Blind Spot: Emotionally Steady
Emotional steadiness does not mean having no feelings. It means recognizing what I feel without allowing that feeling to control my response. It means pausing when I want to react, lowering my voice when others escalate, and asking questions before concluding.
Jerry Clark
Sep 211 min read
Blind Spot: Matching the Chaos
Staying calm does not mean tolerating threats, cruelty, manipulation, or abuse. Sometimes the response is to set a boundary, leave the room, or say, “I care too much about this relationship to continue while we are upset. I will return when we can talk respectfully.”
Jerry Clark
Sep 181 min read
Blind Spot: Emotional Regulation
Emotional regulation is the skill that holds every other relationship skill together. Without it, communication collapses, curiosity disappears, and anxiety drowns out intellect. Emotional regulation means calming my internal world enough to respond instead of react. It does not mean denying what I feel or pretending everything is fine.
Jerry Clark
Sep 161 min read
Blind Spot: Before the First Word
Before entering a difficult conversation, I can take twenty seconds to slow my breathing and remind my body that I am safe. I can relax my jaw, lower my shoulders, soften my voice, and choose my first sentence carefully. A gentle beginning often determines whether the conversation becomes a discussion or an argument.
Jerry Clark
Sep 141 min read
Blind Spot: HUSH...Long Enough to Hear
I’ve spent a lot of years working with people, and I’ve learned that three simple words can change the direction of a conversation: “Help me understand.”
Jerry Clark
Sep 111 min read
Blind Spot: You Don’t Know the Whole Story
I remember a conversation with a coworker who responded in a way that rubbed me the wrong way.
Before I knew it, I had the whole thing figured out.
I knew why they said it. I knew what they meant. I even knew what they were thinking.
There was only one problem.
Jerry Clark
Sep 91 min read
Blind Spot: Control or Curiosity?
I’ve spent many years working with people in both corporate America and counseling, and I’ve noticed something about successful teams. The best leaders don’t have to have all the answers. They know how to ask good questions.
Jerry Clark
Sep 71 min read