CONFLICT

May 3, 2022

This month we’re exploring conflict. There’s no shortage of that these days, right? You can find it everywhere, from war to politics and locally from school decisions to conflicts our kids find themselves in. As I started to write this blog, I was focused on leadership and growth principles for conflict. But as I researched a bit, I could hear my Mom’s voice in my head with lessons from my childhood that seemed ever-relevant: 

Pick your battles. You only have so much time and energy for conflict or you’ll take away from the things that bring you joy. Choose wisely. Does this really matter? Will it matter in 20 minutes, 20 days or 20 years? I’ve been hard-pressed to find situations that meet the later criteria of 20 years - a few, but not many. 

Treat others as you would like to be treated. So true! Whether the conflict is with your partner, your teen, your colleague or a friend, be sure you’re thinking through how you’d like to show up and how you’d like to be treated if the tables were turned. It’s easy, especially if we hold the power in the relationship, to goof this up. It’s a great time to role model leader behaviors. 

Always be kind. I hear so many conflict resolution stories that sound like this: “I’m just going to...” and you can guess the rest. It’s easy to lose our cool or want to be sure our message gets across. But a little bit of honey goes a long way. More often than not, our conflicts are with people in our circle and kindness here means everything.