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Face to face / Virtual public schedule & onsite training. Restaurant lunch included at STL venues.
From £495 List price £650
- 1 day Instructor-led workshop
- Courses never cancelled
- Restaurant lunch
Syllabus
Who is this course for?
Difficult people are not deliberately difficult. They are fulfilling a need in themselves, conscious or otherwise. Behind every stubborn viewpoint, criticism, or complaint is a want for something to be balanced. Handling difficult people is accepting that this person has a differing viewpoint to you, for very good reasons of their own. It is important to put this person’s wants and needs into words which provide both you and them with an understanding of why things seem difficult. To then show that you are with them on the journey as long as they consider your proposals as well. This course prepares the delegate for that objective and covers anyone from Directorship level to the Shop Floor.
Benefits
Following this workshop participants will be able to:- Understand other people's behaviour patterns
- Raise levels of self-awareness
- Prevent problems escalating by becoming more aware
- Negotiate solutions rather than partition blame
- Boost courage to deal with difficult situations responsibly
Course Syllabus
You and Your Identity
Who are you? Why is the other person difficult?
Describing yourself - How do others see you?
Presenting external behaviours
Are you visually, analytically or emotionally orientated?
Recognising other people's behaviour patterns: why they operate as they do
Changing Mindsets
Letting them make the decisions
Matching needs
Giving and receiving feedback the right way
Motivating others to change
Listen to your intuition, not your old patterns
Techniques for Change
What happens when you act carelessly, carefully or caringly?
Ken Pierce's Five Fabulous factors
Engendering respect between you
Uncovering hidden drives: The Gestalt of Seeing what you and the other person are unconsciously doing
Handling conflictual premises
The Requisites for Planning anew: What will you do?
Asking yourself why in a positive way, without criticism, judgment
Being big enough to handle what you learn
Using body language and self-control appropriately
Are you prepared to hear the truth?
How do you help others realise what their motivations are? (The values driving their behaviour)
Remaining detached whilst being empathic
Becoming more assertive
Helping you both to come to solutions
Prices & Dates
What you get
"What do I get on the day?"
Arguably, the most experienced and highest motivated trainers.
Face-to-face training
Training is held in our modern, comfortable, air-conditioned suites.
Lunch, breaks and timing
A hot lunch is provided at local restaurants near our venues:
- Bloomsbury
- Limehouse
Courses start at 9:30am.
Please aim to be with us for 9:15am.
Browse the sample menus and view joining information (how to get to our venues).
Refreshments
Available throughout the day:
- Hot beverages
- Clean, filtered water
- Biscuits
Virtual training
Regular breaks throughout the day.
Learning tools
In-course handbook
Contains unit objectives, exercises and space to write notes
24 months access to trainers
Your questions answered on our support forum.
Training formats & Services
Training Formats & Services
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Testimonials
Queen Mary University London
Daniel Merry,
Portering & Postal Services Supervisor
Had a great day very engaging
Dealing with Difficult People
Queen Mary University London
Nino Matozan,
Residences Receptionist
The training was absolutely great, I found it very informative.
Dealing with Difficult People
Expleo
John Brady,
Operations Manager
This course was a little slow to get going but once it did I found it excellent.
Dealing with Difficult People
Learning & Development Resources
Soft Skills Blog
- How to Run Successful Appraisals with Difficult Employees
- Managing Difficult Situations
- 5 Steps to Resolve Conflict
- How to Increase Your Emotional Intelligence at Work
- Speak Up with Confidence: Guide to Assertive Communication
- How to communicate effectively
- Effective Communication Skills. 3 tips to address Conflict
- Effective Communication: Having Difficult Conversations
Training manual sample
Below are some extracts from our Dealing with Difficult People manual.
What is “difficult”?
5 signs you’re dealing with a difficult person:
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It’s all about them. Difficult people are dramatic and they are fueled by reactions from others
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They don’t do a favour without collecting. These type of people are always scheming how they can get something for nothing
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They are victims
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They can be oblivious
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They whine, blame and gossip
Difficult means different things to different people. The difficult person may be a whiner, always complaining that things aren’t fair or that everyone is against them. Or, they may be the braggart always talking about their achievements (small as they may be) and trying to maintain king-of-the-mountain status. A difficult person may also be the one who’s argumentative and seems to be “triggered” by everything. Whatever your definition, they all have one thing in common, the difficult person creates stress.
