Jennifer Abrams to Lead Workshops on Having Hard Conversations

Palo Alto, CA ― Jennifer Abrams, a world-renowned education thought leader and communications consultant, will present two-day Having Hard Conversations workshops at Chapters International’s January event in London and February event in Hong Kong. The workshops, based on Abrams’s Having Hard Conversations book, will introduce educators to the concept of hard conversations and provide tools to navigate them effectively. Chapters International, a recognized world leader in providing quality professional development for educators, is known for bringing outstanding educational speakers to workshops and events across the world.

“In our careers as educators, there are many situations where difficult topics must be addressed, and we need to understand not only how to identify those moments, but to navigate these hard conversations thoughtfully and effectively,” said Abrams. “I’m excited to connect with educators in London and Hong Kong and share the two-day Having Hard Conversations journey with them. I hope to share tools and skills that will help these outstanding educators have even more success in their leadership roles.”

The London event will be held 13-14 January, 2018 at the American School of London, while the Hong Kong event will be on 2-3 February at the English Schools Foundation. At each event, participants will learn how to:

• Identify why they hesitate to have hard conversations
• Design questions to ask themselves before they choose to speak up
• Articulate in professional language the challenges they are facing
• Determine the goals of the conversation and write an action plan of support
• Script the conversation avoiding trigger words that put others on the defensive

In the first day of the workshops, educators will become familiar with how to identify and understand hard conversations. They’ll then work through case studies and consider factors such as the appropriate timing to have a hard conversation, how to evaluate the likelihood of success, and how to action plan with an emphasis on being other-focused. In the second day, participants will move into the scripting of hard conversations and work on specific conflict responses, including troubleshooting skills and strategies to listen more effectively to difficult feedback.

The workshops are relevant for teacher leaders―including coaches, team leads, department chairs, committee chairs, and all who identify as leaders in their schools―as well as aspiring administrators and newly hired administrators and coordinators.

Registration for the London workshop closes on 1 December. Register here or learn more about this event. Registration for the Hong Kong workshop closes on 1 January. Register here or learn more.

For more information about these and all Chapters International events, visit the Chapters International website. To learn more about Jennifer Abrams and her work to inform, inspire, and empower education leaders’ voices, visit jenniferabrams.com.

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