Head on: Addressing Challenging Workplace Conversations Directly

by Janel Anderson

Learn how to take a difficult subject head on in a conversation . . . while keeping your head on! Head On is a research-driven, expansive look at the most critical conversations in our lives at work and at home—investigating why these conversations so often go poorly, and how they can be better. It explains how the fight or flight response can hijack the brain, shutting down higher-order thinking in difficult, sensitive or high-stakes situations. It examines the optimal level of stress (a little is good, a lot is bad) and the impact of that stress on how we operate in the workplace. It shows on both a neurological and psychological level what happens when the brain is taken over by fear and why communication in those instances is often dysfunctional. And most importantly, it provides a new methodology for conducting conversations so that both partners are unlikely to become defensive. With this methodology, agreement can be reached much faster, relationships can be preserved and strengthened and organizational goals can be accomplished more efficiently.

122 pages, Paperback

Published June 4, 2016