In a research experiment in 2001, two groups of people completed a paper maze that featured a mouse in the middle trying to reach a picture on the outside. One group had a picture of cheese on the outside, the other a predator – an owl. After completing the maze both groups were given creativity …
Bringing Out The Best In People: A Social Cognitive Neuroscience Perspective (Part 1) Read More »
Brian was hired 6 months ago as a new manager of a small team of 7 staff in a branch of a country-wide service organisation. He’s committed and enthusiastic and has big plans to improve service delivery and productivity. Alice has worked there for 15 years and Brian is finding her less amenable to taking …
How To Have Effective Accountability Conversations Read More »
‘Feedback’ is one of the top three issues that can cause conflict or sour working relationships. The reasons for this are many. In some cases, the feedback ‘giver’ may be abrupt, overly negative or passive-aggressive (“yes, you did an ok job with that” through gritted teeth). But the receiver of feedback also plays a role …
Making Feedback Work – How Well Do You Take Feedback? Read More »
‘All those ideas around conflict resolution are really great, Mary, but what about ‘difficult behaviour’ – someone who just won’t sit down and talk things through in a reasonable way… how are you supposed to deal with them?’ This was the comment of a client in a recent team conflict case. She described herself as …
Managing ‘Difficult’ Behaviour – Are You Walking On Eggshells? Read More »
A question I am frequently asked in training people in mediation and conflict resolution skills is the challenge as a third party mediator/facilitator to remain neutral and impartial. This tends to get challenged on two fronts. There is neutrality to the parties and the issues they bring – not getting drawn into viewing one side …
Mediating Workplace Conflict – Staying Fair And Impartial Read More »
A common challenge for managers is how to deal with employee behaviours and possible conflict that could result from a negative reaction on their part to feedback they have received. You might feel like saying ‘come on get over it’ but negative feedback has the potential to impact on a person at a very deep …
You probably have recently completed a performance review with all your team members, or maybe it’s still on your ToDo list. Either way, the task of planning work for the coming year is now on the horizon. So how do you have a discussion with the employee where you are anticipating they might be resistant …
How To Handle Disagreement On Goals During A Performance Review Read More »
One of the tools use to help people effectively negotiate a difficult conversation is known as the Indian Talking Stick. Stephen Covey describes the Indian Talking stick as one of the most powerful communication tools he has used. Stemming from American Indian culture it has been used for centuries to build understanding and resolve differences respectfully …
Resolve Difficult Conversation With The Indian Talking Stick Read More »
Last month, I wrote about dealing with what is termed ‘high conflict’ behaviours and outlined some of the theory that might underpin such behaviour. So here are some concrete approaches to managing such situations. Tips for dealing with high conflict people 1. Don’t take the bait The number one ‘rule’ as it were in dealing …
One of the key principles of conflict resolution theory that we teach to trainee mediators is ‘focus on interests, not positions’. What’s meant by this is that you attempt all of the time to help people reflect on and articulate their needs, what’s important to them, what is ‘really’ going on for them. This is …
