Keeping Your Cool If A Co-Worker Insults You
By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
Sometimes, you are on the receiving end of an insult from a co-worker and are taken aboack. How do you respond? It isn’t by counting to 10.
00:00 Intro
00:28 The typical advice
00:46 Your first response
01:20 What’s going on for them?
01:41 Your second response
02:12 Summary
02:22 Outro
How to Manage Your Micromanaging Boss
I want to talk with you today about keeping your cool when someone insults you at work. I’m Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter. People hire me for no BS coaching and career advice globally.
That can relate to a job search, hiring more effectively, managing and leading better, workplace issues, career transitions, and much more.
So I know the typical advice is to remember to take a deep breath and count to 10 before you respond. There’s no time for that. That’s a reality to it. You’re in the middle of something; there’s no time to count the 10.
What you can do is pause for a second and go, “Could you say that again, please,” because that’s going to make them defend what they’re going to say, instead of the two of you, instantly bumping heads. Because you are in control of how you respond. And that’s gonna give you a moment to take that deep breath, but not count to 10. And thus, you’re responding in a timely way in making them restate it again, which may cause them to define the situation differently.
Now, yes, they could be having problems, and often that has nothing to do with you. It has to do with them and the fact that they’re stressed, they’re venting and they just blew up because you were the last thing on their list that caused the teapot to overflow.
But slow them down by saying, “could you say that again, please,” and then if you have to respond, do to it calmly and politely, because in the situations that I’ve participated in, and I made mistakes in earliest times in my career when I got angry, or responded with insults or sarcasm, it just escalated the situation, and do you know, who looked bad? Me.
So, take a step back, make them explain, look at the bigger picture for yourself, and don’t lose the battle because of your response.
So I hope you found this helpful. I’m Jeff Altman. Visit my website, TheBigGameHunter.us There is a ton in the blog that can help you. Plus, if you’re interested in my coaching you, you can schedule time for a free discovery call, a coaching session, find out about my courses, books and guides. There’s just a lot there that will help. And connect with me on Linkedin at linkedin.com/in/TheBigGameHunter. Have a terrific day and most importantly, be great!
ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
People hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS Career Advice globally because he makes many things in peoples’ career easier. Those things can involve job search, hiring more effectively, managing and leading better, career transition, as well as advice about resolving workplace issues.
Schedule a discovery call at my website, www.TheBigGameHunter.us
He is the host of “No BS Job Search Advice Radio,” the #1 podcast in iTunes for job search with over 2500 episodes.
Website: https://www.TheBigGameHunter.us (schedule a paid coaching session, a free discovery call or ask questions using my Trusted Adviser Services)
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