Concordia Ombuds Pens Book on Effective Complaining

Amy Fish, the Ombuds at Concordia University, is releasing a book in October, I Wanted Fries with That: How to Ask for What You Want and Get What You Need. She wrote it “for people who would really like to stand up for themselves — but they don’t because they don’t know how to.” Fish believes that standing up for oneself is “absolutely a skill anyone can learn.” She has been an Ombuds since 2017.

Here is her synopsis:

At some point in our lives, we've all experienced a small injustice - like, a fellow airline passenger squashing us by moving their seat back - and we suffer in silence for fear of offending anyone. When we fail to speak up, however, we end up shortchanging ourselves. I wrote this book so that we could all benefit from my career as a university ombudsman, and structure our complaints to make sure we get what we want and need. I illustrate each point with funny real-life stories, which I promise will ring true for you- whether you're trying to right the wrongs of the world or just claim the French fries you ordered.

Fish was a speaker on this topic at the 2019 FCO-ACCUO Biennial Conference. (Montreal Gazette; Amy Fish Writes.)

Related posts: Ombuds at Concordia University Posts 2017 Report; Canadian Ombuds Associations, FCO-ACCUO, Announce Agenda for Biennial 2019 Conference.