General

Oh the drama of it all! Watch for it. It comes out on Facebook, Tweets, in conversations. Something happens. For instance, a customer registers a complaint that goods were not delivered quite as speedily as expected. The business owner rants. Perhaps he refunds part or all of the shipping charges. The customer begins to vilify the business owner, “he doesn’t care about his business”, “he isn’t professional.” The business owner reacts to having lost money and blames the customer for being unreasonable.

The drama escalates—STOP the damn drama!

Neither one deserves blame – no one is wrong – but they don’t know how to have a simple conversation. They are chatting it up with others who will commiserate but the business owner isn’t talking with the customer and the customer isn’t talking with the business owner!

This business marriage will end in divorce if the involved parties don’t stop the drama and blaming. I’ve often coached my clients on ways to salvage the relationships that are caught up in the drama performance.