Building Effective Professional Relationships

There are two fundamental kinds of communication that take place among people in all work settings: those that promote connection and relationships (intimate), and those that
serve to get things accomplished (strategic or task-oriented). One way of communicating emphasizes mutuality and interest in knowing the other more — “I like or care about you as another human being.” The other involves the use of hierarchical power or influence in the service of getting things done — “This has to be done this way in this time frame.” All communication requires the right balance of both, and many difficulties in working with others result from not finding that balance.

Through lectures, videotapes, demonstrations, and practicum experiences, participants will learn a powerful model for improving relationships in the organizational setting. The
program is designed to heighten participants’ awareness concerning use of these two interaction modes, understand their preferred mode, and to explore the ways in which difficulties in relationships are often a function of inadequate use of one of the modes. The program’s structure provides multiple opportunities to practice how to use both modes in a balanced and integrated way, as well as time to explore specific individual experiences.

Benefits

Participants will:

• Learn to distinguish and utilize both modes of interaction, thereby increasing the effectiveness of their communication.
  
• Gain insight into where and why they experience difficulty in working with certain colleagues or clients, and improve their communication skills with those people.
  
• Understand and appreciate their own communication style and preferences, and become more flexible in their ability to balance attending to task and attending to relationship.
  
• Increase their ability to hold difficult conversations with others.
• Have an opportunity for extensive practice.
  

Participants

This program is open to anyone seeking to improve their ability to manage relationships in a professional setting, whether as a coach, consultant, executive or manager.

Coaches - This program qualifies for International Coach Federation (ICF) Continuing Coaching Education (CCE) credits. Please see the Continuing Education page for full details.

“…The way that I am developing for myself fundamentally springs from GISC’s view that we humans must see and value
that which is positive and valuable about each of us on a very specific basis before we can undertake any real growth, and
that this seeing needs to be repeated until the foundation of appreciation and gratitude is established. Further, that creating this foundation for ourselves and others is the basis for all relationships, including that most important relationship -- the one we have with ourselves. Thus I now practice with myself and others the seeing of what is good and, while my life is not a constant upward slope, my face is more full and more free. That is the value I have received at GISC.”

Jim Singer