“When you ask a person to tell you how they feel having heard what you’ve said, you are seeking to measure the quality of the connection between you.”
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Workplace Communication Tip -- Week 26
What Type of Request Is That?
Do you find yourself getting mixed up at the point of making a request? Are you unclear how to formulate the language in the moment, and in a manner that ensures your request is clear?
Sometimes thinking about the general categories requests naturally fall into can help you effectively formulate the best way of expressing the request. Ike Lasater, author of Words That Work In Business, has identified 3 types of requests.
- Action Requests – Ask for a change in behavior, either from another person or from yourself. These are the request that, if met, you imagine will meet your needs. “Would you be willing to get me a glass of water?”
- Process Requests – The two types of process requests ask a person to tell you either what they’ve just heard you say, or how they feel having heard what you’ve just said.
- When you ask a person to tell you how they feel having heard what you’ve said, you are in a sense seeking to measure the quality of the connection between you.
- When you ask a person to tell you what they heard you say, you can think of it as a means of assessing whether the message you sent was received as you intended it to be.
Mindful Practice for the Week
In the week ahead, imagine how you might insert a process request into a conversation you had recently, or one that is upcoming. How might this type of request contribute to connection and clarity?
