Assertiveness
Featured in the The Team Leader's Development Manual training manual
By Mike Fenwick
Category: People Management and Motivation
Credit price: 3 download credits (Single user)
The position of the team leader in the organisation means that they have many different and often conflicting demands imposed on them from different people. Their team, their colleagues and their manager(s) will impose pressures upon them to move in different directions, so an understanding of assertiveness proves an essential skill in these circumstances. Assertiveness, however, is not just about getting your own way. It is a balance of deciding what you want and then deciding how that can be achieved whilst still considering and understanding the needs of others. In the context of team leadership, we are also recognising that assertive behaviour needs to be used to promote and move forward, rather than to protect or defend.
You begin this training activity by discussing with the participants what assertiveness is, before giving a definition of assertiveness in the context of team leadership. The participants then work in groups on a given scenario. They discuss how to deal with the situation assertively and each group give their solutions in the form of a statement. Next, you explain how vocal elements affect assertiveness and participants work in their groups to apply those elements to their statements. One member of each group reads their statement, using the agreed vocal information, and the group discuss how assertive it was. Finally, you encourage the participants to discuss the uses of assertive body language. In their groups, they discuss a case study and consider how to incorporate all the aspects of words, vocal information and body language into a demonstration of assertive behaviour. One member from each group then enacts this for the rest of the participants.
Who is it for: This training resource is intended for use by trainers to encourage the participants to develop assertive behaviour in a series of group exercises which look at assertive language, assertive vocal information and assertive body language.
| Resource Type: | Activity |
| Min Group Size: | 4 |
| Max Group Size: | 20 |
| Typical Duration: | 02:10:00 |
| No of Pages: | 19 |
Resources: View standard resources for Fenman training activities
Purpose: This training resource is intended for use by trainers as part of any form of personal development programme. It can also be used in programmes on assertiveness, communication, considering colleagues, influencing others, leadership, motivation, teamwork, and time management.
Download the training activity, Assertiveness as featured in the Fenman training manual; The Team Leader's Development Manual