What should you do after a colleague shares a concern to ensure understanding?

What should you do after a colleague shares a concern to ensure understanding?

• A. Immediately explain why they are wrong.
• B. Pretend you agree to avoid conflict.
• C. Paraphrase and reflect back to confirm understanding, then discuss options.
• D. End the conversation.

Answer: (C)

When a colleague shares a concern, the key is to make sure you truly understand what they’re saying. Paraphrasing what you’ve heard and reflecting it back to them to confirm accuracy shows you’re listening, helps surface any misinterpretations, and signals that their perspective matters. After you’ve confirmed understanding, you can move into discussing possible options together, which leads to a collaborative path forward. Trying to explain why they’re wrong right away shuts down the conversation and can trigger defensiveness. Pretending to agree to avoid conflict is inauthentic and won’t address the issue. Ending the conversation stops the process before a solution is found.

When a colleague shares a concern, the key is to make sure you truly understand what they’re saying. Paraphrasing what you’ve heard and reflecting it back to them to confirm accuracy shows you’re listening, helps surface any misinterpretations, and signals that their perspective matters. After you’ve confirmed understanding, you can move into discussing possible options together, which leads to a collaborative path forward.

Trying to explain why they’re wrong right away shuts down the conversation and can trigger defensiveness. Pretending to agree to avoid conflict is inauthentic and won’t address the issue. Ending the conversation stops the process before a solution is found.