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How to Be Assertive, Get What You Want, and Still Be Yourself

August 21, 2012 By Susan Gunelius

NEWS AND INSIGHTS UPDATE:

Assertive people are more likely to get what they want than passive people. Of course, not all people are naturally assertive, and not all people are assertive in ways that are well received by others.

Amy Gallo of Harvard Business Review offered a great deal of tips and insights to be assertive without losing yourself on the HBR Blog Network today, including the following key principles to remember:

Do:

  • Assess your own degree of assertiveness and ask others for feedback.
  • Set realistic goals to make small changes in your behavior and stick to them.
  • Forge relationships with colleagues outside of work so that you feel more comfortable speaking up.

Don’t:

  • Assume that assertiveness is always a good thing — the context you work in and your gender both matter.
  • Try to imitate someone else’s behavior — you can change while still being true to who you are.
  • Overcompensate and become aggressive — balance assertiveness with consideration of others.

More Details: [How to Be Assertive (Without Losing Yourself)] via blogs.hbr.org

Susan Gunelius

Susan Gunelius is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women on Business. She is a 30-year veteran of the marketing field and has authored a dozen books about marketing, branding, and social media, including the highly popular Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing, 30-Minute Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing for Dummies, Blogging All-in-One for Dummies and Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps. Susan’s marketing-related content can be found on Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, and more. Susan is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She has worked in corporate marketing roles and through client relationships with AT&T, HSBC, Citibank, Intuit, The New York Times, Cox Communications, and many more large and small companies around the world. Susan also speaks about marketing, branding and social media at events around the world and is frequently interviewed by television, online, radio, and print media organizations about these topics. She holds an MBA in Management and Strategy and a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and is a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

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Comments

  1. Jenna says

    August 22, 2012 at 4:47 pm

    Great tips. I’ve always had trouble speaking up – Definitely something I’m going to need to get over if I want to be successful! Thanks for your advice.

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