The Communication Problem Solver 13. Managers need top-flight communication skills to keep their staffs productive and collaborative. But often, those who manage lack the ability to get things back on track once miscommunication occurs. This book helps readers analyze their communication skills and challenges and explains how they can use simple problem-solving techniques to resolve the people issues that derail productivity at work. Easily accessible and filled with real world management examples. This no-nonsense guide is packed with practical tools to help any manager be immediately effective, as well as a handy list of common communication problems and corresponding solutions | How to Use Your Process Skills to Prevent and Solve Communication Problems Judging reflects a person s opinion. It is not fact. Labeling someone causes tension between you and the other person and with others who may be aware of the tag. So why do we judge Judging is a shortcut to communicating because it assumes others have the same definition of the label. That may or may not be true but judging is a dead end when trying to address a performance issue and help people succeed. Judgments can be positive or negative. Isn t it interesting that we are aware of when other people are judging us Have you ever been labeled Sometime in your life someone may have branded you with a descriptor that was repeatedly mentioned usually to other people. It may have been something you liked such as prez for president the family writer the artist or the smart one. Or it may have been something you didn t like such as the scrag clumsy one idiot a klutz or self-absorbed. In this chapter we address the latter type of labeling or making judgments the kind people do not like. These judgments are impractical for team building and productivity. They cannot be solved logically as stated and they damage relationships and teamwork. Negative Judgments Mean Unresolved Conflict A clue that interpersonal conflict exists is when people judge someone in a negative light. When there is labeling or name calling it is a fair bet that communication is not taking place and neither is conflict resolution. Oftentimes managers are upset or even angry with employees when they judge. Some typical comments from managers include She s got a selfesteem problem The younger generation has no work ethic The older generation has no technology expertise and She s Mt. Vesuvius. We talk about Mt. Vesuvius in Chapter 9 on coaching. Employees also make negative judgments. They may complain and blame their managers and coworkers. They often lament that their managers cannot or will not help them with their coworker .
