Constructive, co-created, nonviolent conversations are much harder to curate than they sound, and when I find myself stuck in a repeating relational dynamic, I remind myself that sometimes we need to “slow down to speed up.”
Or, as Abraham Lincoln put it, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
Having a new conversation takes effort, preparation and creativity.
It doesn’t just “happen.”
If you’d like some tips on how to prepare for a new conversation, this week’s episode of the podcast is just the ticket. It’s a solo, short, strategy-packed one titled How to Prepare for Challenging Conversations.
I’ll walk you through 9 key steps that will help you be as aware, alive, awake and authentic as possible, for whatever difficult conversation you’d like to have next!
Fortunately, the work we put in on the front end often eliminates the need for intense repair work on the back end.
Listen in now, or read the detailed show notes:
Show notes:
(1:39) Drop your attachment to an outcome
(3:49) Spend time on awareness work
(5:56) Get a coach, therapist, healer, or similar to help you
(7:53) Get good at noticing your fears and judgments
(9:48) Relax into it
(12:01) Find trusted people to help you with self-empathy
(16:54) Clarity of intention
(17:53) The best possible outcome
(18:54) List and plan for potential unwanted outcomes
(21:03) Outro
How do you prepare for difficult conversations? I’d love to know. Leave a comment below.
