Fiona Greaney ’29
Guest Writer
After our seventh-grade year was cut short by a global pandemic, the Class of 2029 missed out on significant social development opportunities. Years after the end of Zoom lectures and lockdown orders, the class is still recovering socially. That’s probably why Supercommunicators, Charles Duhigg’s self-help book promising to “unlock the secret language of connection,” was assigned to us in the first place. Supercommunicators aims to teach readers how to foster deeper, more meaningful conversations (an apparently “secret language”). Unlike Duhigg’s first book, The Power of Habit, Supercommunicators lacks a proper explanation of both why we communicate and the various ways to do so.
So what is a “Supercommunicator”? According to Duhigg, it is someone who “listen(s) closely to what is said and unsaid”, “ask(s) the right questions,” and “recognize(s) and match(es) other’s moods.” The clear and concise layout of the Supercommunicators would seemingly benefit the COVID classes, provided there were any applicable takeaways. The chapter headers read like vague, unhelpful Magic 8 Ball fortunes with direct lines that ultimately don’t give tangible advice. Additionally, the examples provided came from high-level corporate settings and CIA operations. Supercommunicators might resonate with those who struggle to find their place in corporate America, but American academia is a notably different environment. Duhigg presents an elite, corporate communication as a universal ideal, but this approach overlooks and erodes the diverse cultural norms of communication across American communities (and around the globe).
Duhigg claims to steer away from the typical transactional approach that most authors in this genre take, but as soon as he reveals the reasoning behind his tips, this statement crumbles. Duhigg wants the reader to ask deep questions because “studies show people are nearly always happy to have been asked, and to have answered, a deep question.” “Conversation” for Duhigg is like a battle. Some people are “supercommunicators”, while others need to be led by them. He applauds the so-called “supercommunicators” for “doing things that prompt the other person to say something real.” In Supercommunicators, conversation is corrupted to be a method used primarily for personal gain.
It is irresponsible to explain the “how” without a proper “why”. And while Supercommunicators presents a “why”, it is not one based on authenticity. Conversation (the primary form of communication discussed) is a tool, yes. But it is not a tool that should be used to elicit a particular response from another, or to exclusively gain something personally. It is a tool that should be used to communicate a person’s parts to another.
While I appreciated Duhigg’s The Power of Habit, Supercommunicators fell short for me because the book lacked the same universality as its predecessor. While The Power of Habit was a book focused on solitary endeavours, matters of communication discussed in Supercommunicators involve at least two parties. This adds an ethical layer that was not explored deeply enough in this book. The values behind why we communicate in the first place must be at the forefront of bridging communication gaps. The direct approach taken by Supercommunicators is a great start, and I would love to see Duhigg write a version of Supercommunicators for college students.
Copy Edited by Charlotte Collins ’26
Featured image courtesy of Penguin Random House Higher Education
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