Your happiness and your success depend on your working relationships
The people you manage. How well you work with your boss. The way collaboration happens with colleagues and peers. How you connect with important prospects and key clients.
But the hard truth is this: most of us leave the health and fate of these relationships to chance.
We say “Hi,” exchange pleasantries … and hope for the best.
But every relationship becomes suboptimal at some point, whether it’s a good one that goes off the rails or one that was poor from the start.
Mostly we are resigned to the fact that this is what happens: relationships always get a little broken, or a little stale, or a little worse. C’est la vie, c’est la guerre. Carry on.
But it doesn’t have to be like this.
Every working relationship can be better.
This book shows you how to build the best possible relationship.
One conversation. Five questions. Detailed guidance on how to prepare and set the relationship up for success. Key insights on how to maintain the relationship so that it will continue to thrive.

Michael Bungay Stanier is a leading coaching expert, renowned keynote speaker and the founder and senior partner of Box of Crayons, a company that helps managers and leaders coach in 10 min or less. When he's not leading workshops that help time-crunched managers coach in 10 minutes or less, Michael shares his thought leadership (and his playful sense of humor) with others through his many writings and publications. His published books include Do More Great Work, which has sold nearly 100,000 copies, and End Malaria, a collection of essays from leading thinkers around the globe raising funds for Malaria No More (and hitting #2 on Amazon.com). He has also been featured or published in Fast Company, The Financial Times, The Globe and Mail, and has appeared on CTV's Breakfast Television. Before Box of Crayons, Michael spent time inventing products and services as part of an innovation agency, and worked as a management consultant specializing in large-scale change, writing the global vision for GlaxoSmithKline, among other things. A Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, Michael was named the first Canadian Coach of the Year in 2006.

Michael Bungay Stanier's profile page

• Long-listed, Non-Obvious Book Awards

"This deep book will show you how to build brilliant relationships even in difficult times. Reading it made me feel like I could work with anyone. You will too."

<i>New York Times</i>–bestselling author of <i>Multipliers</i> and <i>Impact Players</i>

"A modern classic, this book will save relationships, careers, and organizations."

author of <i>The Song of Significance</i>

"Michael Bungay Stanier’s genius for making the complex simple is on full display. Bravo!"

<i>Wall Street Journal</i>–bestselling author of <i>Smart Growth</i>

"The Keystone Conversation Michael Bungay Stanier teaches us is the framework I’ve been seeking to help leaders begin any relationship better."

Host of the <i>Coaching for Leaders</i> podcast

"This little volume has actionable advice on every page, and it’s a fun read, too."

Professor at Harvard Business School and author of <i>The Fearless Organization</i>

"This exceptional book provides the practical tools and self-reflections that will help you gain critical insights in how to approach any conversation successfully."

Director of Global Learning & Development at Microsoft

"Here is a practical, tactical guide to help you rebuild the most human of skills: conversation. Essential!"

author of <i>Radical Candor</i> and <i>Just Work</i>

"This book simplifies the complex processes of starting, improving, and maintaining our best possible connections."

Chief Sales Officer at Deloitte Canada

"Michael Bungay Stanier’s practical guide to cultivating Keystone Conversations can unlock the full potential of an individual, and that of the wider team."

Chief People Officer and Head of Corporate Affairs at The LEGO Group

"My favourite thing about Michael Bungay Stanier’s work is his ability to deliver actionable, tactical strategies that are based on well-researched ideas and data, then packaged in a book that I can read on a flight. And the wisdom is real—it sticks. I haven’t stopped thinking about ‘Best Possible Relationships’ and ‘Keystone Conversations."

New York Times–bestselling author of <i>Atlas of the Heart</i> and <i>Dare to Lead</i>