Is “You” a Fighting Word? In pondering what the first conversations would look like, or sound like, as the case may be, I’ll invite two of my initial guests to change “you statements” to “I” statements. Rather than say, “You’re making me angry,” the reframing could be, “I felt angry when . . .”
Political discussions at work have shifted from casual water cooler conversations to significant sources of conflict. A recent Resume Now report found that:
91% of employees have witnessed or experienced political clashes at work, 51% actively avoid colleagues with different political views, 93% believe leadership’s political bias influences workplace policies and promotions.
In the world of leadership, two skills stand out as particularly vital yet challenging to master: effectively managing workplace conflict and communicating with…
“It’s not if we make mistakes; rather, how we handle them,” to (not very humbly) quote myself. Lessons I’ve Learned Over the Years: When I goof, saying “I’m sorry” stands alone, and is powerful. Providing an explanation serves to dilute the apology, and often reads as an excuse, a la, “Sorry I’m late; I ran…
For practitioners of organizational development, there are two schools of thought when it comes to handling conflict. Some advocate conflict resolution, while others subscribe to conflict management. Ponder the difference between the notion of conflict resolution and that of conflict management. Conflict resolution means that a conflict is
Diversity is a wonderful thing. The benefits abound: a McKinsey study found that diverse boards of directors generate better returns and more money; a Tuft’s study concluded that diverse groups uncover more angles when serving on mock juries (which underscores the value all the more so); a combined study by Columbia, MIT, University of Texas-Dallas and Northwestern found that stock picks by diverse teams experienced 58%…
While employed as the Human Resources Director at Times Mirror, a former holding company for a number of media groups – newspapers, television stations, radio stations, magazines, book companies, and training companies – I had the good fortune of becoming a certified Zenger Miller facilitator, which the company considered the lead Times Mirror training organization…
“Words, words, words, I’m so sick of words . . . “sang Eliza Doolittle in the 1964 film version of My Fair Lady. The film, based upon George Bernard Shaw’s book, Pygmalion, posits the question of whether one’s ability to speak “the King’s English,” can transform a cockney-speaking flower girl into a lady. Whether the…
We, humans, are a bundle of many things: We are intellectual, rational, and emotional beings. A good rule to follow in the workplace is that “it’s okay to have emotions since we all do, and it’s okay to describe those emotions. However, it’s not okay to display those emotions or to act them out.” There…
“The most wonderful time of the year,” can also be filled with stress. For me, this year, the so-called “great communicator,” encountered miscommunications that led to hurt feelings, misunderstandings, and three less for a family holiday dinner. What happened and whose responsibility is it anyway? Over the years I, like many trainers/facilitators have developed numerous…