Conversation Planner · for managers
How to talk to an employee with a negative attitude
Read the approach below, or skip ahead and get a plan written for your own situation.
Plan my conversation — free ↓Why the usual approach fails
"Attitude" is a label, and people defend themselves against labels. Say "you have a negative attitude" and you'll spend the meeting arguing about whether it's true. The fix is to talk only about what a camera would have recorded: what they said, what they did, and what happened next.
How to open
"I want to raise one specific thing I've noticed in our team meetings, and I'd like to hear your side first. In Tuesday's meeting, when Priya shared her proposal, you said 'that won't work' before she'd finished. I've seen that a few times."
Ask before you tell
- "What was going through your mind in that moment?"
- "How do you think it landed with the team?"
- "When you do disagree, how would you want to raise it?"
What to agree before you leave the room
One observable swap — for example, a question before a verdict ("how would this handle X?"). Check in after the next two team meetings.
Make it yours — free
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Built on the COACH method by Jon Kludt, Business Coach · Certified EOS Implementer® · thecoachconversation.com