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VERBAL JUDO: TACTICAL
COMMUNICATION FOR SUPERVISORS
The foundation for the program for supervisors is
based in the same principles and tactics of the basic Verbal Judo
program. The principles of Aristotle take a different angle when dealing with
our peers, supervisors, and subordinates because the issue of credibility in
leadership is even more crucial.
In the basic Verbal Judo program (Half, Full, and
Two-Day programs) we cover how to deal with customers, objections, and problems
as they are perceived or viewed from outside the organization looking in.
Yet, frequently the problems that plague us regarding customer complaints are
rooted in how we treat each other inside the work place. As internal
morale is affected so is customer service affected.
We must now learn to work the principles and tactics of
Verbal Judo up and down the chain of command. As supervisors we must gain
the support of the organization and subordinates who may easily be annoyed at
our performance and will undermine our efforts to be good leaders. It
does not matter if they do this intentionally or unintentionally, it creates
the same result: lower production and quality of effort. This basic
problem reduces morale within the organization which will eventually creates complaints,
lawsuits, poor professional behavior, and higher stress.
Credibility is far more difficult to maintain within
the work place than with a customer base. We are seen with such frequency
that we must be on the top of our professional game every day to the people who
may well know how we really think about situations that trouble us. Even
one explosion of temper can have a lasting affect on how we are treated or
looked upon daily after the event. And, on the other side we often find
ourselves in work environments where we may only see some people a few times a
year, if at all, so if we act inappropriately it becomes the measuring tool for
all future contact until our image in their eyes is changed.
Using the same philosophy as the basic program Verbal
Judo creates a better work place by teaching how to govern what we say and how
we say it. As we condition our thinking to be less reactive we become
more responsive to situations as they occur unexpectedly. We diffuse
anger, frustration, and verbal violence by not feeding it with our own feelings
and emotion.
There are specific paths of reasoning we can follow to
better our opportunities.
Credibility is built over time. You can change the behavior that has created
the problem but it requires time to enhance credibility and create trust.
Our supervisory position creates “instant” credibility. But, what that
really means is that credibility lasts only for an instant if we lose control
in the presence of our subordinates.
People will watch and listen carefully to those who
are in the process of trying to improve their communication skills and actions during
stressful situations. We learn in the basic Verbal Judo program that in
person-to-person communication is over 90% of our ability to move people to
action. This is achieved by how
information is delivered and not by the actual information. Effort is
worth its weight in gold to the people around us for as long as they can see
the improvement. Over time we will occasionally backslide and the “Art of
the Apology” will allow us to recover quickly from a slip of the tongue with
greater ease. No one is perfect and no one should cast the first stone
but , …
Accept responsibility for our actions and those of our
organization. This governing
principle is a prized and necessary quality for leadership. You may not
be the one causing the situation but if it happens on your watch you are the
one expected to correct it, and with dispatch. It is easier to accept our
supervisor duties if we are able to deal with the heat of the problem and the
winds of verbal criticism that will always blow in with the problem. This
section of the supervisory program includes a basic understanding of
decision-making skills. We create an overview of these skills and fine-tune
them for use under stressful conditions. Also covered is collateral issue
of delegation and how to review past, current, and future performance
empathetically.
Develop the ability to rhetorically analyze the
problem and the situation. The
three acronyms of are defined and demonstrated from problem solving.
ü P.A.V.P.O
ü P.A.C.E.
ü L.E.A.P.S.
L.E.A.P.S.: Covered as a customer service element in
the basic one and two-day Verbal Judo program the acronym is now shown as a
complete picture of both service to the customer and how it can be developed
and cultured to use with subordinates and upper management. The effective use of LEAPS can make
subordinates more supportive and help others become more informed. This can be a delicate issue when helping
those who lead you if they are intimidated by your actions.
