“Knowing when to fight is just as important as knowing how.”
― Terry Goodkind,
We face conflict in every relationship we encounter. Our families, partners, co-workers, children even strangers.
It’s like the air we breathe. It’s everywhere. In every aspect of our lives. We step on toes, bump elbows, sometimes come to full out swearing and fistfights. If only we could avoid this uncomfortable situation altogether. But if there are people there is conflict. Since conflict is inevitable, it is a good idea to know when to fight and how. Thus, conflict management becomes a necessary skill to manage others.
| Definition Ability to surface conflicts and disagreements into the open and manage them appropriately |
We can generally recognize those who know how to manage conflict and those who don’t. It’s because of the following noticeable behavioural indicators that people successful at conflict-management have: –
- They can recognize conflict and identify ways to help involved parties work through conflict
- They step back and takes an overview of the situation
- Identify areas of agreement when they are working with conflicting individuals or groups
- Know when to call for intermission and identify ways to help open-up and communication
- Maintain awareness of broad, long-term implications and informs the team accordingly
- Share their point-of-view without criticizing other people
- Build consensus to come to amicable solutions/responses
- Respond to opposing views in a non-defensive manner
- Diffuses emotional discontent and confrontation
Since life and other people means having conflicts, let’s learn how to deal with it better.
In this module we will cover: –
- What conflict is exactly; it’s types, advantages and disadvantages
- Conflict styles; what they are, what are our styles and how we can use the information to handle conflict better
- Emotions – those that come up during conflict and how to prepare ourselves for it
- A guide towards conflict management
This Module continues the process of helping you understand yourself better by introducing the following assessment:
- Conflict Management Style Assessment
We hope you find this assessment useful in providing you with more insights into yourself.
We have also included an optional mentoring session in this module to help in guiding you in learning conflict management.
Good luck and best wishes.
