Ep. 234 - Hard Talks w/ Kristine Kopperud

“All the baggage that comes with deep, intimate relationships ends up around the bedside at the end of life.  So it can become an impromptu reunion tour.” ~ Kristine Kopperud 

 

What do these things have in common? 

Advocating for the needs of a child who is a neurodivergent learner; 

Determining when business partners should go their separate ways; 

Communicating patiently and clearly with doctors, nurses, and family members as a loved one receives end of life care?

All involve having what is often referred to as “The Hard Talk.”  A hard talk is a conversation that is emotionally challenging, uncomfortable, and usually difficult or awkward to approach because of its sensitive nature, conflicting opinions and/or the potential for hurt feelings.

Basically the type of conversations that humans, including me, love to avoid.

Why do I mention this? Because my guest this week has specific trial by fire experience with these types of conversations.  As the mother of a neurodivergent child, Kristine Kopperud (formerly Jepsen), has experience learning how her daughter learns and advocating for her daughter’s needs in the school system; as a business consultant she helps start-ups and nonprofits get organized and start operating like a healthy business; and as a certified death doula she holds a sacred space for people in the active phase of dying while helping grieving family members process and understand what is happening through each phase.  

As a writer and editor, Kristine specializes in business communication, grant writing, and creative legacy projects. She also is a prolific writer. Her work has won the Diana Woods Memorial Award for Creative Nonfiction at Lunch Ticket; she’s been published in River Teeth, Creative Nonfiction, Hippocampus, Literary Mama, HuffPost, and Parents.com.  Her essay, “Jaw Wiring: What You Need to Know" won the Flash Nonfiction Competition at Sweet: A Literary Confection and was nominated for a Pushcart Prize.

Kristine has a great deal to say about the importance of being proactive in having hard conversations. Emphasizing the need for people to be proactive about topics and situations that have hard talk potential, “before it becomes a mental game of chess, before the power dynamics get entrenched.” 

I must say, I’m relieved to be having a conversation with Kristine on Awkwardly Awesome Podcast instead of an awkwardly challenging hard talk like any of those mentioned above. But difficult conversations are a natural part of life, so I’m very appreciative to have Kristine Kopperud on to share her experience and knowledge with us.

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**Video broadcast available** on YouTube @imperfectbest

**Learn more about Jason Freeman** at AwkwardlyAwesome.com