There are 5 common difficult conversations I see time and again in school.
I asked 1,489 school leaders which of these difficult conversations they are having with their staff:
Policies not being followed – 75% reported having this conversation
Someone who wears that ‘special face’ – 66%
Lateness – 37%
Caretaker challenges – 30%
Unhelpful receptionist – 16%
None of the above – 3%
Wow! Only 3% said none of the above (and that doesn’t mean they don’t have other difficult conversations).
So if you are having any of them, you’re definitely not alone!
But they are VERY fixable. You might be thinking:
‘Ours isn’t.’
‘Sonia, you’ve not met <name>’.
‘We’ve been trying, but it’s not worth the energy anymore.’
I’m confident when I say, you can fix these issues.
Why is it so important? How long have you got?! Resolving these issues are important because:
- It’s frustrating for you.
- It’s frustrating for your team.
- It’s detracting from your children’s education.
So what can you do?
Learn how to fix them.
Everything is easier when we know how.
And if you already know how to fix them, then decide where you’re going to start.
And by the way, when I say fix I don’t mean fire them. I’m a teacher, and so difficult conversations are about giving great feedback that creates a long lasting positive change, which is better for everyone.
Spotlight Resource
Let’s load you up to fix these issues.
Option 1: The quick, easy and free option that will help: Get my free e-course: How to structure a difficult conversation for success
Option 2: The small cost, takes a bit longer that will help more: Buy my book ‘Successful Difficult Conversations in School: Improve your team’s performance, behaviour and attitude with kindness and success’.
Option 3: A bit more expensive, takes about the same time as the book and will make you so much better, dare I say brilliant, at having these conversations: Book onto our ‘Successful difficult conversations training day’.
And if you’d like to explore the 5 common issues, check out this short video 5 difficult conversations that exist in almost every school