The Me > You > Us Process
You are on time for a meeting with a coworker. Three minutes pass. You’re wondering how long you should wait.
This isn’t the first time.
Don’t they respect your time?
You’re always on time, or at least let people know you’re going to be late.
Seven minutes later, your coworker walks in.
You can hear the words coming out of your mouth as if someone else is speaking…
“You’re late again!”
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re always late!”
“Whatever. Do you want to meet or not?”
We’ve all been in situations where we feel someone is “wrong,” and our emotions take over before we get their side of the story, and our mouth gets ahead of our brain.
But, there is a better way to communicate.
So we are not reacting like a reflexive bundle of nerves.
So people can better understand our point of view (and we, theirs).
So we get more of what we want.
I started Confident Communicators, LLC to help us all (myself included) overcome all the terrible, ineffective ways we were taught to communicate, the ways that separate and alienate us, that prevent us from getting our needs met.
Our Confident Communicator Program teaches people how to communicate in ways that connect us, not just with other people, but with ourselves as well.
We teach the Me > You > Us process.
It’s a way that helps us get our needs met while also meeting the needs of the people we’re speaking with.
The basic process is:
Step One: Ask, What’s Going On With Me? (What am I feeling and needing right now?)
Step Two: What’s Up With You? (What are you feeling and needing right now?)
Step Three: Can We Talk About Us? (Let’s focus on our mutual objectives)
You can use it anywhere, anytime. It can be used for a knockdown, blow-up argument, or for texting. You can use it at work, or at home. With your boss, the CEO, or your kids, your neighbor, you SO, even in your own head, with yourself.
It’s not hard to learn or to use, but it does take practice.
