Title: Strategies Information
Course: PIM: Tricky Communication: Intent vs. Impact > Section: Strategies to Align Intent and Impact

Read and watch this information before proceeding to the Strategies reflection quiz.

Remember the example of the how you might respond to a bear if you knew it might harm you?

You might react to communication in a similar way if you feel the situation is not entirely safe for you to speak freely. Possible reactions to feeling unsafe include:

- Fight - an aggressive response
  - Verbal: sudden aggressive responses, defiance, anger
  - Non-verbal: tightness in the jaw, crying, sharp stares or glaring, upset stomach
- Flight - trying to get away
  - Verbal: continual reasons to leave
  - Non-verbal: fidgeting, tense, dilated eyes, looking around frequently, hyperactivity, leaving, perfectionism, obsessive/compulsive
- Freeze - unable to act
  - Verbal: silence, few words
  - Non-verbal: becoming pale, tense, giving up, dissociating, shutting down, highly indecisive, absent-minded
- Fawn - pleasing to avoid conflict
  - Verbal: appeasing language and tone, people-pleasing, lack of "no"
  - Non-verbal: agreeable, helpful, people-pleasing, overwhelmed with commitments

If your own goal in communicating is to avoid making anyone else uncomfortable, you may still accidentally create a space that doesn't feel safe for everyone. You don't need to become a mind reader, but if someone starts showing signs from the above list, be aware that they may not feel comfortable with what has been said or with the context.

Recall the strategies for using curiosity and assuming positive intent when intent and impact don't align. You may want to go back and review the video "The Law of Positive Intention" before moving on.

When you watch the two videos below, note additional strategies for addressing challenges. The first video offers strategies if you are the person who created an unintended negative impact. The second addresses strategies if you're the person who was negatively impacted or if you hear a microaggression.

These videos don't cover all situations. If you are the target of a microaggression, it's great when you have energy to apply the suggested strategies because they may help you remain in a productive relationship. But there may be times when leaving the situation or not engaging allows you to manage your emotions and to get necessary space for determining how you will respond. Bottom line: Take care of yourself!

After you have watched the videos, practice these strategies by completing the quiz.