Pump Up Chats with David Friedman, Author of “Fundamentally Different”

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David-Friedman-photo-209x300 David Friedman, author of Fundamentally Different, is the former President of RSI, an award-winning employee benefits brokerage and consulting firm in the Philadelphia area. He is a frequent guest speaker and seminar leader on organizational culture, leadership and values. A graduate of the College of William & Mary with a degree in Philosophy, Friedman currently lives in Moorestown, NJ with his wife and 2 college-age children.

Website: http://fundamentally-different.com/

Blog: http://djfriedman.com/blog/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/DavidFriedman4

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FundamentallyDifferentBook

Thank you for this interview, David. Do you remember writing stories as a child or did the writing bug come later? Do you remember your first published piece?

I’ve always enjoyed writing, but mostly non-fiction. I think in a very logical, orderly way, and I’ve always felt quite comfortable expressing my thoughts in writing. My first published piece was when I was a freshman sportswriter for my high school newspaper! I later went on to become the editor-in-chief in my junior year.

What do you consider as the most frustrating side of becoming a published author and what has been the most rewarding?

The most frustrating part is trying to understand how the book industry works so that I can best leverage the marketing opportunities. It’s a complex industry that can be hard to get a handle on.

Easily the most rewarding has been the reactions of readers (and listeners). When I completed the book, I believed that it would be enjoyable for people to read and that they would find it thought-provoking and valuable. Their response has been even better than I could have hoped for. They’ve simply been in love with the book.

Are you married or single and how do you combine the writing life with home life? Do you have support?

I’m married, though it hasn’t been difficult to combine the writing life with home life. I’ve “retired” from the industry in which I spent 27 years of my career, and my children are off to college, so I honestly have relatively few distractions or competing influences.

Can you tell us about your latest book and why you wrote it?

My latest book, Fundamentally Different, is based on the many lessons I learned and, in turn, taught during my business leadership career. Over the course of that career, we created an organizational culture at RSI that was truly extraordinary; and it was one that had an enormous impact on all who experienced it. Many of our staff described it as literally “life-changing.” Clients also had a strong sense that there was something very “different” about the way we did business. It was a big part of why they initially chose to do business with us and why they stayed with us year after year.

In fact, many of our clients were so curious about our business practices that they would ask me to share those practices with them and to speak with their management or senior leadership teams. I did this in small groups and sometimes in seminars. It was a big hit for them, and was fun and rewarding for me. Nearly every time I presented my material, several people would come up to me afterwards and ask, “So when does the book come out?” The way I organized and delivered the material just seemed to naturally lend itself to a book, and I would always assure them that I would eventually do just that.

My “retirement” from the benefits industry proved to be the impetus I needed to finally sit down to write that book, and to share my insights with a broader audience. The result, Fundamentally Different, was written and published in the spring of 2011.

Can you share an excerpt?

FUNDAMENTAL #13

Communicate to be understood.

Know your audience. Write and speak in a way that they can understand. Use the simplest possible explanation.

Here’s a simple question: What’s the purpose of communication? I think it’s for two (or more) people to understand each other. So if I’m writing or speaking, the barometer of success is equally simple: Did the other person clearly understand what I intended to communicate?

Have you ever read a letter from an attorney and had no clue what half of it meant? Or shopped for a computer and felt like you only understood a fraction of what the salesperson told you, as if he was speaking another language? How about sitting through a presentation where the speaker constantly referred to industry terms for which you were sure you were the only one who didn’t know the meaning? How did these experiences make you feel?

Most of us feel uncomfortable, embarrassed, and even ignorant when placed in these situations, as if we’re somehow lacking because we can’t understand what the other person is trying to get across to us. Using my barometer for effectiveness, I’d call these attempts at communication failures; and I’d put the responsibility for that squarely on the shoulders of the author, salesperson, or speaker.

If the purpose of communication is for people to understand each other, then why do writers and speakers so often choose to use complicated words when simpler ones will do, or insist on using language that’s particular to their own industry, or sometimes even their own company? Sadly, I believe the answer ris selfishness—a focus on ourselves and our own agenda versus the audience and their needs. Communicating to be understood begins with shifting that focus away from ourselves and to our audience.

On my website, you can read the rest of this sample chapter.

Where’s your favorite place to write at home?

I have an office on the 2^nd floor of my home, and this is where I do my writing. It’s a fairly large room with a desk and wraparound credenza. (I also have a massage chair for when I need a relaxing break!). I like my workspace to be pretty orderly, so I usually try to keep the desk surface clean and uncluttered.

What is one thing about your book that makes it different from other books on the market?

One of the things that makes this book so unique is that it’s a business book, and yet it’s not only a business book.

As a business leadership book, it’s a compelling and thought-provoking read that reveals foundational principles for building a culture of success through organizational values. Its lessons are based on my experiences and reflections as a leader of a high-performance organization. More specifically, my book teaches leaders and organizations the 8 key steps to institutionalizing their most important values, and provides lots of stories and examples to illustrate just how to do it.

But I said that it’s not only a business book, and that’s what makes it doubly powerful and impactful.

At RSI, I wrote, developed, and taught a series of 30 values and principles that I called our Fundamentals. These Fundamentals were institutionalized, and were the cornerstone of our high-performance culture.

Fundamentally Different includes an insightful, thought-provoking essay on each of the 30 Fundamentals, each filled with stories and practical examples of how they apply in our daily lives. They include such concepts as “Check the ego at the door”, “Communicate to be understood”, “Set and ask for expectations”, “Speak straight”, and “Be quick to ask and slow to judge.” Everyone who reads the book comes away with lots of “aha” moments and practical ideas that can make a meaningful difference in their lives – at work, at home, with their families, and with their friends.

Tables are turned…what is one thing you’d like to say to your audience who might buy your book one day?

While this is a fun and easy book to read, it’s literally packed with powerful insights and value from the first page to the last. There’s no fluff.

Thank you for this interview, David. Good luck on your virtual book tour!

Thanks! I know that readers and listeners will love this book!

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Question of the Day

How do you make sales happen for you?

A lot of hard work! I sponsor a lot of on line parties, festivals and contests. Book sales don’t magically happen, believe me. An author has to work hard to earn her readers. And then she has to work hard to keep them by giving them something they’ll enjoy reading. I try hard to make my books worth a reader’s time.

-- Sheila Roberts, Author of Winter at the Beach