So, how do we deal with these difficult people?First, we need to recognise that the reasons for negative behaviour in anyone are complicated. It’s not a simple, one-size-fits-all explanation. Second, each type of challenging personality will have many nuances. So, as you work to adjust your approach to interacting with them,you’ll need to be flexible and may need to try a few approaches before you get it right.
Dealing with difficult people or managing challenging relationships takes self-awareness, empathy and a lot of patience!
Try reflecting on the following questions to help you understand the situations more clearly:
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Why is it difficult?
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Have you ever acted this way?
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What are the needs and wants of the other person?
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What are the priorities and attitudes that are of value to them?
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Can we see it from their perspective?
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Are we being seen as difficult?
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Do we have the right approach?
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Are we confident to share our perspectives?
Notes:
You and your Identity
Your Personal Values
Your values are the things that you believe are important in the way you live and work.
They (should) determine your priorities, and, deep down, they'reprobably the measures you use to tell if your life is turning out the way you want it to.
When the things that you do and the way you behave match your values, life is usually good – you're satisfied and content. But when these don't align with your personal values, that's when things feel... wrong.
When your values don’t align with the values of another person you work or interact with, it can often feel difficult. Understanding your personal values, and the values of the other person, can be a great strategy for building a stronger relationship and overcoming issues.
Try listing your hierarchy of values – what are the most important things to you which, if they were taken away, would be detrimental to the way you function and would compromise your passion for living, those things which you hold most dear.
Read the two examples below and reflect on the differences:
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Ambition1. Freedom
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Wealth and Prospects2. Expression
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Responsibility3. Creativity
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Animal welfare4. Dance
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Family5. Independence
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Realistic6. Carefree
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Truth7. Friends and companions
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Friends8. Health
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Healthy Living9. Travel
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Structure10. Spontaneity
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Reliability11. Performance
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Safety12. Extreme sports
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Honesty13. Painting
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Traditional ways14. Theatre-going
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Freedom15. Ideas and opportunities
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Car collection16. Autonomy
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Studies17. Making money
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Integrity18. Recognition
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Regular hours and payments 19. Lots of choice
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Socialising20. Marriage
As you can see, each person has their own set of values. The person who owns the first list might find the person who owns the second somewhat difficult to understand (though values can change.
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Where could there be some common ground?
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What pointers could Person 1 give to Person 2 about relationships if that became an issue for the latter?
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Can you see why Person 2 might find it hard to maintain long-term relationships?
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Why might person 1 feel awkward in some social situations which demand going with the flow?
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Why might procrastination become an issue for both of them?
The Johari Window
The Johari Window model is a simple and useful tool for illustrating and improving self-awareness, and mutual understanding between individuals.
The Johari Window actually represents information - feelings, experience, views, attitudes, skills, intentions, motivation, etc - within or about a person - in relation to their group, from four perspectives. The four Johari Window perspectives are called 'regions' or 'areas' or 'quadrants'. Each of these regions contains and represents the information - feelings, motivation, etc - known about the person, in terms of whether the information is known or unknown by the person, and whether the information is known or unknown by others.
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What is known by the person about him/herself and is also known by others - open area, open self, free area, free self, or 'the arena'
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What is unknown by the person about him/herself but which others know - blind area, blind self, or 'blindspot'
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What the person knows about him/herself that others do not know - hidden area, hidden self, avoided area, avoided self or 'facade'
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What is unknown by the person about him/herself and is also unknown by others - unknown area or unknown self
The Johari Window is a useful tool for evaluating and improving communication with a difficult person, because it encourages self-awareness, sharing and empathy.
The visuals below demonstrate how to increase the size of the “window” when working with a difficult person an improve communication and relationships.
Increasing self-awareness:
Increasing awareness of the other person:
Try considering the following questions in relation to the Johari Window:
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What could you share/tell to build trust and promote open communication?
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Who could you request feedback from, so you can understand more about yourself?
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How could you get the other party to tell you their wants and needs?
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Once you know the underlying issue, how can you find some areas where you match their understanding or their goal?
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