Managing Difficult Conversations

Who Is This Course For?

This course is for anyone who works with other people.  It is especially suited, but not exclusively, for line managers, team leaders and supervisors.  The skills learned on this course can be applied in many everyday situations that we have to deal with.

In this course, participants will learn techniques and strategies to handle difficult conversations successfully by learning how to prepare for a difficult situation, get the conversation off to the best possible start and manage their emotions. They will gain insights into real situations they have experienced and leave feeling more confident in dealing with them effectively.

It is an entry level course and there are no prerequisites.

What Will Learners Gain From Participation?

By the end of this one day course, the learners will be able to:

• Apply new strategies for handling difficult conversations effectively

• Avoid wasting precious energy on feeling negative about a person or situation

• Know how to structure the opening of a difficult conversation more effectively

• Understand what makes a conversation difficult and be able to prepare effectively for them

• Have increased their ability to manage their and others emotions successfully

Course Outline

Course Overview

Difficult conversations

• What makes a difficult conversation

• Typical difficult conversations in work and life

• Small group exercise; facilitated group discussion

Behaviour types

• Recognising aggressive, passive, passive/aggressive, and assertive behaviour

• Know how to deal with each behaviour

• Presentation; small group exercise; facilitated group discussion

Scenario discussions: Identifying behaviours

• Identifying behaviours in scenarios

• Small group discussion: how to handle the problem behaviours

• Small group exercise; small group discussion; facilitated group discussion

Communicating clearly

• Active listening to ease emotional situations

• Effective communication skills for difficult conversations

• Facilitated group discussion

Toolkit A: Handling difficult conversations

• Techniques to handle difficult conversations

• Presentation; facilitated group discussion

Clinic 1: Building your personal strategies to handle difficult conversations

• Identify difficult conversations you need to deal with

• Create personal strategies for each situation

• Individual exercise; pairs discussion

Summary and close