This Land of Strangers: The Relationship Crisis That Imperils Home, Work, Politics, and Faith - Hardcover

"This is the most important book of the decade. If you can only read one more book in your life, make it this one. It is enlightening, insightful and inspirational about how we can transform our deteriorating relationships. Having studied intimacy and relationships at home and work for 45 years, I wish I had been able to write this book. It is now required reading in all of my graduate coursesand I am giving it to all of my friends and people who need friends!" -- Richard Boyatzis Ph.D., co-author of the international best sellers, Primal Leadership and Resonant Leadership. Distinguished Professor, Departments of Psychology, Cognitive Science and Organizational Behavior, Case Western Reserve University -- Richard Boyatzis Ph.D., co-author of the international best sellers, Primal Leadership and Resonant Leadership. Distinguished Professor, Departments of Psychology, Cognitive Science and Organizational Behavior, Case Western Reserve University -- 20120425 "Robert Hall has long championed the value of strong personal relationships in our business world. Now in his latest book, This Land of Strangers, he widens his perspective and examines the importance of close people bonds in various sectors of our society: domestic life, work, politics, and religion. He identifies and examines a spreading deterioration in our intimate associations, and calculates the accumulating cost to our society of this destructive trend. He concludes that our contemporary culture is experiencing a growing crisis of relationships. The wealth and breadth of his evidence makes him a powerful witness to the problem, and enhances the credibility of his recommendations for restoring the basic social cohesion that defines us as human." - Walt Albro, Editor, ABA Bank Marketing Magazine -- Walt Albro, Editor, ABA Bank Marketing Magazine -- 20120612 "Your book belongs in the public school system!" -Michael Dresser, Nationally syndicated talk radio host of "Dresser After Dark" -- Michael Dresser, Nationally syndicated talk radio host of aDresser After Darka -- 20120612

It is the crisis that everyone feels but that has gone unnamed. We see the pieces: families disintegrating; communities in chaos; businesses losing the trust of customers and employees; political and religious discourse that sows dysfunction and divide. Yet until now, no one has connected the dots that reveal the larger narrative. Our broken relationships have a death grip on economic, political, and social advancements that capitalism, democracy, social programs, and tax policy have been unable to break. Cumulatively this crisis feeds an emerging caste system: Individuals and organizations that possess superior relationships have, while those with deteriorating relationships are destined to have not. In This Land of Strangers, Robert Hall lays the crisis bare, and you will be shocked at the magnitude of destruction he reveals. Hall's best-selling business book, The Streetcorner Strategy for Winning Local Markets, helped spawn the customer relationship management movement. Now, with deep passion and insight borne from three decades of study, he widens the lens to look at the breadth of our relational decline and the societal trends that got us here. Focusing on four key domainshome, work, politics, and faithhe presents wide-ranging research that explores the unraveling of our life-giving relationships and the attendant costs. He debunks the assumption that we can build better lives and a stronger society on crumbling relationships. With engaging narrative style and stories, Hall looks at modern life through the prism of relationships. He challenges readers to embrace three aims that will reverse the forces that gave birth to today's land of strangers to usher in a new erathe Age of Relationship.