I know what you’re thinking – assertiveness is all about being an aggressive go-getter who has little regard for others. Well, actually, the opposite is true! Assertiveness is at the core of our confidence and self-respect and has an impact on pretty much every aspect of our lives. When we learn to assert ourselves we send the message to others that we know our own value and won’t, quite frankly, be taking any of their BS. On the other hand, we often, inadvertently, can send out signals that suggest weakness and so, in this article, we’re answering the question “What is assertiveness training going to do for me?”
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Going In Hard For Soft Skills
These days, getting ahead in life is a tricky proposition and one that requires a dynamic combination of hard and soft skills. While University may have taught you how to be a great accountant or solicitor, it may not have handed you some other vital skills such as time management, communication or assertiveness. You can find a host of online training courses that are designed to fill in those gaps and, in this section, we’re looking at ways that assertiveness training can supercharge your life.
Good talk
Every day, we are constantly imparting and receiving information and learning to communicate effectively is top of the list when looking for professional and personal success. Often, the way we communicate with others lets us down without us even realising it. Tone of voice and the words that we choose are a heady mix and, when we get this wrong, it can have a really negative impact on our interactions with others. Assertiveness training is a great way of identifying any weaknesses in your communication skills so that you can make improvements in your day-to-day connections.
Creating confidence
Another biggie – confidence – is a big factor in how others see us; whether you have too little, too much or just the right amount. Those with low self confidence will often find themselves being walked on by others whereas folk with too much can be seen as arrogant or brash. Our training course is all about striking the right balance and can help you to gauge your confidence level and then improve it with some simple and easy steps.
Improved levels of confidence can have a hugely positive impact on our professional lives and even improve performance at work through increased self-respect. Similarly, it can also help us to stand up for ourselves in our personal lives whether that’s with friends or with a partner.
Decisions, decisions…
If you lack assertiveness, there’s a very good chance that you’re not great at making decisions. While this may not be a problem when deciding what kind of sandwich to order, it can be a whole lot more of an issue when it comes to bigger decisions at work or at home. Every day we’re involved in countless choices, so learning to trust your own judgement is essential. Assertiveness training can help to reinforce your self-worth and to therefore make better and more effective decisions.
Rocking those relationships
For most of us, our lives are connected by a number of different relationships; work, friends, a spouse or partner and even secondary relationships such as with a hairdresser or car mechanic. How we navigate these relationships has a direct impact on our overall sense of happiness and well-being – which means that these relationships should always be a priority. Whether you struggle to stand up to your boss or don’t feel confident enough to say no to a favour, assertiveness training can help. Through a series of modules, this type of course will walk you through the ways in which your relationships are lacking and then help you to build stronger, more rewarding ones over time.
Getting to grips with conflict resolution
It’s an unpleasant fact that, from time to time, we’ll experience conflict in our lives, whether that’s a row with a partner or a pow-wow with a colleague. Most of us won’t ever enjoy these interactions however, with assertiveness training, you can learn to manage them more effectively – particularly if your default setting is to back down rather than risk escalation. Finding new ways to manage conflict is a skill that will serve you well in pretty much every area of your life, from a disagreement at work to handling that car mechanic we mentioned earlier.
Physical and mental wellbeing
When we learn to stand up for ourselves, great things can happen – including improvements in our health. A lack of confidence will often stop us from getting the things we want whether that’s a promotion or getting a partner to finally take a turn at taking the bins out. Our training courses will not only help you to get ahead but, over time, will even improve your overall sense of well-being.
Do You Want It?
Many people are brought up to believe that assertiveness is unattractive or even harmful, and this can lead to all kinds of problems. When we don’t assert ourselves, we let other people take the lead, which can actually lead to resentment, frustration … and even health issues. Looking more closely at assertiveness training courses, and taking one, will reverse these built-in ideas and gently reprogram how we assert ourselves in our daily lives. And if it’s an online course, it will be convenient, discreet and affordable.
So take a few moments to think about whether you want to improve your assertiveness and confidence. How long do you need?
