The 10-second rule is your friend. Counting to ‘10-Mississippi’ could be all that’s separating you from a breakup or getting fired at work. When conversations start taking a turn for the intense, you need to take a moment before you say something you can’t take back.
According to Jason Aten fromINC, a10-second pause instantly “freezes the crazy cycle.” Instead of blurting out a response, pause, chill out and refocus on the person you’re talking with. This break in the heated chat also makes it at least appear to the other person that you’re really considering what the other person is saying.Even if all you’re really doing is counting and holding in a scream.
It’s also disarming. No one is really going to expect you to stop a chat for 10 whole seconds. They’re going to expect you to be defensive. If you do the opposite you’ll throw them off their negativity game and you just might be able to have a conversation instead of a verbal battle.
Source:INC