Three phrases that make someone feel safe sharing hard things: "I'm glad you came to me with this," "Thank you for telling me," and "I appreciate your perspective." Each one acknowledges trust, effort, or validates what they think.
These 3 responses will create a safe space for conversation. No matter what upsetting or difficult news that somebody brings you, you can still create a safe space for open communication when you, number 1, begin your response with, I'm glad you came to me with this. What you're saying is, I acknowledge that you have a choice in who you share your information with, and you felt comfortable enough, you trusted me enough to come to me, and I value that. Number 2, begin your response with, thank you for telling me. What you're saying is, I acknowledge the effort that it took, that sometimes It's not easy to open up and simply share things. So thank you. And number 3, start your response with, I appreciate your perspective. Because no matter what side of an issue that they're on, we can always appreciate somebody's point of view. In fact, they are necessary. Because if you want to understand someone, if you want to reach them, you first have to get them to tell you where they are. And that's how to create a safe space in the conversation. So try that and follow me.
