The book “Crucial Conversations” provides advice for having conversations when failure is a strong possibility. While the ability to effectively handle conversations can benefit all aspects of our lives, the authors claim that in the workplace the most influential and successful people are the ones who can master their crucial conversations.
Crucial Conversations and SOCIAL STYLE
The Crucial Conversations and SOCIAL STYLE models complement one another in two specific areas. First, the “Style under Stress” concept is very similar to Backup Behavior of the SOCIAL STYLE Model. Second, the Crucial Conversations model deals with the importance of empathy and other Feedback skills for understanding the context of conversations instead of just the content.
The Crucial Conversations model focuses almost solely on recognizing your own stress cues, and then controlling yourself by utilizing certain communication strategies. SOCIAL STYLE complements these strategies by educating people on how to recognize stress and tension in others, as well as themselves.
What Makes a Crucial Conversation?
A crucial conversation happens when stakes are high, opinions vary, and emotions run strong. When people disagree in conversations, they can show their disagreement in one of two ways: silence or violence. When experiencing these disagreements, it’s important to step back, slow down, and “turn your brain back on” before things get out of hand.
Make a Conversation Safe Again
In order to make it safe again, the Crucial Conversation model presents a series of dialogue skills:
- Start with the Heart
- Learn to Look
- Make it Safe
- Master My Stories
- STATE My Path
- Explore Others’ Paths
- Move to Action
These are similar to TRACOM’s Feedback skills (AMPP):
- Ask to get things rolling
- Mirror to confirm feelings
- Paraphrase to acknowledge the story
- Prime when you’re getting nowhere
Crucial Conversations and SOCIAL STYLE Benefit Each Other
Crucial Conversations is a model for communicating effectively with people when tension is high and people are in their backup modes. Thus, it fits naturally with the SOCIAL STYLE Model. In fact, the Style Model provides tools for communicating and interacting with others in ways that can actually decrease the chances that communication will become “crucial.” Therefore, it is a pro-active approach to communication.
The Style Model provides the tools for determining co-workers’ Styles, in addition to key advice for communicating with people of each Style. In addition, the SOCIAL STYLE & Versatility Profile enables individuals to measure and understand their Styles and Feedback communication abilities.
Learn about SOCIAL STYLE training here.