English to Italian Art/Literary General / Conversation / Greetings / Letters

Sto traducendo un corso di coaching e si sta parlando di come gestire un dipendente sopraffatto dalle emozioni (arrabbiato, preoccupato, contrariato). Si suggerisce di evitare di dirgli di darsi una calmata, in quanto è più efficiente mostrarsi empatici.
In questo modo, si avrà il proverbiale effetto del "prick in the balloon".

Esiste un analogo italiano? A me viene in mente solo "valvola di sfogo", ma in genere la valvola di sfogo è il mezzo che aiuta a calmarsi (tipo correre). Invece qui l'empatia la mostra chi ascolta, che è il "Prick in the balloon" e non il mezzo!
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More often than not, we want to help the person to calm down. In other words, we’re hoping that the person will be able to go back to that place where logic and emotion are in balance once again. Even with good intentions, however, when someone’s brain has more emotion than logic, hearing a logical response, even one that’s a great idea, can actually make emotions rise further. Imagine for example that you are upset and you hear somebody say, “Calm down.” Do you?

Chances are, you’ll respond with even more emotion, not less. Seeing this, the other person likely counters with greater calm and more logic which makes things even worse. ******Empathizing, when done well, acts as the proverbial prick in the balloon,****** allowing the person to deflate and allowing their brain to return to a balance of logic and emotion. Empathizing alone doesn’t solve problems. It puts someone in a frame of mind that allows a logical discussion to follow. That’s because empathizing demonstrates that you hear what they’re saying and that you acknowledge their emotion.