Could You Speak Up Please?
I’m working from Spain at the moment and one of the things I love this country is the animated way that I see people talk; hands gesticulating wildly, faces alive with emotion all seemingly with something to say.
It got me thinking about the work I do with clients who want to be able to speak up, be heard and truly have a voice. I suspect that some of my Spanish friends feel the same especially in the workplace. what stops us from speaking up, saying what we want to say and delivering messages but make a difference?
One of the factors is power. According to Megan Reitz in her book Speak Up, “power affects conversations, which affect culture, which affects power” – you’ve been there I suspect :you want to challenge the boss’s boss but its not encouraged, the conversations don’t happen, you lose power and motivation, and sometimes these are conversations that are vital to the organisations success.
Feeling safe (psychologically) at work has never been so important in the wake of COVID, being able to say how you feel, what’s not working and indeed ideas for improvement are vital in our recovery as individuals and business.
In recent research from the University of Pennsylvania the researchers explained “Suppressing issues can be painful. People get exhausted. They don’t get to be their authentic selves.”
In addition as we welcome back our teams and rebuild those dynamics we need everyone to be able to say what they want to say without fear of retribution, feeling they’re being labelled negatively ( difficult/too challenging etc) or not good enough to have an opinion.
When faced with a should I/shouldn’t I speak up moment Megan Reitz had this nifty model: TRUTH
*Tap tiles below for more information
T
How much do you TRUST your opinion?
R
What are the RISKS in speaking up/not?
U
Do you UNDERSTAND the politics at play?
T
Are you aware on the TITLES you attach to others and vice versa and how that shapes what you say?
H
Do you know HOW to choose the right words for the right person at the right time?
What I like about this is it asks you to consider and prepare which you can do prior to a meeting but even in the throes of the boardroom we can run a quick checklist to help us decide.
As with all these techniques its practice that helps us overcome the imposter syndrome and uncertainty and using models like this to help us diagnose what’s holding us back and then working on that roadblock.
If you’d like our worksheet on “How to get your messages to really land” then fill out the form below to request your copy.
Hasta luego.
We have 20 years of experience and expertise and look forward to helping you find your coaching solution. Request a callback to speak to a member of our team today.