From time to time we have to bring people bad news. Luckily, we also have good news to bring them now and then, so all is not lost. But how do we make sure that we take advantage of good news, and we minimize the impact of bad news?
Bringing the Bad
If you’ve got some bad news to tell someone, there are a lot of ways to do this. There is the hamburger method (good news, bad news, good news), but that is not what I want to tell you. Mixing good and bad news is fine, but there is something else which is far more important when it comes to bad news.
When you have bad news, the best thing to do is to spill ALL the bad news at once. Get it off your plate as soon as possible. This accomplishes two things:
- It will take a load off of your shoulders. Walking around with bad news, not having shared it with the people it concerns, is a stressful situation you do not want to be in.
- It makes for a short, effective and efficient way of dealing with the problem. It may not make you the most likeable person at that moment, but it makes sure you don’t have to bring more bad news the next day.
Psychologically, people tend to forget bad news and remember good news. That is why ‘there is no such thing as bad publicity’. In the long run.
In the short run, a heap of bad news is annoying. But the long run is more important. So get your bad news off of your chest as fast as you can, and get it all off.
People have a tendency to drag bad news. If you battle this tendency, you’ll be much more effective at what you are doing and it will also help you build great relationships.
Bringing the Good
Where people have a tendency to drag out bringing bad news, their enthusiasm usually leads them to spill good news all at once. That is a shame, because then the effect of the good news is short-lived.
When you bring good news, you want to drip it. Tiny bits at a time, with time in between the bits. This accomplishes two things again:
- It will create a good feeling for yourself, since you have ‘more’ good news to bring than bad news. Each drip should make you feel good.
- Other people will pick this up, and the overall picture will be that there is mostly good news. So other people will get a good feeling for the project, business or whatever else it is you are dripping good news about.
Good news thus needs to be stretched to make its impact last longer. Use this technique to your advantage!
Wed, Jun 9, 2010
Becoming Successful