Giraffe language

Why do we often find it so difficult to speak compassionately when everyone around us seems to communicate like wolves? Marshall B. Rosenberg used precisely this image in his seminars: the wolf and the giraffe. The wolf judges, blames and shames. The giraffe listens, empathises and speaks the language of the heart. That is why Nonviolent Communication is often simply called Giraffensprache, or giraffe language, in everyday German.

In this book, Rosenberg works with seminar participants on specific everyday situations to reveal what makes this language so special. It is not about dry theory, but moments you will recognise: a misunderstanding, a conflict, a sentence that hurts rather than connects.

What becomes clear is that as soon as empathetic listening and sharing feelings and needs form the basis of connection, with yourself and with others, something changes in your quality of life.

Marshall B. Rosenberg (1934 to 2015) was internationally known as a conflict mediator and the founder of the Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC). The book is published by Junfermann Verlag and has 96 pages.