Say it again with me: we are all different. We won`t always love everyone we meet, and it`s not easy to work with someone whose personality we find tasteless. It`s helpful to remember that what we perceive as someone is not necessarily what they really are. This brings us back to the subject of empathy and understanding. Don`t let what you`ve seen define everything you`ll think of someone in the future. Disagreements at work can be a healthy way to challenge goals and strategies and get you and your organization to try new things. But not all disagreements need to be resolved. As long as both people think about data points, rethink goals, and try new things, progress will be made. Offer compromise solutions when employees are engaged in different approaches to a task. Invite a third party to participate in the resolution of the problem. Ask them for information. Address each person who disagrees respectfully and firmly explain why you chose a chosen course of action.
To be fair, it`s usually easier to accept than to confront someone, at least in the short term. And it feels good when someone nods at something we say or admits, “I see it the same way.” That`s what I wanted from Marguerite. And instead of accepting that she saw things differently from me, I called her “difficult.” It was a mistake – and not just because I embarrassed myself in the end. Thinking about it, I lost a potentially productive working relationship. Imagine how much better the project could have been if I had openly and respectfully contradicted Marguerite. This is where workplace conflicts become more serious and WHERE HR may need to get involved. If there is harassment or discrimination based on age, race, ethnicity, gender or otherwise, there is a serious need for the company to explicitly emphasize open-mindedness, acceptance and understanding. Disagreements are an inevitable, normal, and healthy part of the relationship with others. There is no work environment without conflict. And you shouldn`t want to work in one.
Disagreements – when managed well – have many positive outcomes, such as better work products, opportunities to learn and grow, better relationships, and a more inclusive work environment. To reap these benefits, you must overcome any fear you have of conflict. Start by letting go, wanting to be loved. Instead of trying to increase your sympathy, focus on respect, give it away, and deserve it. Don`t think disagreements are hostile. Most people are willing to hear a different point of view if you respectfully share it. You can also try to imitate someone who is comfortable with conflict. If you`re not yet good at dealing with tense conversations, try the personality of someone who is. Whatever tactic you want to try, practice it in small doses. Participate directly in a low-stakes conversation and see, for example, what`s going on. There is a good chance that this will go better than expected.
Just as there are different leadership styles, there are also different work styles. Some people prefer to work in groups, while others do their best on their own. Some people don`t need additional direction to accomplish a task, while others like external inputs and all directions at every step of the process. Some people do more work under pressure, and others like to do their job in advance. I`d like to think that the way I behaved with Marguerite was entirely due to my lack of experience – but in the years that followed, I observed in research and interviews on workplace conflicts that most people don`t want to disagree or know how to do it. In fact, we`ve come to equate “I see things differently” or “I disagree” with anger, rudeness, or wickedness, which makes it terribly uncomfortable for most people. This means that people who lead organizations or departments, teams, or workgroups typically don`t get the most out of the people they hire and employ. You will eventually come to a disagreement with a colleague, and that is only part of the human experience. But when you communicate these disagreements with another person, it`s important that they feel seen and heard.
Often, a disagreement can remain a friendly conversation if you simply confirm the other person`s point of view. This shows that you respect their point of view, even if you disagree with it. It`s also easier for them to understand your point of view when they know you`ve heard and listened to them from every angle. – Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms For every idea we work on in our company, we establish a rule to find at least three counter-reasons why it doesn`t work. A culture that constantly plays devil`s advocate can disarm occasional disagreements and feel like an organic reaction as opposed to a confrontation. We expect that even if something looks perfect and it`s not easy to find a reason against it, you still need to find at least three things that aren`t right before it progresses. In most cases, it`s harder than it sounds, but it`s an extremely effective way to come up with ideas and solutions to problems while serving as a way to convey real confrontations that might normally seem offensive to someone. – Jacob Tanur, Click Play Movies When you think about how you can disagree, realize that you will always work with this colleague every day. A compromise could be the answer. So it could be a matter of acknowledging that there are certain points on which you will never agree, so you may have to agree to disagree. Do you know how you disagree with your colleagues, superiors and colleagues? If so, you have an unusual skill and practice professional courage that few people in organizations show. The most effective teams and organizations regularly disagree on ideas, goals, strategies, and implementation steps.
When employees disagree, their productivity decreases and a disagreement can become a troubling conflict. As a small business owner, you show leadership in finding ways to resolve labour disputes while preserving the dignity of everyone involved. Approach disagreements by understanding why disagreements break out and how they can get worse if not supervised. The most common causes of labour disputes include personality conflicts, difficult staffing and lack of communication. When you`re at work, it will help you recognize the trigger point and figure out what to do next when you`re aware of the reality that you`re going to have an emotional response before an intellectual response. An important part of the interaction is working on processing the emotional response while maintaining the intellectual conversation. Constructive conversations at work are often destroyed by emotions, despite our best efforts. If decision-making is determined more by your emotions than by reason, the best ideas can be lost, the result is less productive and harmful to your office relationships. In general, the things that everyone agrees on are usually well known, but the ideas on the edges – the ones that often take us off the beaten track and try new things, succeed and fail – that can lead to disagreements. Pushing ourselves into a space where judgment is required helps to move our organizations forward and strengthen the character of the individual. Everyone should be able to work effectively in this room, but it is not easy. The same idea of mutual respect and understanding also applies here, but also to all conflicts in the workplace and in every interaction with other people.
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