Plays Well with Others: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Relationships is (Mostly) Wrong
Written by Eric Barker
Narrated by Roger Wayne
4.5/5
()
About this audiobook
From the author of the Wall Street Journal bestseller Barking Up the Wrong Tree comes a cure-all for our increasing emotional distance and loneliness—a smart, surprising, and thoroughly entertaining guide to help build better friendships, reignite love, and get closer to others, whether you’re an extrovert or introvert, socially adept or socially anxious.
Can you judge a book by its cover?
Is a friend in need truly a friend indeed?
Does love conquer all?
Is no man an island?
In Plays Well With Others, Eric Barker dives into these questions, drawing on science to reveal the truth beyond the conventional wisdom about human relationships. Combining his compelling storytelling and humor, Barker explains what hostage negotiation techniques and marital arguments have in common, how an expert con-man lied his way into a twenty-year professional soccer career, and why those holding views diametrically opposed to our own actually have the potential to become our closest, most trusted friends.
Leveraging the best evidence available—free of platitudes or magical thinking—Barker analyzes multiple sides of an issue before rendering his verdict. What he’s uncovered is surprising, counterintuitive, and timely—and will change the way you interact in the world and with those around you just when you need it most.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
Editor's Note
Relationship myth buster…
“Plays Well with Others” uses science to bust the four biggest relationship myths — “don’t judge a book by its cover,” “love conquers all,” “a friend in need is a friend indeed,” and “no man is an island.” Through case studies and exhaustive research, Barker exposes the truths about humans’ perception skills being far worse than we think, and shares key strategies for overcoming this fault to improve the quality of our relationships.
Eric Barker
Eric Barker is the creator of the blog Barking Up the Wrong Tree, which presents science-based answers and expert insight on how to be awesome at life. His work has been mentioned in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic Monthly, TIME magazine, The Week, and Business Insider. He is a former Hollywood screenwriter, having worked on projects for Walt Disney Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, and Revolution Studios. He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and holds an MBA from Boston College and a Master of Fine Arts from UCLA.
Related to Plays Well with Others
Related audiobooks
Fool Proof: How Fear of Playing the Sucker Shapes Our Selves and the Social Order—and What We Can Do About It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Confidence: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How Am I Doing?: 40 Conversations to Have with Yourself Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Golden: The Power of Silence in a World of Noise Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Take Back Your Power: 10 New Rules for Women at Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Foreverland: On the Divine Tedium of Marriage Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How Do We Know Ourselves?: Curiosities and Marvels of the Human Mind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get Out Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I Guess I Haven't Learned That Yet: Discovering New Ways of Living When the Old Ways Stop Working Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 12-Hour Walk: Invest One Day, Unlock Your Best Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Thinking 101: How to Reason Better to Live Better Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Do You Know Who I Am?: Battling Imposter Syndrome in Hollywood Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Permission to Offend: The Compassionate Guide for Living Unfiltered and Unafraid Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Longpath: Becoming the Great Ancestors Our Future Needs – An Antidote for Short-Termism Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Butts: A Backstory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gut Renovation: Unlock the Age-Defying Power of the Microbiome to Remodel Your Health from the Inside Out Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5If You Want Something Done: Leadership Lessons from Bold Women Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Invest Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mosquito Bowl: A Game of Life and Death in World War II Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You're Cute When You're Mad: Simple Steps for Confronting Sexism Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Seven Circles: Indigenous Teachings for Living Well Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Personal Growth For You
The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 48 Laws of Power Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Becoming Supernatural: How Common People Are Doing The Uncommon Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Man's Search For Meaning Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Unfu*k Yourself: Get Out of Your Head and into Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Outwitting the Devil: The Secret to Freedom and Success Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life, and Achieve Real Happiness Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Banish Your Inner Critic: Silence the Voice of Self-Doubt to Unleash Your Creativity and Do Your Best Work Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Highly Sensitive Person Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/58 Rules of Love: How to Find It, Keep It, and Let It Go Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Boundaries: When To Say Yes, How to Say No Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It Starts with Self-Compassion: A Practical Road Map Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Paris: The Memoir Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Plays Well with Others
159 ratings6 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Took me a bit to get in to this book, but once I did I really loved it. It is a good look at what it takes to make up a happy life.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fantastic and heart warming! People really need this book in this disconnected world today. Thank you so much Eric Barker
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great read, the middle was a but dry but the ending was worth it. Overall a great listen.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great narration and hilarious. I needed this book. Very inspiring
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Relatable, with all the socialization, humans need to belong. So much to learn
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wonderful storytelling. This is a reminder that humans have changed over the centuries and we can continue to change for the better. I am already using his stories in conversations around my dinner table.