A Common Misconception? - [website] Published: 26th of May 2011 by: Debbie Engelbrecht
I wonder how many people actually think that being assertive is the same as being aggressive, pushy, bolshy and/or loud.
A delegate at one of our workshops recently mentioned that she did not want to do Assertiveness Training as she didn’t want to change who she was.
I think that this type of misconception is a problem in SA business today so I’d like to take a few minutes to give you the rundown from the Staff Training perspective.
Being assertive simply means that your contribution to society is noted and appreciated and that you take your rightful place alongside everyone else out there.
In other words that not only do you remain who you want to be, you even get to communicate this to those around you. Being assertive especially means that you know your boundaries and you are comfortable communicating them.
How often does it happen that you walk away from a situation and that after hours, days or even weeks you have a blow up that could have been avoided if the original issue had been addressed?
The fact is aggression normally only manifests after ineffectual communication, the amount of time it takes for the aggression to surface differs from person to person…as does the amount of and the target of the aggression.
A perfect example of how aggression could manifest as a result of not being assertive enough would be a manager who asks for assistance and seldom gets the standard and or commitment she or he is looking for.
This same manager would continue to guide, mentor and sometimes fix the errors of a staff member they quietly think is simply not committed or motivated enough. Eventually the manager would become rude, abusive and finally downright dismissive of the staff member. Either passively or actively. Everyone loses!
Had the manager become more assertive right from the start though, and set the boundaries and called and implemented the consequences where and when necessary, there may well have been a different outcome.
An individual’s level of assertiveness fluctuates from situation to situation and even from person to person. Factors that influence how assertive we are include childhood conditioning, gender and cultural experiences. Being assertive in the workplace can save you hours and put you on the fast track to a promotion.
After all, if you have the solution but it’s never being heard…book your workshop today.
