College Newsletter

Wellbeing

6 Tips for Assertive Communication

What is 'Assertive' communication?

Sure we have all heard of the word assertiveness before, but what does it actually mean? Communicating in an assertive manner is when an individual is able to stand up for their or others rights, but do so in a calm, positive and respectful manner. It is when we communicate in a way that we are aware that our own thoughts, feelings and beliefs are important, but also aware that the other person thoughts, feelings and beliefs are also just as important. We are then able to respect that as humans we are not always going to agree on everything but that is okay.

Different forms of communication

 

Communicating aggressively, communicating passively and communicating assertively are three completely different forms of communication and will all result in very different outcomes. Aggression is a form of behaviour which is intended to cause harm or injury to another person, it is where we express our own thoughts, without respecting somebody else thoughts, so when we communicate to others in an aggressive way, it typically leads to a small issue becoming a big issue. Passive communication is where we allow our own thoughts to be violated by not standing up for our rights, as we allow other beliefs to be more important than our own. By taking the belief from aggressive communication of ‘my feelings are important’ and the belief from passive communication of ‘your feelings are important’ and combining them both together, we then have assertive communication where you are aware that YOUR feelings are important, MY feelings are important, and it is okay to agree to disagree.

How can I communicate Assertively?

The wellbeing team have put together some tips to help you communicate more assertively with your teachers and peers: 

  1. Make the decision to positively assert yourself
  2. Aim for open and honest communication
  3. Listen actively
  4. Remain calm
  5. Take a problem-solving approach to resolving a conflict
  6. Be aware of your feelings

 

Emily Presley

DSC Wellbeing Committee