Conflict can arise in any personal or professional situation, but can actually be quite healthy – if approached and handled properly. Follow these easy tips to ensure your employees know just how to turn conflict into an exercise in productive discussion:
- Speak civilly. As emotions rise, volume quickly follows suit. That’s why it’s important for employees to remain calm, cool, and collected by speaking with a soft and personable tone while refraining from using aggressive, rude, or threatening language. Even when one employee speaks with an uncivil tone, it’s important not to match it; instead, de-escalate the rising tensions.
- Consider alternate perspectives. When employees are passionate about an idea, it’s common for them to become somewhat narrow-minded. To promote brainstorming within teams, encourage your employees to listen to each other’s points of view. This exercise in active listening will help with the free exchange of ideas, without feeling insecure or unheard.
- Take time to reflect. In a heated debate or the recipient of a subjectively uncivil comment or email, it’s easy for an employee to let their emotions overshadow their rational side. Remind employees to take a breath, step away from their computer, or sleep on it before reacting to what they perceive as a personal attack. By taking time to reflect, the conflict might not appear as catastrophic. Most of the time, context gets lost in the workplace due to hectic schedules and digital communication, so encourage your employees to give their coworkers the benefit of the doubt.
- Respect one another. Remind your employees that they are a part of a team of unique individuals, who all bring special knowledge, skills, and abilities to the organization. By respecting and valuing their coworkers rather than competing for the limelight, they will realize that respect is reciprocal. Meaning, that if they encourage a coworker to succeed, they are more likely to receive encouragement in kind.
- Promote psychological safety. When coworkers feel like they are in a psychologically safe environment to express themselves or voice their opinions and concerns, there is a lower likelihood that they will be met with hostility. Plus, this sense of safety might spark healthy debate, which can yield innovative thought. As long as employees know that tolerance, acceptance, and inclusivity are standard in their organization, they will be able to speak freely and engage in constructive conflict as a team, instead of arguing.
By following these practical conflict resolution tips, your employees will contribute to a positive organizational culture. Better yet, instances of healthy conflict may result in higher productivity, an increase in innovative and creative thinking, and improved collaboration.
Our counsellors can provide one-on-one sessions to support conflict resolution at the employee and manager level. Learn more about conflict resolution by booking a demo with one of our employee assistance and workplace mental health experts: https://homewoodpathfinder.com/book-a-demo/