EAR Statements are a way to de-escalate a situation that is starting to escalate but also good practice when interacting with others.
If you need to increase your social and emotional intelligence or deal with others who are perhaps caught up in what’s happening to them and not at their best using EAR Statements can really help.
Watch the video and then practice EAR with your kids, colleagues, customers and partners.
Empathy – start with acknowledging their emotion or upset. If you don’t know what they are feeling ask them.
Attention – stop what you are doing and give them your attention. Doing that tells them that they are important, tells them that you want to understand and stops them from escalating.
It’s worth spending the moment it takes to give them your attention compared to the time and upset involved if things escalate because you try to ignore them.
Respect – respect means considering the feelings, wishes and rights of others as well as yourself. That means that you have to think about both. You don’t have to do what other people demand but you also shouldn’t dismiss it just because they asked for something.
Respect isn’t something you demand. It isn’t something you have by right. It is something that is given to others and yourself by considering everyone’s points of view, emotions and needs in a given situation.
Just imagine the world we could have if everyone adopted this definition for respect.
Empathy, Attention and Respect.
Simple, effective and profoundly powerful in cutting the escalations of conflict off right at the start.
If you would like to learn more about conflict resolution we have a number of suitable courses which are available and delivered fully online.
