How To Have a Great Gripe Session

Have you ever led a meeting that turned into a gripe session?  It can be very scary.    If handled well though,  gripe sessions can help you identify and overcome obstacles to goal,  provide powerful boosts to both  morale and productivity, and get you closer to desired bottom line results.

If an individual on your team is griping a lot or just a bit, invite him to do more of it at your next one-on-one meeting with him.  Just say something like,  “Okay – I know it’s a tough time.  It’s hot out there.  You are bound to be tired.  What else?  Let’s take 5 minutes and list* everything we can possibly complain about.”     Then make the list with him.   You can add to the list or make suggestions, but don’t comment or explain or justify or argue about anything he mentions.  Just write it all down for now. 

People are usually shocked that you would allow for this.  They usually run out of things to complain about before the 5 minutes is up and they are shocked by that as well.  And they feel relief.  And appreciation that you care enough to listen.

After allowing a few minutes for him to enjoy the relief,  take this very important next step so that he doesn’t STAY in complaint mode.    Ask the question, “What do you want instead?”

Maybe he can easily get  “what he wants instead”  now that he has identified it or now that he has freed  up new energy  by blowing off steam.

But he may also need your help with prioritizing the issues and then designing and implementing solutions which you can follow up on in your regular one-on-one meetings with him.

The same process (starting in paragraph #3) can be used in a team meeting.  It’s obviously a more challenging facilitation and involves more complex follow up, but if done well, it has the same tremendous potential impact on morale and productivity.

If you’ve never done this or seen it done before,  work with your coach on planning and preparation for the planned and the unplanned gripe session.

The ability to handle such situations will make you a more confident, powerful and respected manager or leader.

copyright 2010 – Business Class Inc

*Note the bolded “list“.  These can’t be long, drawn out explanations because you only have 5 minutes, right?

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