P.A.V.P.O.: The Rhetorical Perspective helps us
understand that we cannot control what we think but we can gain control over
why we think that way. The knowledge is useful in gaining insight in our
preparation for dealing with others in the workplace. We will be
blind-sided much less if we have learned how to first accept we do have biases
and then think of the problem from the perspective of the person(s) with whom
we will soon deal with in the encounter. P.A.V.P.O is a much needed
process in writing memos, setting initiatives, and in meeting planning. We develop the skill to organize our thinking
before the encounter. A very old samurai maxim states that, “Success favors the
prepared mind.”
P.A.C.E.: The Four Elements in any Verbal Encounter
allows us to examine the problem from the professional problem and then from
the other than our point of view, referred to as the rhetorical problem. Sometimes
we must solve the other person’s problem in order to resolve ours. PACE enables us to use our Ethical Presence
to calm others and then develop options to circumvent constraints found in
disagreements.
Developing the ability to change the behavior of
others positively, especially if it
is not the first meeting regarding the problem. We must always think in
the on-going mode. Problems with subordinates are rarely solved in one meeting
or counseling session. Furthermore people who have problems rarely only
have one, and even more rarely are those problems resolved to their total
satisfaction. The Five-Step Approach, covered in the basic program is now
examined and developed for motivation and in preparation for disciplinary
action. If we must act, we act professionally, and within organizational
protocols and policy.
Occasionally, supervision is sadly likened to
baby-sitting duties but we believe it is more like guiding and herding.
The term herding is often thought of as negative until it is examined
fully. “You can lead but if now one follows what is the point?”
This very statement means we must “inspire” our people. We must influence
our people to be better than they would naturally desire.
One of the chief goals of leadership is to obsolete
yourself in a particular position or duty when you are prepared for a change or
promotion. We must culture, nurture, and educate our people so they can
take our position and we can move up. This creates problems if insecure
supervisors have a protective need to feel indispensable. This classic
mistake actually will give the impression that you are too valuable to promote
or too unwilling to help others. This ineffective style will
translate to people in charge that such a supervisor is not able to adapt when
situations call for creative or imaginative thinking. There is much talk
in society about “empowerment” but seldom anyone teaches us how to do it well.
Simply giving the authority to act can be folly. It is blind trust. Using
delegation, praise and punishment properly will enhance our position because to
get ahead you must get noticed.
The Verbal Judo program concedes the line of reasoning
that people have hidden talents. If allowed to explore new ideas they may
well create valuable contributions. We need conflict resolution tactics
as creative thinking people often move inappropriately in areas and need to be
‘herded’ back into organizational rules of structure. Rather than control
their thinking and actions we should try to guide their reasoning. Any
negative statement will damage their desire to better things and reduce the
willingness to be involved in future projects. We start with the maxim,
“There is no such thing as constructive criticism!” There will always be
conflict as supervisors guide and teach subordinates.
Be able to praise and punish effectively and with the goal of not only modifying the current
behavior but also altering the thinking that caused the problem
originally. We must establish a clear, concise, effective, and inarguable
process of punishing and giving praise to enhance leadership credibility.
Delivering bad news is much easier if we can reduce the natural anger and
frustration or embarrassment that accompanies such an uncomfortable duty.
Learn to “think correctly” before we criticize or
condemn. The manner of how we
think before we speak is critical if we are to survive in a culture where suing
and criticizing has become the national pastime. Our comments as leaders
speak with great weight to those listening and we must be cautious of how our
professional credibility can be damaged by what we say. Using the Habit
of Mind learned earlier we now teach the manner of rhetorically breaking down a
line of reasoning to find flaws. We must
always remember that perception is stronger than reality.
This thinking is called the (the) Means versus
(the) End Argument. This is a mental four question analytical
approach to listening to powerful and persuasive people where we explore gaps
in their planning or to see benefits in their reasoning. The argument
becomes a way to teach ourselves how to think well so we are less likely to be
discredited in our own plans later, and as a way to gain the confidence of the
people above us immediately. Avoiding of the appearance of rash thinking
is a much prized skill in leaders.
