[Chris O'Carroll]

NS Competition No 4297 (set by Leonora Casement) asks you to devise a training course for handling “awkward, even deeply unpleasant, conversations” in social and/or professional situations. The rubric quotes from a promotional email touting such a course offered by the company ACM Training: “The problem is not always other people or the nature of the conversation, but the way we handle it . . . Delegates will . . . develop the skills required to provide concrete feedback when someone has done something wrong, to deliver bad news to those who do not want to hear it and to disagree with others, while still maintaining and strengthening their relationships, whether at work or in their personal or social life.”

The limit is 150 words, and the deadline is October 24.

comp@newstatesman.co.uk

My communication with Vicky Hutchings has not been particularly awkward or unpleasant, but neither has it been productive. I've asked if she's willing to lift the rule against posting entries here now that she knows we're not conducting an unauthorized comp of our own. She hasn't responded yet, and I think it would be wise not to take silence for consent in this instance.