Competent Communication and Dealing with Difficult People with Jonathan Robinson & Sam Elliston
Original Air Date Wednesday, August 31, 2022
There are times in all of our lives when we wish we would have said something differently or changed the way we reacted to something or someone. But, truth be told, very few of us have acquired the communication skills to express ourselves fully to the people we come into contact with, especially when it comes to a loved one.
To shine a light on how to hone our communication skills and truly empathize with those around us, Positive Psychology Podcast Host Lisa Cypers Kamen speaks with two authors about strategies for competent communication skills and how to deal with difficult people. Jonathan Robinson describes the key tenets from his book, More Love, Less Conflict: A Communication Playbook for Couples and strategies for couples looking for more intimacy and love. Sarah (Sam) Elliston shares the story of her realization that she was a difficult person and her tips for dealing with difficult people.
Jonathan Robinson — Competent Communication:
- In his book, More Love, Less Conflict: A Communication Playbook for Couples, Jonathan writes about avoiding WMDs aka Widgets of Mass Destruction. [1:56]
- The top 5 things NOT to do when talking to your partner. [4:01]
- Communication strategies for gaining a greater connection with others and overcoming conflict. [6:53]
- Questions that lead to instant intimacy in just 5-minutes. [14:15]
- Learned skills to get in touch with your feelings and double the love in your life. [19:02]
- Jonathan Robinson shares the magical mantra he traveled 18,000 miles to hear. [23:03]
Jonathan Robinson is a psychotherapist, best-selling author of ten books, and a professional speaker from Northern California. He has reached over 250 million people around the world with his practical methods, and his work has been translated into 47 languages. In addition, Mr. Robinson has made numerous appearances on the Oprah show and CNN, as well as other national TV talk shows. He has spent over 35 years studying the most practical and powerful methods for personal and professional development.
Book: More Love, Less Conflict: A Communication Playbook for Couples
Finding Happiness
@DeeperHappiness on Twitter
Sam Elliston — Dealing with Difficult People:
- Sam Elliston shares a personal success story of no longer being a defensive, difficult person. [28:12]
- How to identify difficult people and how to speak with them without inciting drama. [30:16]
- Sam contends that difficult people don’t know they are difficult. [35:37]
- In her book, Lessons from a Difficult Person: How to Deal with People Like Us, Sam includes tools and exercises to help us deal with difficult people. [43:06]
Sarah (Sam) Elliston is an expert in the art of Dealing with Difficult People. She is a top workshop leader and a member of the faculty of the William Glasser Institute, which espouses “Reality Therapy” to foster behavioral change. Her instructional career began long before she even became aware that she was herself a “difficult person,” traits that began in Lincoln MA, where she grew up. For more than 30 years, she has been teaching and training, first as a high school teacher in Ohio and Cincinnati—and then as an administrator in the not-for-profit sector. She holds a BA in International Relations from the University of Maine and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Brown University, spent 23 years with United Way’s Volunteer Center, coordinating volunteers for city government, training local volunteer coordinators and board volunteers, and managing the volunteer program for United Way.
Book: Lessons from a Difficult Person: How to Deal with People Like Us
This episode of Harvesting Happiness Talk Radio about competent communication and difficult people is sponsored by:
Better Help Online Therapy — Want more skills to deal with life’s curveballs? Consider giving therapy a try. Find a professional licensed therapist in 48 hours on their secure worldwide platform at Better Health Online Therapy. There is no driving, no parking, no waiting, and no hassle. Harvesting Happiness listeners get 10% off their first month of online therapy at BetterHelp.com/HarvestingHappiness.
Are We Happy Yet? Eight Keys to Unlocking a Joyful Life — A boot camp manual for greater emotional fitness. Happiness waits for no one and sometimes we all need support. What is getting in the way of your happiness right now?
H–Factor: Where is Your Heart? — Lisa’s documentary film explores the journey of human happiness. Emotions are contagious and happiness is a universally desired state. We tend to forget we all have the freedom to be happy or the liberty to be miserable each day.
“Most of us learn how to be in relationship from early models. Oftentimes, those are not the best communication models.” @LisaKamen on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet “When I ask people what they want from their relationships most people want to be seen, heard, and respected.” @LisaKamen on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“Expressing appreciation rules. It's foreplay.” @LisaKamen on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“A thousand Facebook friends doesn't really equal one good friend.” @DeeperHappiness on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet “20% of couples look at their smartphone during sex.” @DeeperHappiness on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“A lot of times we don't know what is good communication because we are surrounded by people who taught us to communicate through the blame, complain, and shame model.” @DeeperHappiness on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“Studies show the #1 predictor of how happy a couple is the number of appreciations they give to each other.” @DeeperHappiness on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet “Conflict and disagreements are inevitable. Suffering is not.” @DeeperHappiness on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“I didn't know I was difficult until I was 50.” — Sam Elliston on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“Difficult people probably don’t know what they are doing. They don’t know how they are impacting other people.” — Sam Elliston on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet“We are often unaware of our actions and our words and those are the easiest to change.” — Sam Elliston on @HHTalkRadio Click To Tweet
CONTINUE YOUR JOURNEY
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