Meet People Where They Are

Two of my personal mantras are:

Meet people where they are.

Leave people better than you found them.

Both of these philosophies serve me incredibly well in terms of building and maintaining relationships. And I'm sure they'll help you do the same.

Meet People Where They Are:

This is all about understanding that you likely don't understand. We often don't know what someone went through even five minutes before we encounter them. 

We all know that the world has gotten busier, less predictable, and dare I say a bit crazy (I'm being nice). Everyone you know is taking on challenges you know nothing about. The core elements of meeting people where they are include:

• Empathy: As stated, we don't really know what others are going through. Assume that to be true. Picture yourself not knowing and extend grace to all you encounter.

• Listening first: Most folks are in too much of a hurry to be heard. Knowing that, let them speak. It's a great way to honor them AND get to the third point below faster.
• Prioritize understanding: Stephen Covey said the 5th habit of successful people is they seek to understand prior to being understood. This puts you in a place to respond with decency and the delicacy a situation may require.

• If you want to meet people where they are, practice those three items. If you want to truly understand people, we need to look at their behaviors. I've got an awesome solution for you that links behavior to the four elements...it's so easy to relate to when someone is being water, earth, fire, or air!

Leave people better than you found them:

Whether it's putting a smile on their face, helping them with a challenge, or simply giving them the time and/or space they need to feel heard, this is SOOOOOO easy, WHEN we choose to do it.

I personally love this mantra because it creates a tremendous ripple effect. Think about the last time you encountered a grumpy cashier at your favorite store. A quick joke, rye comment or something that changes their mood can have a lasting impact that extends to the customers that follow you. And who knows what kind of ripple that creates in other's lives as they go through their day in a much better mood.

Making these practices a habit:

It becomes very easy to implement these ideas into your everyday life when you make the decision to do so. 

All great communication starts with you and how you choose to show up. 

When we choose to show up as someone who cares about the other person, we can reduce conflict, stress, anxiety while increasing trust, openness, and understanding.

Knowing who you are and how you show up is a key element to this. Speaking of elements, do you know how you show up on the behavioral elements scale? Go check it out...it takes less than 10 minutes and costs nothing more than that. This could be the exact tool your team needs to foster better relationships, greater understanding, and less conflict.

Let me know if there is ever anything I can do for you.

Be Connected-

Terry Bean

* Double secret super cool bonus: I have 3 full assessments to gift to people. Who wants one? Message me for details.