How do you deal with emotional assaults?

A favorite topic of mine in Leadership is Assertiveness. Its the one thing that I find many leaders struggling with. In fact, people get astonished to discover that what they thought was assertiveness (getting your way, anyhow) is actually very non-assertive (in fact, it is aggressive). In our popular culture Aggressiveness is misnamed as being Very- Assertive which is supposed to be a desirable thing in many roles in many organizations.

Paradoxically, for most people, the struggle is to deal with this brand of Aggressiveness. Our traditional culture and conditioning gives a very high value to being submissive ( to elders, to bosses, to parents and so on). In fact, I recently had a chat with a person in mid-thirties, who was at a tipping point in his career, but seeking permission from his father & wife to take a decision of following his passion and purpose in life. Believe me, he is not alone.

One of the pain areas for many people, therefore, is to deal with emotional assaults at home and at work. Assaults that include bitter or sarcastic words that continuously undermine their worth, create self-doubt and hold the person in deep freeze, unable to take any action.

This is where Vitamin C of Consciousness comes in handy! It helps build immunity to such assaults which otherwise would completely numb you from inside...e.g. being reminded of your mistakes in a demeaning way or being threatened with consequences about your appraisal . Its appalling how many mid-level managers testify to this kind of pressure.