Having Difficult Conversations

What do you do when you have an important client who continually changes things at the last minute? What about the employee who is a life savior and great at their job but lashes out when stressed? How about business partners who are friendly but are always struggling to meet deadlines or underperforming? There are so many examples that we can face in our day-to-day when dealing with difficult people or difficult situations with clients, customers, employees, supervisors, contractors, etc.

You can’t escape these tough talks. The best thing you can do is make sure you are as prepared as possible.

Preparing For Difficult Conversations

• Confront your fears. Many people want to avoid these difficult conversations because of a fear of confrontation or because it is just a really uncomfortable topic. Regardless of the reasons, however, these conversations still need to happen.
• Take time to investigate the matter. Some conversations might be a simple “Hey, I saw this issue. Just so you know, you should do XY instead.” But for more significant conversations, it is important to put in the research to see if this is a recurring issue or to better understand the problem.
• Write down the main points of the conversation. This can help you get your thoughts and talking points in order. This will also help…