Date: Monday, September 29, 2025
Time: 12:00 pm – 2:00 pm ET
Location: Tate-Turner-Kuralt Auditorium, 1st Floor
Format: Hybrid
- Livestream via Zoom, or
- In person: UNC School of Social Work, 325 Pittsboro Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516
CE Credit: 2 CEs, read for full information on credit types awarded.
Fees: $35 (scholarships available)
Description:
Have you struggled to voice dissent, give feedback, or talk through differences? This participatory two-hour workshop equips you with practical, transferable skills for those challenging exchanges—at work, in therapy, and in everyday life. You will learn and practice active listening, curiosity, and a simple feedback model based on observable behavior and its impact. You’ll also sharpen techniques to reduce defensiveness, foster understanding, and promote cooperation—tools that strengthen therapeutic alliances, enhance supervision, bolster team collaboration, and improve relationships. The same strategies can be shared with clients to help them navigate interpersonal challenges.
Learning Objectives:
At the end of the training participants will be able to:
1. Apply the Situation–Behavior–Impact (SBI) model to deliver feedback in a factual, non-judgmental, constructive way.
2. Demonstrate active listening techniques that deepen understanding and reduce defensiveness.
3. Use curiosity and active listening to find areas of agreement and sustain constructive dialogue despite disagreement.
4. Support clients in applying feedback, listening, and curiosity to navigate their own interpersonal challenges more effectively.
Trainer:Melissa Segal, LCSW, a facilitator and the founder of InterHuman Solutions, partners with nonprofits, healthcare systems, and academic institutions to create cultures where people feel valued, supported, and equipped to succeed. Drawing on her experience leading culture and well-being initiatives across Duke University and Duke Health, and her experiences across nonprofit, healthcare, and higher-education settings, she designs and delivers trainings, conflict resolution through restorative practices, coaching, and culture consultations that strengthen leadership, foster psychological safety, improve engagement and retention, build teamwork, and resolve conflict. An engaging extrovert and seasoned trainer, Melissa blends deep listening with evidence-informed frameworks to help organizations transform communication, elevate inclusion, and unlock collective success. Known for her engaging, insight-driven facilitation, Melissa helps teams navigate complexity and foster trust.
References:
- Clark, S. (2018). Feedback that works for nonprofit organizations. Center for Creative Leadership.
- Prober, C. G., Grousbeck, H. I., & Meehan, W. F. (2022). Managing difficult conversations: An essential communication skill for all professionals and leaders. Academic Medicine, 97(7), 973-976. https://doi.org/10.1097/ACM.0000000000004692
- Schein, Edgar (2013). Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling. Berrett-Koehler.
- Sofer, Oren Jay (2018). Say What You Mean: A Mindful Approach to Nonviolent Communication. Shambhala.
- Stephens, E., William, L., Lim, LL. et al. Complex conversations in a healthcare setting: experiences from an interprofessional workshop on clinician-patient communication skills. BMC Med Educ 21, 343 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-021-02785-7
- Sulistio, M. S., Chen, C. L., Eleazu, I., Godfrey, S., Abraham, R. A., & Toft, L. E. B. (2023). Personal actions to create a culture of inclusion: Navigating difficult conversations with medical colleagues. Annals of Internal Medicine, 176(11), 1520-1525. https://doi.org/10.7326/M23-1374
- Weinstein, N., Itzchakov, G., & Legate, N. (2022). The motivational value of listening during intimate and difficult conversations. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 16(2), n/a. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12651
- Williams, C. E., Thomas, J. S., Gooty, J., & Dunne, D. D. (2025). Negative emotions, difficult conversations and leader–follower relationships. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 98(1), n/a. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12566
UNC Chapel Hill – Clinical Lecture Series