Recently, CPI’s own Randy Boardman, our executive director of research and development, published an article, “Behavior Modification,” in American School & University magazine. The article focuses primarily on the relationships between teachers and students but the principles can be applied in many different situations.
I thought I’d take a moment to highlight some of its key points because they have proved useful in my personal and professional life.
Randy’s article talks about how we cannot change an individual’s behavior, but we can modify our own behaviors to prevent undesirable behaviors from others. There are two sides to this. There are behavior management strategies that help us to keep behaviors from escalating, and then there are behavior prevention strategies that can stop certain behaviors from occurring altogether.
We must first look at our own behavior if we want to modify the behavior of others. Our own behavior is the only one we can totally control. How we react in certain situations influences the behaviors that take place next. The good news is that there are tools and techniques you can use to best effect the outcome you desire.
Professional staff development and training is imperative to this process. Without proper training, the natural reaction is not always the most productive, and it is easy to see why.
It is instinct to react out of fear and anxiety, but if we are trained to overcome this, it allows us to build confidence professionally, physically, and emotionally and teaches us to recognize the signs of behaviors before they occur. That is the key—when you recognize the signs, the “right” next step will be informed and not instinctual. This leads to better outcomes.
Think about how this could transform your workplace or even personal relationships, as it has mine.
For more information visit our Behavior Management page in the CPI Knowledge Base.
Find out more about how you can boost your behavior management skills.