Understand why we think in a certain way and expect
others to do the same. Carl
Jung developed a manner to understand people via a “quadrant” of personality
styles. Every person has all of four styles present but one style will usually
be dominant. These characteristics explain why we make decisions in the
manner that we do. They are the cause of why we react to some
circumstances and respond calmly to others which may even be more severe in
consequence.
Leaders must understand both their own line of
thinking and how to govern and use the way others think to gain compliance.
Everyone is motivated by something. Knowing what the primary motivation
is for others allows us to develop arguments that make sense.
Tests have been developed by hundreds of corporations
that “predict” how people will react to situations. These companies and
their tests have often brought issues to the surface resembling a “Pandora’s
Box” of problems. People have argued bitterly that their self-description
is not “really like them at all” but a mistake by the test examiner.
There are however, numerous corporations that have made positive advances for
the companies hiring people to offer such exams. People have learned much
about themselves and others from the development of such “profiles.”
In Verbal Judo the test is a means to the end. Our manner of administering the self-examination
is non-critical. As there is no right or wrong answers and we do not
create the explosive atmosphere because we are not truly interested in the
answers from the test. In truth, the short test is administered partly
for the purpose of satisfying people’s expectations and curiosity.
Because of the credibility we build during the Verbal Judo class people are
more trusting of our approach. Because we teach dealing with conflict
effectively we demonstrate the positive benefits to understanding how possible
weaknesses can be used against you and “what you don’t know can be
dangerous.” Knowing your “style” profile can help a great deal in why our
old way of arguing failed so often.
We move quickly to how to deal with conflict and with
other people in conflict with us because their style of thinking is different
from ours. Knowing what is important emotionally can reduce problems
before they erupt. As a quick example, people who are people oriented
want to know how a project will benefit their subordinates prior to backing
such a proposal. Someone who is oriented to thinking about the bottom
line does not want to be bothered by large quantities of paperwork or time
consuming meetings. A person who thinks analytically is more interested
in the overall plan and its implementation that the day-to-day activities
resulting from it. And, people who want to express their opinion or like
having it asked need a forum at which that can occur.
Motivation is an internal mechanism. We teach
the ability to influence behavior but we must accept that we cannot “make”
anyone do anything without actually using force. Influence means we
create the foundation or the external forces that work on how people naturally
think. All sales professionals know that the customer must be made to
feel good to be happy with the purchase. All leaders must make people
feel good about decisions or policies or they will not back them completely.
This is often one of the most entertaining portions of
the class as people experience self-discovery and recognize weaknesses or
errors from their past. They learn to deal more effectively with others
in the workplace and in their personal lives.
Have a clear understanding of when words fail. The acronym S.A.F.E.R. was also taught in the
basic Verbal Judo class but now is aimed at non-compliant subordinates.
Prior to punishment we must be able to defend our actions. In this time
of litigious thinking we must always be on top of the issues we face. We
must demonstrate to our chain of command even before we get to the courts that
we acted appropriately and correctly. We must show the line of thinking
that governed our actions was lawful. We must show that we were
compassionate and empathetic to the issue and the person prior to the
punishment and that we reasonably tried to do we could to lessen the problem
before taking action. We protect both our self and our organization from
potentially harmful press and public condemnation. We learn how to
resolve the matter now at lower levels before it grows to dangerous
proportions.
If participants have already taken the basic Verbal
Judo class in a full day program then the supervisor class can be offered in a
one-day format. If it is a new audience then no less than two days will
be offered except under special circumstances, as time is needed to perform the
class correctly and successfully. Time is the measure of what our
organizations will one day become.
There are shorter programs for experienced managers
and supervisors available. They are used to sample content or for
overview of material but for integrity of the program and benefit to the
audience present we strongly encourage the longer programs. We can
build shorter programs once we know your needs.
Call Lee Fjelstad
with any questions.
Phone 941-350-9559 or Email: lee@verbal-judo.com
or wleefjelstad@earthlink.net
