Today's topic on Assertiveness Skills is a practical and powerful tip on how to script out what you want to say when you wish to assert yourself professionally.
Remember this key point: Assertiveness differs from aggressiveness because with assertiveness you maintain respect for yourself AND the other person. And this, my friends, is a deal-breaker.
Ok, here's the "3-A Way to Have Your Say" from yours truly:
A = Acknowledge your feelings. They are yours, that you feel and no one made you, remember? You are embarrassed, or disappointed. No one "made" you that way.
A = Address the situation. BIG point here: Facts only! No opinion. Fogged? You must only address the facts about what they did, not imply their intentions or label their behavior. Examples of how NOT to do this: "You were trying to embarrass me." (How do you know? Are you a mind reader? Besides, this makes you look bad.) or "You're rude." (Hmmmm... How long do you think they'll keep listening after you've called them a name?)
A = Ask for what you want. Proven: The #1 reason people don't give you what you want is that they don't know what it is. Make it easy for people to be successful with you by kindly bein assertive and asking for what you want. Most people DO want to be agreeable you know!
Successful people are assertive. But this is not to say they are obnoxious! You can always learn to be assertive without being mean too. Try it, successful people do all the time!
