2Sami and the Upsetting Messages

Sami worked hard and faithfully at a large company. One morning he opened his inbox to find an upsetting message from a client complaining about a specific problem, written in a sharp, hurtful tone.

Fortunately, Sami had a plan for difficult moments like this:

“He wrote his reply and sent it to himself first.”

Replying to himself first. Instead of replying at once in anger, he wrote his reply and sent it to himself first, to read it through the client’s eyes and make sure he was handling the situation professionally.

The stress ball. He kept a small ball on his desk that he squeezed hard in moments like these; it eased his tension and gave him a chance to think before deciding anything.

Stretching. He stood up for a minute to stretch his body and move his muscles, and his nerves calmed and his mind cleared.

A cup of coffee. He made himself a cup of coffee and drank it slowly until he had calmed down and regained his energy.

After following his plan, Sami answered the message calmly and professionally, and offered a solution to the client’s problem. His plan helped him balance his feelings with his professionalism at work.