: Bill Eddy LCSW Esq., Megan Hunter MBA
: BIFF at Work Your Guide to Difficult Workplace Communication
: Unhooked Books
: 9781950057160
: 1
: CHF 10.50
:
: Sonstiges
: English
: 176
: DRM
: PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
: ePUB
Hostile emails, letters and conversations can drain inordinate amounts of time, emotional energy and expense in the workplace. For over a dozen years, the BIFF method of communicating has helped thousands of people calm conflicts and create clear communication in response to misinformation, blame, and unnecessary anger in writing or in-person. This new book focuses exclusively on workplace conflicts-internal and external, with instructions in how to use the four-step method with numerous examples of what works and what does not work to demonstrate potential pitfalls. It also includes tips on how to coach co-workers and others on writing effective BIFF responses to customers, clients, employees and managers-instead of becoming consumed in unhealthy back-and-forth conversations. Using BIFF with toxic teammates, workplace bullies, and with threatening customers and clients can reduce risk of lawsuits and complaints and make everyone feel more confident in workplace relationship. BIFF is simple, practical, and can help you get the communication outcomes you want by diffusing tension, containing conflict, and establishing professional boundaries. Brief, Informative, Friendly and Firm. Use BIFF to lower your blood pressure, turn down the conflict flame, and restore your confidence.
CHAPTER 2
How to Write a BIFF Communication
BIFF communications are:
BRIEF
INFORMATIVE
FRIENDLY
FIRM
They help you focus on what is important and leave everything else out. They are designed to be in writing, but you can use this approach for an in-person conversation too. However, we recommend that you focus on writing good BIFF communications first, because they give you time to think before sending.
Here is the reasoning behind each of these four principles:
BRIEF
This keeps the communication totally focused on what is necessary and nothing more. Generally, BIFF communications are a paragraph, such as 3-5 sentences. This isn’t a rigid rule, but the longer the BIFF is the higher the risk of triggering or re-triggering the other person’s defensiveness—especially if they are defensive much of the time. This also helps you avoid getting bogged down in writing a long explanation of why you are right and the other person is wrong. We want to steer clear of that type of interaction, which just goes downhill. Occasionally, BIFF communications may be a full page if there are important details to explain, but this should be rare. This also shouldn’t be so brief that its abrupt. Sometimes people want to write a single sentence or half sentence or word. (The answer is NO!) That usually backfires and escalates the conflict rather than calming it.
INFORMATIVE
It should provide straight information related to the issue at hand. It should not be emotional, judgmental, opinionated, defensive, or criticizing. Just straight information. Since it should be brief, this information could be contained in a sentence or two in most cases. Ideally, the information is logical information, such as what time something occurred or occurs; where something may take place; and how a task may be done. It may help to start a sentence with: “For your information…” This keeps it focused on the actual information that needs to be conveyed. In a sense, you want to appeal to their left brain problem-solving thinking, rather than to their right brain defensive reactions. This is where you decide how they will respond to you, if at all. Straight information often ends the need for further discussion.
FRIENDLY
This may seem like the last thing you want to