OVERVIEW:
Four management consultants listened to thousands of hours of workplace conversations and they discovered that while most were routine, normal, and casual, some of them went badly, quickly, and they wondered why. Their conclusions became their bestselling book, Crucial Conversations: Tools For Talking When Stakes Are High (now in its third edition, with over five million copies sold). This concept became the subject of several sequel books and worldwide training programs, all built around their definition of when a conversation goes “crucial” for one or both people, with three recognizable elements: high stakes, strong emotions, and differing opinions.
Incorporating the ideas of “crucial” conversations into Dr. Albrecht’s own framework teachings, this session on communications and de-escalation will give library leaders and staff at all levels the tools to improve employee safety; enhance professionalism; decrease complaints; minimize liability; improve service and communication outcomes; increase staff morale; and lessen both staff and patron stress.
Knowing why and when a conversation turns “crucial” can help us de-escalate and persuade patrons into voluntary compliance. This training can help keep all library staff safe, provide the tools they need to be successful communicators with patrons, and also help internal communications and interactions between employee work teams.
LEARNING AGENDA:
- Learn to recognize, quickly and accurately, the three elements of a “crucial” conversation.
- Learn how walking away without solving the issues, or handling these crucial conversations poorly, only makes things worse with certain patrons.
- Know how and why your own sense of internal anger can move externally and interfere with a successful conversation. “Anger management” is not as effective as “anger mastery.”
- How to move away from our natural inclinations of “fight or flight” and get back to the more useful “listen and speak.”
This 60-minute overview session on how to respond step-by-step to service situations in the library is another in our “Essential Librarian Series,” designed to be shown to new staff and leaders and to provide a refresher for all who work in the library. The presentation slides will be available to all who participate.
About the Speaker
DR. STEVE ALBRECHT. Since 2000, Dr. Steve Albrecht has trained thousands of library employees in 28+ states, live and online, in service, safety, and security. His programs are fast, entertaining, and provide tools that can be put to use immediately in the library workspace with all types of patrons. In 2015, the ALA published his book, Library Security: Better Communication, Safer Facilities. His new book, The Safe Library: Keeping Users, Staff, and Collections Secure, was just published by Rowman & Littlefield. Steve holds a doctoral degree in Business Administration (D.B.A.), an M.A. in Security Management, a B.A. in English, and a B.S. in Psychology. He is board-certified in HR, security management, employee coaching, and threat assessment. He has written 25 books on business, security, and leadership topics. He lives in Springfield, Missouri, with six dogs and two cats. More on The Safe Library at thesafelibrary.com. Follow on X (Twitter) at @thesafelibrary and on YouTube @thesafelibrary. Dr. Albrecht’s professional website is drstevealbrecht.com.
