Straight Talk: Delivering Bad News
Bad news is Bad news. It will always be a struggle for someone expecting it and for the one delivering it. Especially when the news your'e giving would definitely affect the recipient's future. There are a lot of considerations, among others, the most important is how you will be able to keep the receiver's dignity intact. Browsing on the web, I found this useful article on the Top 7 Tips on Delivering Bad News : No Sandwiches: Avoid putting the bad news between good news. The old good-bad-good combination only confuses people. Many victims of this approach walk away remembering the good news and forget the bad. The value is lost and you will likely have to deliver the bad news again! If the news is especially bad, such as a written warning, limit the meeting to the warning. You can always cover good stuff later. No Dancing: Just get it over with. If the person is about to get blasted, he won't benefit from a discussion about his weekend. If he knows something i...