Doers Initiate Conflict Resolution

It is difficult even for Doers to do their best work in a tension-filled environment. So, consider what it would mean should the conflicts you’re currently embroiled in remain unresolved.

Not everyone is comfortable disclosing his or her frustrations in an open forum. Hence, the best option for sharing your truth with others is to have those within your sphere of influence anonymously write down on 3 x 5 cards those conflicts they’d like to see resolved—no names please, just the facts.

The heaviest, most sensitive issues that no one dares mention usually top the individual lists. Such deep-seated issues have been around so long that they take on additional weight and thus require additional effort to resolve.

Compile a master list and then have each person rank order the issues. The participants then work through the prioritized list together one issue at a time.

Begin the dialogue with the least threatening conflicts and save the heavier stuff for later when the chances of success are greater.

This simple, yet constructive process often exposes your coworkers in a nonjudgmental way to the possibility that they may not know the truth, or that they may not be able to discover the truth on their own.

As you progress through the master list, your teammates will learn how to express their concerns, ask difficult questions and face the deeper issues that have been driving them apart and most likely keep them from doing the rights things the right way.

Once this process becomes a natural part of your work routine, you should have little difficulty getting your colleagues to share their concerns and resolve their issues with each other in an orderly manner.

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