Starting your week with a tough question from the mailbag: How do you handle parent meetings that feel consistently defensive or hostile? 🥊 We dive into actionable strategies to shift the dynamic from adversarial to collaborative, ensuring student success remains the shared goal. The key is leading with empathy and finding the source of the parent's frustration, which often isn't personal. Learn how to immediately disarm tension by explicitly stating a common objective and focusing conversations strictly on observable behavior, not interpretation or judgment. We discuss the powerful technique of using the "power of pause" from conflict resolution training to de-escalate heated moments. These difficult conversations are your greatest opportunity to model professionalism and achieve a collaborative breakthrough. Listen for personal strategies to master difficult conversations!  Find out more about what we do:AWB Education - awbeducation.orgGrundmeyer Leader Services - grundmeyerleadersearch.comGot a mailbag question?  Reach out to us at adam@awbeducation.org