Stuck in the red zone? How veterinary teams can reset after conflict

In this episode of The Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360, host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, welcomes Bridget Rollins, EMBA, a senior healthcare executive and founder of Kings Consulting, for a candid conversation about the red zone, the moment when frustration takes over and thoughtful communication goes out the window. Rollins explains how to spot the early signs, why triggers are so personal, and how emotional intelligence helps veterinary professionals respond instead of react. She also shares her step-by-step framework for turning tough conversations into stronger working relationships.

Below is a partial transcript, edited lightly for clarity.

Adam Christman, DVM, MBA: Let's talk about this red zone because this can be very concerning in veterinary medicine. When someone says, “I'm in the red zone,” what does that actually look like in real life, and how do most people completely miss early warning signs?

Bridget Rollins, EMBA: Before I jump into that, I think it's important that with today's conversation, people understand that there needs to be a little bit of emotional intelligence involved. Meaning, at a very high level, “how do I interpret the way I'm feeling?” as well as “how do I interpret others around me?” right? There's the introspective part as well as the social piece, and so you're never going to be able to engage in productive conflict if you completely lack EQ, or emotional intelligence.

So, to answer your question, “what does it look like when we're in this red zone?” at the end of the day, they are triggered. That's what it means. It looks like an emotional overreaction. It could be defensiveness, or you might be attributing negative intent towards others versus assuming best intent if you were in a less triggered state of mind, right?

So, you're [ticked] off at him. That's what's happening here. And really, what happens is people shift quickly from a thinking state to a reactive state. And some early signs, which could be subtle, might be irritation. Now, to be fair, you could be hangry, so being able to identify that, [and] you might feel threatened, and it may not be physically threatened, right? It could be emotionally threatened, or kind of a loss of control, if you will, and unfortunately, by the time people recognize this, where somebody could actually say, "I am in the red zone,” it's too late because they're already in a reactionary cycle.

Want to hear the rest of the conversation? You can listen above or wherever you listen to podcasts.