Book Summary: Ask Like An Auctioneer, by Dia Bondi

Dia Bondi is a special friend of The Opposite of Small Talk podcast and recently helped us to celebrate our 4 year anniversary with a live podcast recording. The stars aligned and we got to be the very first stop on her book tour for the launch of Ask Like An Auctioneer. If the ideas below resonate with you, please consider buying the book and listening to her podcast episode linked below.

QUICK SUMMARY

The author of this book, Dia Bondi, went to auctioneering school as a way to support local non-profit groups with fundraising. Little did she know that amidst cowboys and cornfields she’d find strategies to help her clients, start up founders and C-Suite leaders, to make more powerful asks at work and in life. This is a book designed for interaction and action by including journal prompts and scripts to start using immediately.

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IDEAS THAT RESONATED

You are not a problem. [Page 18]

Too many books out there drive sales by telling people they are broken or not enough. My favorite line in this book may be this one: “In this book, you are not a problem, and I’m not here to change you.” Bondi goes on to say that she sees her role as a provider of strategies to use, just as you are. She acknowledges that you will apply your own spin on it based on who you are and the context you’re in. Love this. I feel exactly the same way about the content I provide on Instagram at @KO.Communication and in my workshops.

Price is a measure of value, not worth. [Page 73]

Bondi breaks down the difference between value and worth. What someone is willing to pay for something is very context dependent - and driven by that person’s frame of reference and personal values. This has nothing to do your worth, which is rooted in the self. Your worthiness is infinite.

Find your phrases. [Page 141]

This section of the book explains that confidence is the result of action, not a prerequisite. Bondi offers strategies for feeling more prepared, which is the antidote to feeling a lack of confidence. She suggests finding your phrases, the ones that you’ll say if you get a ‘no’ or if their counter-offer is below what you’d be willing to do. Deciding what you’ll say in advance, and practicing it out loud, is something I also teach my clients. I’ve even developed a Phrase Bank of helpful phrases for a variety of common workplace situations. Download it here.