by Christi Barrett | Conflict
Some team members hate conflict. Instead of openly airing the issues, conflict-averse people often go to their best friend on the team and complain about other team members. They say things like, “I don’t want to make trouble” or “It...
by Christi Barrett | Conflict
They’re at it again. Bob and Stefan are arguing over a budget allocation. Last time it was the details of the team retreat. Janel, their boss, has tried telling them to work out their differences. She knows she needs to step in to facilitate a permanent solution...
by Christi Barrett | Conflict
In a perfect world, people in conflict would work things out and emerge stronger. In the real world, conflict can be complicated and take some time to resolve. While we firmly believe that the vast majority of conflicts can come to successful resolution, it takes time...
by Christi Barrett | Courage, Emotional Intelligence
I’m all for courtesy, kindness and generosity. But do you want to be thought of as nice? I can think of many reasons to avoid niceness as a label. Niceness can work against you. Studies about agreeableness show that people who are considered warm and nice are...
by Christi Barrett | Communication, Conflict, Teamwork
Nobody’s perfect. That seems like a pretty simple and well-accepted notion. However, when dealing with people at work, you need (or at least want) them to do the right things. The fact that others don’t always do what they “should” can leave...