13 A great way to get out of hot water with employees is you use empathetic listening.

Empathetic listening is basically a technique adopted to help an individual manage and avoid disruptive and negative behavioral
patterns from becoming a problem within the team that is working towards the successful completion of a project.
This technique can also be used in other circumstances where there is a need to hear and understand all views and thoughts on any particular situation or circumstance.
The exercise of empathetic listening involves the ability to provide the platform for the speaker to enjoy undivided attention, as any distractions can be deemed disrespectful to the speaker.
It also encourages both parties to be completely committed to solving the perceived problem at the time. Being nonjudgmental is also another very important criteria.
Embarking on the exercise with preconceived notions can only distort any effort to solve the problem. Making a conscious effort not to minimize or trivialize the speakers’ concerns is also equally important.
Observing the speakers body language is another form of gaining insight into just how the speaker is effected by the
perceived problem. The emotions expressed through the course of the exercise can help define the method eventually chosen to defuse or address the problem.
Offering verbal solutions before the speaker completes explaining his or her perspective is also not encouraged, however asking
clarifying questions may be welcomed just wait for the right opportunity to ask your clarifying questions. I emphasis “clarifying questions”. Absolutely refrain from framing your questions to cast doubt or to sound challenging.
You may also want to wait a day or at least a few hours before giving you reply or your solutions to the problem, give yourself some time to think about what you just heard even though you may think you already have the answer. Taking the extra time will sometimes cause you to rethink your response and it also shows the team member you are taking their concern seriously.
Also, it has been my experience that often the problem was solved by the team member themselves. I would listen and then always ask, “What would you like changed, corrected or whatever.” This is validating to them that you want to help, that you understand and their feelings have value. Often this is enough, they just wanted to be heard and when they heard their complaint out loud it didn’t seem to be so important any more and the fact that you took them seriously planted a huge seed of trust from them in you for future reference.