People in Their Element: How to create positive working relationships

by Yvonne Guérineau

If you have ever wondered why relationships are the hardest part of your leadership role and wished that you knew how to create more positive working relationships, then you are NOT alone. Relationships are fundamental to being human and to life in general and when it's going badly it can feel like you are tiptoeing in your socks through a room full of pins, terrified of putting a foot wrong. This book will help you - Understand your mindset around relationships - Learn how the past is affecting your current interactions - Identify communication traps people fall into and the impact that is having - Ask yourself powerful questions to improve interactions - Set yourself on the path to putting people in their element at work This book is for you if you are ready to change your perspective and embark on a dynamic journey of discovery to master the subtle art and ever-evolving science of positive relationship building. People In Their Element is both thought-provoking and practical, packed with examples, useful tips and exercises to try out on your own or with your team.

234 pages, Hardcover

Published June 15, 2023

About the author

Yvonne is a personal growth and deeper connection enthusiast who believes that positive and rewarding working relationships are fundamental to happiness, wellbeing, and success at work and that we all deserve to know how to create them. She works with business leaders helping them to strengthen interpersonal relationships in their teams so that they can reap the performance and wellbeing rewards that this offers. Yvonne believes in going deep and getting to the heart of people and their working relationships drawing on her 20 years in human resources, her psychology degree, coaching training, and experience of working with a variety of personality profiling tools to find just the right balance between challenge and support. She encourages individuals to take ownership, lean into discomfort, and experience the personal growth and positive relationships they deserve.

Reviews

[Richard Hiron]

I’ve been reading ‘People In Their Element’ by Yvonne Guérineau 🌊🔥 for quite some time. Whilst it is a reasonably short book, I have found that the insights💡that it offers take time to unpack.

The book is aimed primarily at creating positive working relationships ✅, but there are lessons in it that can apply to relationships across the board.

Why?

Because it invites us (in a nice way) to look at our own behaviour and how that might influence others, without discounting the behaviour of others and how that might influence us.

The author invites us to be open to this in a great way: by giving us an insight into circumstances where these insights💡might have helped her and how they help her now.

For me, this is why I have taken time (almost 15 months) to read the book, because I have been reviewing circumstances from my life, both at work and otherwise, where these insights💡might have changed things quite significantly. In other words, I’ve found it takes time to process certain things from the book before moving on through it.

Was that time worth it? 🕰️ Absolutely! It’s worth investing that time to review our approach to others and to ourselves.

From there, it establishes building blocks for working with others 🧱, as our relationships with others are long-term investments, not a quick fix or a “hack”. 🛠️

Whilst there are multiple, structured sections to the book to explore this, together with practical examples, discussion points and growth points, the various chapters are short and easy to read. This also makes it easy to revisit particularly relevant sections in the future.

I’d particularly recommend this book for:-

👥 Those who work with others frequently (in any capacity).

😔 Those who feel that their interactions with others at work or others’ interactions with them at work are getting them down.

😌 Those who are willing to explore self-development and self-improvement, even in a non-work setting.

Whilst I’m not a massive fan of so-called “business books”, this one really spoke to me!

#relationshipbuilding #workrelationships #relationshipsthatwork #workingrelationships #teamrelationships

[Joanna McQueen]

People In Their Element by Yvonne Guerineau has been an relatively eye opening read for me. As a person who interacts with a variety of people, a variety of ages in a variety of roles, I found this book presented the role of a communicator in an easy to read, easy to understand and helpful manner.

This book is set up in logical sequence to educate and inform the reader about relationship dynamics and peoples’ interpretations of communication. Whether or not you are in a leadership role, communication is important and People In Their Element helps you understand the dynamics of communication in order to educate and improve your communication and your understanding of it. This informative book contains activities to work through to help understand your role when communicating with people.

The psychological terms and intricacies related to communication are defined and the thinking patterns and responses to interactions with others are explained beautifully. People In Their Element also provides examples and some visual representations to make this book accessible to all readers. I also found that the ‘Something to Ponder’ and ‘Try This’ sections provided opportunities to consider and reflect on what I have read and how I communicate with others.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who desires to be a better communicator.

As I am entering a new role in my teaching career, I know that this book will be vital. I also know that I will be referring to it time and time again to evaluate and better understand my own communication patterns in order to plan and make improvements in my communications with others. It’s a very useful tool indeed.

[Karen]

I never knew books like this existed and certainly wish I had read it in my team working days. Ideal for managers and leaders alike or anyone in a team where there’s a clash of personalities or workplace struggles to get everyone working on the same page. Actually not just the workplace here, this is handy for any group with practical skills to take on board. A book you can refer to time and time again.
I really enjoyed the book and will pass on to my daughter who manages a large team. The author’s understanding of leadership and how to create a harmonious atmosphere is all in here. A great resource.
Recommend.

