Confidence Leading Through Critical Conversations

As leaders we are compensated, and hopefully self-inspired to lead others to be as successful as their potential and capability will allow. We influence based on the sum of experiences and learnings we have had in our leadership journey. We use our education and intellectual horsepower. 

Most leaders desire the ability to be more confident when they have to communicate constructive feedback or have a crucial conversation. It’s an expectation of any leadership role to have uncomfortable conversations that may make those on our team uncomfortable in the short term. The purpose is so that the employee or leader can be comfortable, confident, and improvingly successful in the long term. That purpose is only realized if the conversation is had in an effective manner with confidence.

Complete confidence in having tough conversations takes experience and practice. There are several things that can be done to improve and make each tough conversation more effective than the last.

·     Prepare in Advance

·     Have an urgency about engaging in the conversation

·     Approach the conversation in a questions-based manner

·     Re-direct as necessary to keep the conversation on track

·     Ensure there is mutual respect on both sides throughout the conversation

·     End the conversation with a clear line between professional and personal

·     Re-instill confidence in the leader as appropriate

The more painful the conversation seems, the more indicative that the conversation is crucial and needs to be prioritized. The tougher it feels, the more you will need to lean into the interaction. The more you need to lean in, the more you must lead in an effort to benefit the leader and impact the leader’s growth. 

*Taken from Differentiated Leadership by KK Brown. To learn more about how to lean into leadership relative to leadership competencies and have more impact click the book to take you to the link.