Master the Art of Dealing with People
Dealing with people can get on my nerves. My tolerance level for people dropped to low this morning. It annoys me when people fall short of my expectations (even if I am not sure what those expectations may be. Working as a freelance writer requires me to deal with a wide range of personalities, and some days I just do NOT feel like doing that. Today happens to be one of those days – or almost was.
I thought about threatening a coup if my expectations were not met, but that would require sitting down and writing out my expectations and I was looking for instant gratification. I mulled over the idea of throwing a temper tantrum, but was too tired to follow through on that either. The only thing left to do was to accept that I have to deal with people as a writer and sometimes that means facing the negative situations with a smile and moving on.
Top Secrets for Dealing with People (and YES, Clients Count as People)
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1. Stay on the positive side. Let the words that you speak – about the client, the job or the individual situation – be words that are good, positive and uplifting. Just using the word positive is not enough (like when my son says “I am positive that you are an idiot” to his brother). If you are unable to say anything nice then just keep the words to yourself until you can.
2. Keep things professional (by refusing to take them personal). Make the active choose to see the actions, decisions and comments of others from a professional point of view. Take your personal feelings and emotions out of it or back away from the situation until you can. This is the perfect time for a long walk along the creek or a hot bath – at least in my experience.
3. Seek the wisdom of others. Turn to your mentors, colleagues or others in your niche to work through the situation – when you get to a place where you can do it in a positive and professional manner. The fresh eyes and opinions may be able to stir up a unique answer that might otherwise have been missed.
4. Say a little prayer. Sit back and breathe – then take some time to pray for the individual, the company and the situation. Bad feelings are hard to conjure up when you are feeling your heart and mind with prayers.
People are everywhere – so you might as well start learning how to deal with them now. Freelance writing requires that you deal with people of all shapes, sizes and attitudes and sometimes that means you see the ugly nature of some of those people. A few simple steps can keep you moving down the path to your successful writing career by helping you master the art of dealing with people along the way.
