Building Better Work Relationships: New Techniques for Results-Oriented Communication

In complex organizations, results depend on people working together well. When differences are approached thoughtfully, they become a source of strength rather than friction.

Your ability to build strong interpersonal connections and establish genuine trust is one of the most powerful drivers of professional success. This workshop prepares you to become a more "conscious communicator," someone who cultivates self-awareness, reads situations accurately, and applies purposeful communication strategies. You will identify your relational style, recognize your strengths and areas for growth, and develop the practical skills to work productively alongside people with very different perspectives and approaches.

How You Will Benefit:

• Build stronger rapport and earn the trust of colleagues across your organization
• Identify the foundational competencies that support lasting professional relationships
• Develop greater flexibility in how you think, respond, and adapt to challenging situations
• Reduce miscommunication and conflict by sharpening your listening and interpretation skills
• Influence and motivate others toward high performance through connection and credibility
• Learn to use direct and indirect communication more strategically and accurately
• Build self-esteem and confidence through a deeper understanding of your own communication patterns
• Identify the strengths, vulnerabilities, and opportunities present in your current work relationships
• Understand how values, beliefs, attitudes, and perceptual frameworks shape professional interactions
• Explore the role of emotions and emotional intelligence in the workplace
• Apply the core communication cycle: observe, listen, analyze, plan, and communicate

What You Will Cover:

Effective Work Relationships

• How productive work relationships are built and sustained over time
• Recognizing the behaviors that either support or undermine your professional relationships
• Conducting an honest assessment of your current relationships and their quality

Communication and Perceptions

• The connection between worldview, perception, and how we relate to colleagues
• Common trust-breaking behaviors and how to address and repair them
• The five axioms of conscious communication and why they matter
• Using mirroring and rapport-building to create alignment

Emotions and Emotional Intelligence

• Social intelligence and the concept of multiple intelligences in professional contexts
• Assessing your own emotional and social intelligence profile
• The five core domains of emotional intelligence and their application at work
• Specific strategies for improving relationships through emotional intelligence

Building Better Relationships with Yourself and Others

• Integrating perception, worldview, and emotional intelligence into a coherent self-understanding
• The role of self-awareness, self-esteem, and self-concept in how you relate to others
• Case study exploration of communication and relational styles

Relationship Building

• Recognizing and managing assumptions in order to foster genuine workplace trust
• Proactively building and sustaining trust across your professional network
• Cultivating and consistently demonstrating a constructive, positive professional attitude

Expressing Needs Within Work Relationships

• Communicating needs clearly and influencing others with integrity
• Completing an interpersonal needs inventory to clarify priorities
• The verbal and nonverbal dimensions of assertive communication
• Creating an influential SWOT Profile (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) for your professional relationships

Relational Communication

• Identifying your dominant communication style and understanding how you most often relate
• Strengthening verbal and nonverbal communication skills for greater impact
• Applying direct and indirect messages for more flexible and effective communication
• Using feedback and strategic questioning to better understand others and their needs

Relational Listening

• Understanding common listening barriers and how they damage professional relationships
• Creating a personal listening improvement plan
• Using strong questioning skills to enhance listening and mutual understanding
• Practicing active and reflective listening across a range of workplace situations

Addressing Relational Change and Conflict

• Developing comfort and competence with relational change
• Recognizing and thoughtfully addressing interpersonal conflict
• Selecting the right conflict-resolution style for specific relationships and situations
• Creating and executing a constructive, assertive plan for resolving specific conflicts
• Putting workplace relationships at the center of every conflict resolution effort

Course Outline

Learning Objectives

• Define the core competencies required to build and maintain solid professional relationships
• Identify the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities present in your workplace relationships
• Consider how values, beliefs, attitudes, and perceptions affect trust and mutual respect
• Recognize the role of multiple intelligences in a diverse and dynamic workplace

Lesson One: Effective Relationships and the Role of Communication

• Identify the behaviors that support or undermine effective workplace relationships
• Learn to communicate more effectively by becoming a conscious communicator and understanding communication as a continuous cycle that generates "relationship residue"
• Use rapport-building as a foundational tool for strengthening all professional relationships

Lesson Two: The Importance of Self-Knowledge in Relationship Building

• Explain the connections among emotional intelligence, worldview, perception, and relational communication
• Identify strategies for improving workplace relationships through emotional intelligence
• Describe the influence of self-perception on how you interact with others
• Identify your social and communication style and how it shapes your relationships
• Recognize the behaviors that erode versus build trust in professional settings
• Analyze and proactively address unproductive attitudes in yourself and others

Lesson Three: Best Practices and Skills for Building Relationships

• Use assertive verbal and nonverbal communication to build rapport and positively influence others
• Apply direct and indirect messages to flex your communication for varying goals and audiences
• Use feedback and thoughtful questioning to deepen understanding of others and their needs
• Recognize listening barriers and their effect on the quality of your workplace relationships

Lesson Four: Best Practices and Skills for Building Relationships (continued)

• Ask strong questions and paraphrase effectively to sharpen listening and strengthen relationships
• Apply active and reflective listening across specific types of workplace situations
• Practice giving and seeking feedback with skill and intention
• Identify conflict management strategies suited to specific relationships and circumstances

Who Should Attend

This workshop is designed for professionals who are committed to building stronger work relationships, maximizing their impact, increasing productivity, and driving results through more effective communication and relationship management.

Reviews:

★★★★★
"addressed today's communication challenges"
I've participated in many leadership courses/seminars throughout my career but Lisa's expert facilitation ensured the concepts presented and discussion specifically addressed today's communication challenges.

Anita H.
5/21/2020

★★★★★
"I really enjoyed this class"
I really enjoyed this course and plan to use a lot of what I have taken from it with my team.

Becka C. 
3/19/2021