Confident Conversations

You know the conversation you've been putting off. The one where you need to push back, flag a problem to someone senior, or say no to something everyone expects you to absorb. You've rehearsed it in your head. You've told yourself you'll raise it next week. Next week never comes. Research shows 45% of professionals avoided at least one difficult conversation in the previous month. The reasons are consistent: fear of consequences, dislike of confrontation, and low confidence in knowing what to say when it matters most. This sprint addresses all three. Built on peer-reviewed organisational psychology, not corporate clichés, this sprint gives you evidence-based frameworks for the conversations that shape your career. Across five modules, you'll learn to: - Understand why difficult conversations feel harder than they need to (the answer is a cognitive error, not a character flaw) - Prepare using a structured framework that separates facts from interpretations and desired outcomes - Manage up, speak honestly to people with more formal authority, without career risk - Say no and set boundaries without damaging professional relationships - De-escalate and recover when a conversation goes badly Each module includes a written lesson, video session, and knowledge-check quiz. Designed to complete in 75 minutes at your own pace. For Executive Assistants, Chiefs of Staff, and anyone whose influence depends on communication rather than rank. COUNTS TOWARDS PACE, CAP AND CPD 75 minutes of structured learning, at your own pace. CAP: maps to Domain One of the CAP Body of Knowledge, Organizational Communication. One hour of education is worth one recertification point, awarded in 15-minute segments, so this course is worth 1.25 points. PACE: maps to the Interpersonal Communication proficiency module. PACE rounds to the nearest hour, so this course logs as 1 hour, 0.1 CEU. CPD: 1.25 CPD hours, or 1.25 points where your body counts in points, since most work to one point per hour. You finish with a certificate of completion stating your name, the course title, the date and the learning hours, which is the verification all three schemes ask for. Continuing education is self-reported to your certifying body. Check your own recertification requirements before you submit. THE EVIDENCE BEHIND IT Grounded in 20 peer-reviewed sources including research on the honesty-benevolence dilemma, power dynamics in confrontation, assertive communication, and workplace conflict recovery. Every reference carries a working DOI link so you can check the evidence yourself. Full APA7 reference list included.