We’re in circumstances no one has experienced in this century, if ever. With a global economy nearly at a full stop, no one really knows what happens next. Once the proverbial switch gets flipped back on, how will you handle the diverse needs, reactions and expectations of others? Whether you work from a home office, in a classroom, or an executive suite, one thing is certain. To bring your best solutions forward, your diplomacy must be in excellent working order.
Your people skills have never been in such high demand.
It’s difficult to imagine how anyone will survive the next few months well if they aren’t meaningfully connected to the people around them. We’re being asked to stay away from each other. But for most, it has awakened them to just how much we truly need each other in times of crisis. Have you found this to be the case in your own home and community?
Introverts may love the alone time. Extroverts may struggle more with the social distancing. But we’ve proved time and time again that we do our very best work when our strengths are placed in high demand.
In the last few posts, we’ve talked about your optimism, your ingenuity, and your preparedness. Whether these things are innate strengths of your inner design or they’re learned skills, we very much need them for such a time as this. And here’s another thing we sorely need: YOUR DIPLOMACY. Bringing people back together after a prolonged separation will be wonderful, complicated and full of “opportunities” to be a stellar diplomat. If you want to bridge the gap between the needs of those around you and the resources available, your diplomacy is essential.
Here are some examples of where your diplomacy is needed:
- You have employees anxious to get back to work, but you have the operating cash to only bring back a fraction of them. How will you choose? And how will you explain your decisions?
- Your local government says no school for the rest of the year, but your friends and their kids are ready to meet up and be done with all the distancing. How will you communicate about the invites to which you say “yes” or “no” ?
- Your parents announce that the big family gathering that was cancelled in March is now on for May. Will it be anxiety and stress, or empathy and responsibility that help you navigate the decision about going?
If diplomatic solutions are an important part of how to navigate the next few months, consider this: Your diplomacy is either a design-driven strength or a learned skill. That means, it’s either developed as a natural part of the way you function. Or it’s a learned skill you can pick up from following the lead of good mentors. Are your diplomatic endeavors taken on with relative ease? Or do you have to tackle sticky situations with concerted effort? It’s all good, either way. But it’s important to know whether it’s one of your inner strengths or not.
Develop your diplomacy according to inner design.
How will you bring your very best solutions forward when difficult situations are impacting the lives of so many?
First, discover your inner design. Are you an “NF”?
If you are an “NF,” diplomatic solutions are one of your specialties.
Think of diplomacy, not in the limited terms of politics and mediation, but as the interpersonal skills of the NF. They use it in building all relationships. In their diplomatic efforts, they display their people skills, tact, and perseverance to accomplish important goals and bring people together on important issues.
What’s more, an NF’s diplomacy has a different effect on them than it would have on someone of another inner design. The fulfillment they feel, when people are brought together or the most amount of people experience the best result, creates a significant sense of achievement.
Developing the NF strength of diplomacy:
- Study people and their complexities.
- Practice the use of language and communication. The world of human interaction opens to the person who has honed the skills of proficient communication.
- Understand the emotions that will motivate you to becoming a diplomatic expert. Positive, helpful emotions arise when you motivate others, solve problems, handle conflict, quiet anger in others or deal well with almost any human disturbance. It’s these emotions that will motivate you to finely tune your diplomacy even further.
If you are NOT an “NF,” your people skills can still be learned.
Many excellent leaders in the area of diplomacy do their best work around the dinner table, rather than a conference table. Find someone in your personal or professional life that has demonstrated their diplomatic prowess. Ask them to give you their very best tips.
By design, we bring our best solutions forward when the situation calls for us to use our inner strengths. Visit our website at www.innerkinetics.com. And grab a copy of InnerKinetics – Your Blueprint to Excellence and Happiness to learn more about the strength you possess by design.
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