Hi my friend, We are feeling stressed. So are our loved ones. Can we lovingly support each other as we ride out this corona virus crisis together? Particularly since we are spending so much time together in our homes? There are many ways to support each other. One way is to be attuned and offer […]

Hi my friend, A mother came to me a few weeks back about her rebellious son who is lying, refusing to spend time with the family, and retreating to his bedroom. She wanted to know what she and her husband should do. Of course, I started by listening. I wanted to show empathy and respect […]

I introduced the topic of deep listening in my last blog post. I think of listening as suspending judgment and being fully present with another person to understand his or her experience or point of view. Listening well is one of the best gifts we can give another person. Not only does deep listening strengthen […]

Listening is thought of as a soft skill. Perhaps the softest of the soft skills. What’s the big deal, we might ask? We listen every day. It’s something we learned to do as children and it comes naturally. And yet, I’m going to suggest that it is not that easy. It reminds me of the […]

If I’m really honest with myself I feel pretty dismayed by the political debate in the country (USA) today. We have become so polarized and tribal, even in our local communities, that we can’t carry on a sincere conversation without people being offended and either shutting down or attacking those with differing opinions. How unfortunate […]

If you’ve been following me the last few weeks, you’re aware that I teach four phases in resolving conflict: Preparation, Invitation, Exploration, and Collaboration. Last week I wrote about the first two phases and this week I want to explain the last two phases. Phase III: Exploration-The Heart of Conflict Resolution Exploration is exploring the […]

We don’t like conflict and we’re often not good at handling it. As I’ve shared in recent blog posts, some people impose their will on others. Some withdraw and give in. And others avoid it altogether. The consequence is that sensitive issues go unresolved and our relationships suffer. In my last article, I talked about […]

My purpose is to make it easier for you to resolve conflict by teaching you a structure and process for initiating and navigating sensitive conversations successfully. I’m going to teach you a four-phase process for resolving conflict, which I’ve gleaned from my years of professional experience.

Conflict is inevitable. No surprise. The question is how we resolve it. The most emotionally intelligent people in any field or walk of life understand conflict management. They don’t deal with conflict by retreating or sweeping it under the rug, nor by coming off as aggressive and imposing their will on others. They learn to […]

In my last article, I introduced four styles of communication.  In this article, I want to do a deeper dive into the meaning of collaboration, the alternative to the patterns of dominating, accommodating, and avoiding. The truth is that all these styles have their place in day-to-day life. However, collaboration becomes crucial as the topic […]