TIP #7 | You know what people want to hear
During something difficult, there are "evergreen questions" people want answered
So far I’ve presented six tips on how to begin communicating about a tough subject. The tips should help whether you’re trying to solve an issue in your personal or professional life. The tips all come from my 20+ years of experience coaching people to have a Tough Talk that solves a problem. Each one is a quick read so I recommend going back to the beginning and starting there.
Tip #1 - be brave and decide to have the difficult conversation.
Tip #2 - communicate to solve the problem.
Tip #3 - say as much as you can upfront and get it behind you.
Tip #4 - don't say everything! Leave out the unhelpful bits.
Tip #5 - use words we all understand. Be inclusive.
Tip #6 - people will make up their own facts if you don’t start talking. Get in the fray.
On to Tip #7. Now we're getting down to business and entering the meaty part of the process. At some point we have to decide what we want to actually communicate.
We've made the commitment to start the conversation, we've identified the problem we need to solve, we've begun thinking about what and how much needs to be said (and what we should leave out), so now we need make sure we’re answering the questions others are likely to ask.
I bet you have some questions in mind already; they’re the “evergreen questions” you'd probably ask someone else if the shoe was on the other foot.
Let's go back to the sample scenario we looked at in Tip # 2. Your child is on a prize winning Little League team and the parent who handles the financial details has been charged with fraud.
The head coach will need to be accountable for this situation and there are a number of questions concerned parents are going to ask. For example:
How did this happen?
- Who has ultimate authority over the team’s finances?What are you going to do to make this right?
- Will the parent be reported to authorities and / or make restitution?Are the kids going to be affected?
- Will they get to play out the rest of the season?How can we make sure this never happens again?
- What systems do we need to fix or put into place?
The coach will need to answer these questions when parents ask and potentially, when the corporate sponsor, the league management, and possibly the local newspaper comes calling too.
Here’s what I would recommend in this scenario. While the coach is putting together some solutions to repair this breach in trust, they should issue what we call a holding statement. Something like this:
Our team has discovered financial irregularities and we’re working now to get to the bottom of it.
I’m giving this situation my full attention so the kids can continue their winning season.
Once I know more, I will be back with answers and next steps.
That’ll hold (that’s why we call it a holding statement!) until there are answers to the questions above. This can be sent via email to parents, sponsors, etc., and is an effective way to show people that the coach is on top of things and addressing the problem.
Next, it’s critical to begin offering more detailed answers. It’s a helpful exercise to answer the “evergreens” but don’t stop there. There may be other topics you have to cover, depending on the situation.
Don’t forget:
Be sure to solve the problem. In this case, figure out how to restore trust between the team management and families, sponsors, and the league.
Leave out anything that is simply not helpful or purposeful. You don’t have to say everything in order to be transparent. Some things will only distract or confuse.
Don't use acronyms, buzzwords and jargon that people won’t understand so that they don’t have to spend mental energy figuring out what you mean.
If you work for an organization with professionals who manage difficult issues, keep these tips in mind so you can work together on a helpful, purposeful strategic communications plan when something happens. You’re an important part of that process too.
If you want to move on to Tip #8, here's a link. And a preview; while you’re thinking about the questions you expect to be asked, consider the “dreaded question.” You know, the one that freaks you out the most. Having a ready answer to that one will give you so much confidence! Work on it.