[jyunwai]

The most useful lesson from this book for me—because I found myself using this several times this week—is to communicate by saying "I intend to" to quickly explain the "why" behind what you are trying to do, or the rationale for a set of instructions you are giving to another person.

This helps people respond with flexibility, as it gives them a better understanding of when to deviate from the exact set of instructions you give them (such as if assumptions turn out to be wrong, or conditions change), and what parts of a request are necessary to follow exactly.

Though I remembered using this wording often, I actually forgot that I learned about the principle from this book until I read this comment. But the idea itself has stuck with me.

There is also a 45-minute "Talks at Google" video by the author, which looks like a good overview for his main ideas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzJL8zX3EVk