How to Master the Martial Art of Communication
Relationships don’t always follow a smooth and even path, do they? Perhaps you’ve noticed that more in the current climate, when emotions are running high. Are you having to contend with even bigger rocks in the road and more rapids to cross than usual?
We know that the crisis is indiscriminately putting pressure on everyone regardless of whether you’re an MD, a first line manager or a frontline worker and unfortunately, when we’re under pressure, there’s a tendency for us to take shortcuts in how we communicate which can have disastrous consequences.
- Egos get damaged
- Hurt is caused
- Things are never quite the same again
- Relationships collapse
For healthy and productive workplaces, how well we traverse these uneven roads could be the difference between success and failure because for most of us, having a stand up row, an altercation or even just a moody moment with a colleague will probably take us further away from what we’re ultimately trying to achieve.
So if you want to keep moving forward towards your goals, it’s important to learn a new, more effective strategy that will neutralise negative situations and redirect energy in a way that will guarantee great outcomes.
Enter Verbal Aikido - the martial art of communication
Verbal Aikido applies the spirit of Aikido and the same tried and tested principles to the art of communication. Learn how to do this and you’ll never have to regret an argument again because you’ll have turned what could have been a fight into what will appear like a dance, no more shouting and no more arguments that no one can win.
Being skilled at Verbal Aikido means you’ll be able to handle disagreements in ways that will increase your chances of success.
So what are the principles of Verbal Aikido?
There are four key steps in your Aikido response which will help you keep a cool head and win over your opponent and regain harmony:
- Acknowledge what you have heard
- Interact with respect
- Keep negative emotions out of the way
- Invite (more) information
Like the real martial art, it takes practice and skill. Many of the core skills for this are covered within our range of coaching and management programmes and qualifications (suitable for all levels) and the main ‘Verbal Aikido’ tool is covered in detail in our Accredited Internal Coach (AIC®) programme.
Action
Consider which conversations you're having where it would be beneficial to take a different approach... and try using the four principles of Verbal Aikido in your next conversation.
Remember you choose how to react based on intellect, and you respond because of emotion. Take out the negative emotion and you can avoid unnecessary upset, which we can all agree we could do without right now!
If you would like to learn the art of Verbal Aikido and many other brilliant strategies that will improve relationships, communication, engagement and morale, download our brochure to find the right programme for you.
