The Golden Rules of Confrontation
by Does conflict leave you cowering in a corner? Here’s how to tackle those awkward situations more assertively.
1. Choose an appropriate time and space
Choose somewhere comfortable to talk and make sure the other party and yourself are both in the right head space. If one of you is already stressed or have other things dominated your thoughts things will not go well.
2. Stay calm and refuse to be baited into arguing.
It’s easy to lose your cool and resort to insults, but it’s crucial to try and keep your moode neautral. Nothing will be acheived by anger. To further this use “I” not “You” language eg. talk about how you feel, not how they are making you feel.
3. Don’t over-dramatise or exaggerate things
When we feel our point isn’t getting across we tend to employ hyperbole to get more attention. This backfire’s easily though and can damage your credibility. It puts the other party on the defensive, stalling progress.
4. Know when to stop
If you aren’t getting anywhere and the discussion’s going round and round in circles it’s best to take a break, re-group and return to the conversation in a few hours, or days if it was particularly heated.
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