How to Have Difficult Conversations: Scripts That Work

The conversation you keep avoiding is usually the one that matters most, and the cost of waiting compounds as underperformance drags on, scope keeps growing, and missed deadlines become normal. This course explains why we avoid hard conversations and gives you a structure and scripts to open them well, stay steady through strong emotions, and follow up so agreements actually hold.

Who this course is for

• Project managers who need to address missed commitments or underperformance on their team
• PMs who have to say no to requests or push back on scope from sponsors
• Anyone who tends to retreat when a conversation turns angry or emotional

What you'll be able to do

• Prepare an opening with the Fact, Impact, Invitation structure and choose the right environment
• Adapt scripts for saying no to a request, addressing missed commitments, and pushing back on scope
• De-escalate anger by lowering your voice, acknowledging the emotion, and proposing a pause
• Stay compassionate and direct when someone cries, without abandoning the topic
• Escalate transparently with documentation, then follow up with a written summary, check-ins, and acknowledgment of improvement

Complete the video and knowledge check to earn up to 1.5 PDUs, credited from your recorded learning time.