“Focus on the data available and explore possible solutions!”
How can we express our opinions without being aggressive or generating negative reactions?.
Without a doubt, communication is one of the most important tools that any professional has, because it is the channel through which you can achieve your goals not only in terms of clients, but also with respect to your team in a company. Well aware of the key role of communication, the lecturer on EAE’s Master in Human Resources Management,, Georgina Barquin, gives an overview of the issue of giving opinions at business meetings, as well as some valuable tips.
Are you ready to hear her advice? Let’s get started!
This article was originally published in the 9th edition of EAE Business School’s Talent Alumni Review. Click here to download the full magazine.
- Separate the person from the situation. Before saying what you think, particularly if the issue causes you internal conflict, separate the person from the situation. Focus on the data available and explore possible solutions.
- Use suitable phrases. Use terms that focus on the solution and avoid blaming anybody implicitly. Emphasize that you are just expressing a personal point of view, not an absolute truth. Using conditional language (“I would like”, “We could see”, etc.) is more conciliatory than phrases that express an obligation or extremely imperative structures.
- Focus on the data. Use an approach to share your point of view in a non-aggressive way and, moreover, get people to talk openly about a tricky subject. To do so, describe the situation placing more emphasis on the data rather than the interpretations that this data may have.
- Appoint a moderator. Including a moderator can help to resolve potential conflicts in meetings. They can ensure that the agenda, timings and turn-taking are better managed.