it, just as I suspect others will have a strongly negative reaction. I can think of a few people within my circles who would likely connect with it and derive substantial benefit; I'll recommend it to them without hesitation. For me, the material was fine, but it didn't convey much impact, and as such, I don't anticipate rereading this one in full.