Many thanks to team @literallyPR for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Laura]

If you're a leader who has ever struggled with building positive relationships, this book is a must-read. It explores the complexities of relationships and provides insightful guidance on how to create more harmonious connections with others.

The author understands the importance of relationships in both personal and professional life and acknowledges the challenges that come with them. Reading this book feels like having a supportive mentor who gently guides you towards understanding your own mindset around relationships and how the past can impact your current interactions.

One notable aspect of the book is its focus on communication traps that people often fall into. By identifying these traps, readers gain a deeper understanding of how their communication style may be hindering successful relationships. The author then provides practical exercises and powerful questions to help readers improve their interactions and navigate these potential pitfalls.

What sets this book apart is its emphasis on putting people in their element at work. It goes beyond superficial techniques and delves into the heart of creating a positive work environment where everyone can thrive. By providing valuable insights and strategies, the book equips leaders with the tools they need to build lasting, meaningful relationships.

Whether you're a seasoned leader looking to enhance your leadership skills or someone new to a leadership role, this book offers a dynamic journey of self-discovery. It challenges readers to shift their perspective and become more conscious of their actions in order to master the art of positive relationship building.

Overall, this is a thought-provoking and practical guide that will undoubtedly transform the way you approach and navigate relationships. If you're ready to break free from relationship challenges and create a more positive and fulfilling work environment, this book is a valuable resource.

[EdenB15]

Thank you for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review. Such a insightful and thought provoking book which albeit meant for managers/leaders really can give you an insight onto how to create good relationships with colleagues and other people you in counter be that universitiy or job colleagues.Well worth a read and very different to what i would normally read. Really has helped me to think more about my relationships with others and ill definetly be trying out some of the tips and tricks mentioned

[Susan Doering]

Yvonne Guérineau’s book starts from an important premise, namely, that work would be a lot more effective, productive – and enjoyable! – if we all got on better with our co-workers. This may be obvious to most people, but it is still a leap from recognising the obvious to doing something about it. Guérineau “believes that positive and rewarding working relationships are fundamental to happiness, wellbeing and success at work”. This book derives from her work as a coach with business leaders and their teams and sets out her programme to help them achieve exactly that.
The book is structured in 3 parts: Part 1 explains the background to relationships; how our attitude towards other people and our relationship with them develops, and how our relationships serve us in life and at work. This useful introduction serves as a helpful reminder that the way we approach other people has developed from an early age and that we all carry with us deep-seated memories of early relationships which influence the way we view other people as adults. Part 2 sets out the Dynamic Discovery Journey, the programme the author uses in her coaching. Part 3 rounds off the book with illustrative case studies of some of the teams she has worked with.
The book is primarily addressed to team leaders, encouraging them to adopt the process of the Dynamic Discovery Journey with their teams. The process is clearly explained in some detail, but it is worth noting that the case studies described were all facilitated by the author as coach. The leader who intends to use the book with their own team will need to be aware of changing their role from the team manager to the process facilitator who designs and implements relationships-focussed workshops in the manner described in the book. The activities for the workshops will be viewed as more or less challenging, depending on the specificities of each team. The author emphasises the need for great sensitivity, taking into account both the environment, i.e. the context of the challenges facing the team and/or organisation and the challenges of each individual team member with his or her relationships background.
With its practical, positive approach the book will be a valuable addition to the leadership-skills library that all leaders should have.

[Keith Reilly]

This is a super read and if you're running a business or working in a company where teams are an element of performance, then this is really for you.

Written as a manual, it offers processes and tips that allow individuals to understand themselves as well as those around them a little better. Let's face it, if one company is outperforming another in a similar market, then there must be a reason for that. Staff performance, both individually and collectively must surely be part of that reason. How do you coax out and find the new ideas, or distil what you have into a world beating offering? It's all about people and this book will help.

There are also some case studies at the end which help to roll the theory into practical illustrations. We all learn in different styles and for me these worked examples really show the theory in practice.

[Mr A]

This is a superb must-read book for any business leader or indeed anyone that values effective relationships in any part of their life. There's a natural flow from background learnings and theories, to putting into practice, and finally case studies demonstrating everything that the book has taught you. The chapters are concise and hence easy to pick up and put down over a period of time.

This book now sits proudly on the workplace bookshelf and I'm encouraging all my colleagues to read and enjoy!

I hope Yvonne authors further books in the future as this one really hits all the right notes.