Page 92 - Effective Communication Skills Mastery Bible 4 Books in 1 Boxset by Tuhovsky, Ian

boss. The first time I ignored it and just kept typing on my

computer. When she asked me her nosy question for the

second time, I gave her the silent three-second look and asked

her, “Why would you ask that?” “I’m just curious…” she

replied. I smiled briefly and asked “…are you always this

curious?” She got a bit surprised and then replied, “Well,
uhmm, yes, usually.” Again, I looked directly into her eyes for

three seconds without saying anything and said she got a little

bit unsettled. Then I stared at my computer screen again and

asked, “What were we talking about?” Normally, at this point,

everyone would probably understand that I didn’t want to tell
them anything, but she replied, “Huh? I just asked you what

you and Isabelle were talking about.” Again, I gave her the

three-second look and asked the same question, “Are you

always this curious?” She replied “…but you just asked me

and I just told you!” And I asked her back, “Well, what were
we talking about?” Guess what? Yes (or “oooh noo!”)! She

asked me again! So I asked her why would she ask that and if

she was always this curious, she got perplexed, turned on her

toes and finally left me alone. You just learned a perfect

technique you can use to deal with nosy, stubborn and
challenging people! Again, I wouldn’t advise you use it on

your boss, but it will work with anyone on your level of the

hierarchy. Don’t worry. Not all people are quite as stubborn as

Kate was, but this little trick worked even on her. This

persistent broken record technique is very frustrating and
effective when it comes to this type of person. Again, all you

need to do is ask something like, “Why would you ask that?”,

then ask them a question regarding the answer they just gave

you to make them taste their own sword and get them off their

train of thought, e.g., “Is everything people do so interesting to