Getting What You Want Course: Assertive Communication Skills

If you want to learn how to say ‘no’, make your presence felt in a meeting or tell someone their behaviour is unsatisfactory (while keeping others onside), then this course is for you. You’ll learn how to handle people who ignore you, interrupt you, unduly criticise you, make unreasonable requests or vent their anger against you.

A key tool you will explore and use is Yvonne Collier’s LAFFe to Success Behavioural Model to become more assertive. You will discover your dominant behavioural mode, and how to adopt different modes to establish rapport with others, to help you get want you want, ethically. You will develop your flexibility as you learn to walk and talk all four modes so you can communicate and relate to anyone, anywhere, anytime, you choose!

LAFFe to Success is the ‘foundation tool’ to Getting What You Want. You will also explore and experience further ‘people skills’ models and tools that integrate' extend and maximize your LAFFe to Success model.

Course content

This assertive communication skills training course covers the following topics:

Day 1

• Introductions and what you want from this course
• Passive-Assertive-Aggressive-Manipulative Behaviour Characteristics
• Benefits and Costs of using different behaviours
• Appropriateness of our behaviours
• Behavioural/communication styles using the LAFFe model
• Keys to being assertive
• Develop self confidence
• Understand the significance of Human needs
• How to say NO effectively, in 8 different ways
• Seven steps to successfully getting your message across
• How to gain cooperation with 5 questions
• Participate/observe role plays for learning experience
• Defensive communication strategies
• The Six Laws of Persuasion

Day 2

• How did you fare this week?
• Did you understand what mode of LAFFe behaviour you were using in different situations, was this appropriate, were you able to change, did you have any wins?
• How to handle people who... ignore you, interrupt you, disagree with you, vent their anger on you, make unreasonable requests of you, unduly criticise you.
• Role-plays of your choice. Video (optional).
• Use the LAFFe model together with other tools to ask for a raise; tell someone that their performance is unsatisfactory; how to make an impact at a meeting; and how to circulate at a function.
• Our rights as assertive people.
• Putting all the tools together to becoming an assertive person.

Course delivery

This assertive communication skills training course is delivered as an interactive, experiential, practical and fun-filled workshop.

Course outcomes

At the conclusion of this assertive communication skills course participants will be able to:

1. Recognise your dominant mode of behaviour using the LAFFe model
2. Adopt the most appropriate mode of behaviour for a given situation
3. Identify other people’s mode of behaviour
4. Match other people’s modes to enable more effective communication

Use LAFFe to Success and other practical tools and skills to:

1. Say ‘no’
2. Ask for a raise
3. Tell someone that their performance is unsatisfactory
4. Make an impact at a meeting
5. Circulate effectively at a function
6. Gain cooperation with anybody
7. Build rapport for great results
8. And get what you want

Course reading

The following reading is recommended but not essential:

• LAFFe to Success: A Practical Guide to getting Along with Others: Plus the A – Z of LAFFe Behaviour

Getting What You Want Course: Assertive Communication Skills from the University of Sydney - training courses, short courses, lessons, workshops and classes open to everyone. Enrol in Getting What You Want Course: Assertive Communication Skills and learn with the University of Sydney's premiere provider of short courses and training courses in Sydney - a professional and flexible learning and training development alternative to Sydney TAFE courses and Sydney community colleges - Jason Riley, Operations Manager, Centre for Continuing Education.