Coaching practices for Speaking Up at Work
Describe almost anything you are working through and IX Coach finds the practices whose real-world fit is closest. For Speaking Up at Work, these are the strongest matches in the current practice library.
Does this sound like the set of challenges you might be facing?
- I’ve told my people a hundred times they can disagree with me, but they still don’t
- I think my boss is about to make the wrong call and I’m biting my tongue to keep the peace, then quietly stewing about it after
- Someone finally raised an objection that turned out to be right, and I just moved on without ever acknowledging it
- The second a pause opens up I rush to fill it with advice, so I do most of the talking and my report just nods
- I keep dropping problems on my boss’s desk and waiting for them to tell me what to do, and I can feel it reads as me not owning my work
Practices that may help
- Teach speak-up skills, not just encourage speaking up
Give team members specific language for raising concerns, not just permission to raise them.
Psychological Safety in Teams - Disagree with your manager constructively
State your disagreement clearly, give your reasoning, and then commit to the decision — without sacrificing either honesty or loyalty.
Managing Up: Practical Skills for Working with Your Boss - Reward the voice, not just the agreement
Make dissent and questions cost less than silence by visibly valuing them.
Psychological Safety, Made Practical - Listen far more than you talk
Aim to talk a fraction of the time; your silence is what makes space for the real issues.
Effective One-on-Ones, Made Practical - Bring a proposed solution when you bring a problem
Describe the problem and your recommended path before asking for a decision.
Managing Up: Practical Skills for Working with Your Boss - The practice of self-assertiveness
Honor your wants, needs, and values by expressing them in the world — appropriately and openly.
The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem, Made Practical - Give and receive feedback with courage
Sit on the same side of the table: feedback as a shared problem, not an attack.
Daring Greatly, Made Practical - Give voice to those with uncomfortable perspectives
Actively surface and protect the dissenting or marginal voices the system wants to silence.
Adaptive Leadership, Made Practical - Appoint an explicit devil’s advocate role
Give one person the formal job of arguing against the plan — making dissent structural, not personal.
Red Teaming: Stress-Testing Plans Before They Fail - Use the talking piece to enforce equal voice
Only the person holding the talking piece speaks — everyone else listens.
The Circle Process (Kay Pranis)
Related concerns
- How To Speak Up At Work
Give team members specific language for raising concerns, not just permission to raise them.
Teach speak-up skills, not just encourage speaking up
- Courage To Speak Up
Give team members specific language for raising concerns, not just permission to raise them.
- How To Tackle Bullying At Work
Give team members specific language for raising concerns, not just permission to raise them.
- What Can I Do About A Very Loud Coworker
Actively surface and protect the dissenting or marginal voices the system wants to silence.
Give voice to those with uncomfortable perspectives
- Best Way To Handle A Bully At Work
Give team members specific language for raising concerns, not just permission to raise them.
- Hostile Work Environment After Whistle Blowing On Coworker And Our Boss What Do I Do
State your disagreement clearly, give your reasoning, and then commit to the decision — without sacrificing either honesty or loyalty.
Disagree with your manager constructively
Describe your situation in your own words to search the complete practice library.