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7 Ways to Keep Your Best Thinking During Conflict
Any relationship, including work relationships, involves disagreements and conflict. In fact, healthy leaders encourage disagreements so that the best ideas can emerge. The key is working through tension with productive, effective behaviors rather than destructive, ineffective behaviors. When conflict is productive, the real issue gets addressed and conversations move forward so that relationships can get…
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5 Remarks Leaders Often Make to Avoid Conflict and Eventually Blow-Up in Anger
“Feelings are mentionable and manageable” – Mister Fred Rogers In his television show of 895 episodes that ran from 1968 – 2001, Mr. Rogers taught kids about a variety of life skills such as self-value, self-control, curiosity, appreciation of diversity, cooperation, patience, and perseverance. Through meaningful lyrics, scripts, and puppetry, Mr. Rogers presented meaningful experiences that…
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25 Abrasive Behaviors that Lead to Employee Resignation
Are valued employees leaving your organization because of one particular leader? This leader is known for explosive angry outbursts, condescending comments, and public humiliation of employees? Perhaps you can relate to this concern from an executive leader I recently spoke to. “She has an abrasive personality. Several of my employees are threatening to quit because…
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What do your employees say when you leave the room?
What do your employees say when you leave the room? That you’ve got their back – strive to help them succeed or do they perceive that you’re only out for your own career advancement? When you’re not around, do employees complain about your emotional outbursts and never know when they’re going to be yelled at?…
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7 Strategies to Address Team Infighting
Would it surprise you to know that having conflict with your team is healthy? It’s true. Having healthy, respectful disagreements where everyone expresses their point of view is important and allows the best ideas to emerge. When handled well, conflict can actually make a team more cohesive. However, when disagreements become dysfunctional when they explode…
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Leadership Lessons From a Mother Who Righted Her Wrongs
Before becoming a speaker, author, and leadership coach, I was a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. This role gave me the privilege of helping individuals, couples, and families share their stories, learn new skills, and turn around the unresolved conflict in their lives. I often think of a woman named Jane who came to me…
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Change Your Workplace Culture By Being Vulnerable
Would it change the way you think about your co-worker if you knew they were the oldest of five kids and they grew up in a single-parent home in a rural area? They became like parents themselves at a very young age and have little patience for child-like behavior or goofing around at the office.…
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A Nurse’s Courageous Approach to Workplace Conflict
My brother-in-law is a nurse anesthetist. He told me recently how frustrated he gets when colleagues talk about one another instead of talking to one another. This is a man who isn’t afraid to speak up and “rock the boat” if needed. So, what did he do? Instead of fuming to another colleague or complaining to a superior, he…
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Removing Uninvited Guests at Your Thanksgiving Table
This Thanksgiving is like none other. Perhaps people are missing from your table because they don’t feel comfortable meeting in person due to the coronavirus pandemic. On the other hand, there may be people present at your table who have completely different views about the handling of the pandemic. Whether you are sitting around the…
Read MoreHow to Transform Your Conflict Management Pattern
The last several blogs have addressed various conflict management patterns that show up in business relationships and the workplace. These are patterns learned in childhood that are learned by age six or seven to cope when things got tense. You may identify with a couple patterns and based on the circumstances use each one at…
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