{"id":879,"date":"2025-12-12T15:33:02","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T15:33:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/?page_id=879"},"modified":"2025-12-12T20:33:03","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T20:33:03","slug":"navigate-difficult-conversations","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/resources\/communication-strategies\/navigate-difficult-conversations\/","title":{"rendered":"Navigate Difficult Conversations"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pl-879\"  class=\"panel-layout\" ><div id=\"pg-879-0\"  class=\"panel-grid panel-has-style\" ><div id=\"navigate\" class=\"panel-row-style panel-row-style-for-879-0\" ><div id=\"pgc-879-0-0\"  class=\"panel-grid-cell\" ><div id=\"panel-879-0-0-0\" class=\"so-panel widget widget_sow-editor panel-first-child\" data-index=\"0\" ><div\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tclass=\"so-widget-sow-editor so-widget-sow-editor-base\"\n\t\t\t\n\t\t><h1 class=\"widget-title\">Navigate Difficult Conversations<\/h1>\n<div class=\"siteorigin-widget-tinymce textwidget\">\n\t<p>Conflict happens in every workplace. Positive communication during difficult conversations is a skill. Here are some simple and effective ways you can approach difficult conversations.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Don\u2019t wait<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>address conflicts or misunderstandings immediately<\/li>\n<li>ignoring the issue can make it worse<\/li>\n<li>if you need time to gather information, schedule a meeting to discuss the issue<\/li>\n<li>if emotions are heightened, give the employee time to calm down before speaking with them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Plan ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>make sure you have all the information before talking to the employee<\/li>\n<li>whenever possible, plan what you\u2019re going to say and how you\u2019re going to say it<\/li>\n<li>prepare your notes with specific examples<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Identify the problem<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>clearly state the issue at hand and explain why it\u2019s a concern<\/li>\n<li>summarize the main points of conflict or misunderstanding in a neutral way, clearly and calmly<\/li>\n<li>be objective and focus on the facts<\/li>\n<li>give the employee a chance to explain their side of the story<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Practice active listening<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>provide a safe, private space<\/li>\n<li>give your full attention by listening with all 5 senses<\/li>\n<li>don\u2019t interrupt!<\/li>\n<li>ask questions to make sure you understand<\/li>\n<li>repeat what was communicated to you in your own words to show that you<\/li>\n<li>heard what was communicated to you<\/li>\n<li>want to understand the employee\u2019s perspective<\/li>\n<li>want to avoid misunderstandings<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review policies and procedure<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>state specific rules, policies or procedures that apply to the conflict<\/li>\n<li>discuss how the conflict relates to the policies and procedures<\/li>\n<li>review expectations related to policies, procedures and codes of conduct<\/li>\n<li>give the employee a copy of relevant policies and procedures to take with them<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Manage your emotions<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>others are more likely to stay calm if you do<\/li>\n<li>be empathetic \u2013 considering how the employee is feeling or what they think about the situation builds trust and openness with employees<\/li>\n<li>avoid negative language that may be perceived as hostile<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Make a plan of action<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>come up with a solution to resolve the conflict<\/li>\n<li>include the employee in the solution<\/li>\n<li>ask for feedback<\/li>\n<li>be flexible and open to their suggestions<\/li>\n<li>agree on actionable steps toward resolution<\/li>\n<li>give the employee an opportunity to demonstrate change<\/li>\n<li>if necessary, write down the plan of action with deadlines\/dates as applicable and give the employee a copy<\/li>\n<li>schedule a follow-up meeting to review progress (if applicable)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Make it a learning experience<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>difficult conversations are a great opportunity for growth for you and the employee<\/li>\n<li>provide resources like training tools, support or mentorship to help the employee improve<\/li>\n<li>follow up with your employee to show that you\u2019re committed to their development<\/li>\n<li>use this as an opportunity for constructive feedback<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><div id=\"panel-879-0-0-1\" class=\"widget_text so-panel widget widget_custom_html panel-last-child\" data-index=\"1\" ><div class=\"textwidget custom-html-widget\"><div class=\"rcard-row\">\n\t\n<div class=\"rcard\"><a class=\"rcard-link\" href=\"http:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-content\/themes\/suas\/sections\/communication\/Howtodifficultconversations.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">\nNavigating Difficult Conversations Tip Sheet\n<\/a><\/div>\n\t\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Conflict happens in every workplace. Positive communication during difficult conversations is a skill. Here are some simple and effective ways you can approach difficult conversations. Don\u2019t wait address conflicts or misunderstandings immediately ignoring the issue can make it worse if you need time to gather information, schedule a meeting to discuss the issue if emotions [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":82,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"suas-page.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-879","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=879"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/879\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":952,"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/879\/revisions\/952"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/82"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/apprenticeshiphub.ca\/project25\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}