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painful or difficult? This awareness and anticipation can come from a number of places, including your own prior experience and knowledge that the task ahead will be unpleasant, the other person%u2019s prior experience the last time they had to engage in the task (in our example, having layoff conversations), or something that the other person shares with you directly (e.g., %u201cI%u2019m really dreading these layoff conversations on Friday%u201d). Rather than hoping it won%u2019t be that big of a deal, invalidating, or trivializing the situation, you can use this information to take prescient, preemptive action.2. Show genuine gratitude.Before the employee goes into a difficult and distressing situation, express genuine gratitude to them. In order for this expression of gratitude to be effective, it needs to include a number of features, including being specifically tailored to the person and non-generic, of appropriate intensity, and not too over the top given the current situation and nature of the relationship %u2014inauthentic gratitude will not yield desired results. It%u2019s also important to use words that explicitly describe why the employee%u2019s behavior matters and is impactful. In expressing genuine gratitude, you should remind the employee that their behavior %u2014 even though the situation is difficult and distressing %u2014 has a positive impact in furthering the group or organization%u2019s goals, and that their contributions are truly valued by the team and organization. Our research finds that expressing gratitude (anticipatory or otherwise) has a positive effect on employees%u2019 sense of collective social worth, and detailing how it benefits the team can help reiterate it.3. Check in after the situation.Check in with the employee after the situation has concluded. While anticipatory expressions of gratitude serve an important emotion regulatory function that buffers the negative experience, %u201cthanks in advance,%u201d no matter how heartfelt, does not completely eliminate the negative emotional experi-