Own It Live Chat Recap: Preparing for Difficult Conversations

Live Chat Recap: Preparing for Difficult Conversations

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Gina Bianchini is the CEO and founder of Mightybel l , the service on which the OWN IT Community is built. She’s a three-time entrepreneur who’s seen just about every business scenario possible, and she’s passionate about creating trusted networks of professionals supporting each other in their craft.


In this OWN IT Live Chat, Gina talked about real situations where you might need to have tough conversations with your team.


These slides summarize some of the main ideas Gina presented. You can read the full Live Chat Recap at this link.

h t t p s : / / w w w. o w n i t . c o m /communit ies/ownit/posts/707330

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Whether you’ve found a need to make a change in a team member’s responsibilities, have to address behavioral issues, or if it’s time to let someone go, there’s no upside to hiding or masking bad news.

Delivering Unpleasant News

The first step is to decide that the situation requires action. Sometimes, the best we can do for the whole team is to let go of people that aren't contributing. Remember, the rest of your team probably already knows there is an issue and sees the same things you do.


Recognize your intent. • Do you care about this team member and

want to set her up for success? If so, share that upfront.

• Let them know that this is a difficult conversation for you. Don’t try to pretend or hide the fact that you have unpleasant news.


Plan a Script in Your Head • P lan how you wi l l open the

conversation and how you think the conversation will go.

• Anticipate and prepare for the worst possible reaction you could get.


Stick to Your Guns Once you've delivered the news, be supportive, but firm and direct about your decision.


Have a partner ahead of and after the difficult conversation, whether a friend you can call or a business partner, or even your peers in Own It. Doing hard things together makes these conversations a bit easier.

Manage the Stress Through Teamwork and Preparation

Acknowledge the stress and nervousness. It doesn't go away if you ignore it.


Define the desired result from the conversation.

• Are you communicating a decision that has already been made?

• Is there something that they have done that you want to communicate feedback on?

• Is this something that the person can work on?


Funnel your energy into creating and memorizing a script.

• Practice delivering the direct, tough news or message. • Decide on the minimum level of detail needed such

that it shows the person respect and support without becoming a debate. This is SUPER hard, but important.

• Practice specific lines and reactions to a range of different directions the conversation might take.


Having Productive 1-on-1 Meetings

Carve out a set time each week or every other week where an employee or member of the team can talk to you.


To keep meetings productive, asked your team members to prepare a quick agenda of topics they would like to cover and share it ahead of time.


Ask what they need from you (their boss) or the company to do their jobs more effectively and/or what would be their number one area of concern if they were CEO.


Use this time to learn, not direct, and be available to your team. Regular 1-on-1 meetings can head off many issues before they begin.

FIND MORE INFORMATION on OWN IT• Visit OWNIT.com for the full Live Chat recap

including additional information and links. • Check out the rest of our helpful series. • Join the Network Dedicated to Small

Business Success. • Connect with thousands of small business

owners like you with our free app.

http://ownit.com


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https://www.ownit.com/communities/ownit/posts/707330

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