Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,
Speaker 1: This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's
Speaker 1: tip is that bad news rarely improves with age. If
Speaker 1: you need to share news that you know will disappoint
Speaker 1: or anger someone, or will require a big shift in plans,
Speaker 1: don't delay. It is rarely helpful, and it is sometimes
Speaker 1: harmful to hold bad news. Deliver it soon and everyone
Speaker 1: can begin to move on. If you have ever been
Speaker 1: the recipient of bad news, you know that in general,
Speaker 1: the hardest moments come right afterwards. There might be grief
Speaker 1: or anger or worry, but those arrive on the scene
Speaker 1: pretty fast. If it's clear you're going to need to
Speaker 1: change plans, that will likely be obvious too, and these
Speaker 1: emotions are hard. But after the initial flood or sense
Speaker 1: of new responsibility, you start processing all of that. You
Speaker 1: start making a plan for the steps you need to take.
Speaker 1: As you do that, the shape of the problem starts
Speaker 1: to become clearer, and you start marshaling the resources to
Speaker 1: deal with it. Doing that can start making the situation better.
Speaker 1: The problem with delaying information is that the grief and
Speaker 1: anger are inevitable, as is the moving forward. But waiting
Speaker 1: raises the specter of you being perceived as untrustworthy or
Speaker 1: people making decisions that they wouldn't have otherwise. The bad
Speaker 1: news isn't going to get better with time, but the
Speaker 1: situation itself could get more complicated, as can your relationship
Speaker 1: with anyone who needs to know. So for example, if
Speaker 1: you have lost your job, it is best to tell
Speaker 1: your spouse right away. He'll want to support you and
Speaker 1: form a plan to gather for how you'll navigate the
Speaker 1: job search and the loss of your paycheck. If you
Speaker 1: delay telling him, he may feel angry at being left
Speaker 1: in the dark, and he may have incurred an expense
Speaker 1: he wouldn't have if he'd known about the circumstances. This
Speaker 1: may not be the time to book that surprise trip
Speaker 1: to New Zealand. I mean, maybe it is if you
Speaker 1: are completely financially comfortable, since you won't have to hurry
Speaker 1: back to a job. But if your job loss will
Speaker 1: materially affect the family, then it is good to tell
Speaker 1: the people it will affect. If your cat got hit
Speaker 1: by a car, tell your kids immediately. They are never
Speaker 1: going to be happy about it, of course, but you
Speaker 1: will threaten their trust if they find out that you
Speaker 1: knew the cat had died, but let them think he
Speaker 1: was just wandering around and might come home now. Obviously,
Speaker 1: there are exceptions. Occasionally it does make sense to delay
Speaker 1: sharing bad news. For instance, if you have a health
Speaker 1: diagnosis that you need to share, you may decide to
Speaker 1: do that after a loved one's wedding this weekend. If
Speaker 1: you know your spouse is giving a huge presentation at work,
Speaker 1: you do not need to call to tell about that
Speaker 1: major roof leak right before, especially if you have already
Speaker 1: called the appropriate professionals and are dealing with it. You
Speaker 1: can fill her in afterwards. But those are exceptions. In general,
Speaker 1: bad news doesn't improve with age, So if you need
Speaker 1: to deliver bad news, think through what's likely to happen
Speaker 1: when you share the news, and unless that chain of
Speaker 1: events is likely to be far worse today than it
Speaker 1: would be at some specific time in the future, deliver
Speaker 1: the bad news now. By sharing the bad news sooner
Speaker 1: or the worst of the response will be behind you
Speaker 1: and you can all start dealing with the emotions or
Speaker 1: tasks you need to handle. But you won't lose people's
Speaker 1: trust in the process. Holding onto that is a bit
Speaker 1: of good news, even if the overall news is grim.
Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and
Speaker 1: here's to making the most of our times. Hey, everybody,
Speaker 1: I'd love to hear from him. You can send me
Speaker 1: your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with
Speaker 1: me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod
Speaker 1: that's b E the number four, then breakfast p o D.
Speaker 1: You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast
Speaker 1: Podcasts at iHeartMedia dot com that Before Breakfast is spelled
Speaker 1: out with all the letters. Thanks so much. Should I
Speaker 1: look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a
Speaker 1: production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the
Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows.