Summary: One of the goals that all professional communicators must strive to achieve is staying in the response mode and staying out of the reaction mode. The reaction mode is: first thing into the brain=first thing out of the mouth. As we mature and grow professionally, we learn that first thing into the brain is generally the worst thing that can come out of the mouth. But how do we stay in the response mode-which honors the other person while honoring ourselves-ALL the time? That’s what MAGIC POWER PHRASES help us do. A MAGIC POWER PHRASE has two parts: 1- An affirmation such as, “Interesting...You don’t say...Wow...” to show you’re listening and engaged. 2- A question or request that throws the ball back into the other person’s court, such as, “Why would you say that...Why would you think that...Why would you ask that...Why would you do that...Tell me more about that...” It sounds simple, but most communicators never practice using magic phrases, and then when they need them, because they didn’t practice them, they have trouble using them correctly. Practice using the following 5 magic phrases this month, and watch your communication success skyrocket! That’s interesting; Why would you ask that? That’s interesting: Why would you think that? That’s interesting: Why would you say that? That’s interesting: Why would you do that? That’s interesting: Tell me more. Make sure to stop by http://www.powerdiversity.com for the podcast that goes along with this lesson, as well as other communication tools that can help you communicate more effectively, deal with difficult people, and of course, slay office Energy Vampires.
