The Squeaky Wheel: Complaining the Right Way to Get Results, Improve Your Relationships, and Enhance Self-Esteem

Although life was physically more difficult in the days of the
horse and carriage, we complained much less back then, and when we did,
our complaints were more likely to get results. Today we complain about
everything--yet do so with remarkable ineffectiveness. Most of us
grumble, vent, and kvetch, neither expecting nor getting meaningful
resolutions. Wasting prodigious amounts of time and energy on
unproductive complaints can take an emotional and psychological toll on
our moods and well-being. We desperately need to relearn the art of
complaining effectively.
Psychotherapist Guy Winch offers practical and psychologically
grounded advice on how to determine what to complain about and what to
let slide. He demonstrates how to convey our complaints in ways that
encourage cooperation and increase the likelihood of getting resolutions
to our dissatisfactions. The principles he spells out apply whether
we're dealing with a rude store clerk, a bureaucrat, a coworker, our
teenager, or a spouse or partner who's driving us crazy.
Complaining constructively can be extremely empowering and it can
significantly strengthen our personal, familial, and work relationships.
Applying our new-found complaining skills to customer service
representatives, corporate leaders, and elected officials increases the
odds that our comments will be taken seriously. If we all complained
more effectively, squeaky wheels could change our own lives as well as
the world for the better.