WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels recently revealed his approach to dealing with NXT wrestlers behind the scenes.
During an appearance on 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony, Michaels explained that he aims to create an environment where talent feels comfortable about sharing their thoughts without fear of being judged.
Again, some of it is the experiences you have. I always try to tell them, you're not going to have a thought in your head that I haven't had at one time. So if you're comfortable with it, you can be honest with me and open.
HBK believes his generation didn't have a safe space to express vulnerability. He's actively trying to change that for the current generation of talents.
One of the things our generation didn't have was the old-timers saying that it's okay to be scared, to cry and be emotional, intimidated—it's okay to say, 'I don't know.' To know that everything is okay—you're not coming to be judged, certainly by me, because I don't have that right and I have made every mistake
Guiding Talent Through Difficult Conversations
He described how he handles different emotions of the wrestlers and said those emotions aren't a problem.
So that's something that I do use, as best I can, to help them and guide them. I understand the people that are passionate, or when they get angry or they've got a chip on their shoulder—they're all things that I can relate to, and I can at least validate the way they're feeling and then do my best to try and help guide them in the midst of those emotions.
Michaels is currently working as Senior Vice President of Talent Development, Creative at NXT. He's managing personalities and their emotions while trying to give today's generation something he feels he's never had.
