It’s inevitable — there is bound to be some conflict in your place of work at some point. When people work in close contact with others, there will probably be times when personalities collide and feelings get hurt. While it’s probably not possible to completely avoid all types of conflict, there are ways that you can reduce the chance of disagreements and give people the room they need to thrive and be themselves. One of the first steps to reducing conflict is to set people up to succeed. Lack of fulfillment and no chance of advancement can lead to pent-up frustration and hard feelings that can eventually boil over and come out at unexpected times.
Workplace conflict is a more common problem than many think. In fact, a significant amount of employee and employer time is taken up with managing problems between employees. Work often requires people with different viewpoints, goals and ideas to work together for a common goal, and that is often a recipe for disaster. It can be important to develop a workplace that focuses on mutual respect and cooperation. This is not a surefire way to prevent all conflict, but when you promote and encourage positive approaches to disagreements, it can lower the chance that you will find yourself or your employees in the middle of an all-out fight or ongoing contest of spats and snide remarks.
One key to making your workplace a more peaceful place to work is to be clear in your communication with others and with your employees. Communicating well reduces confusion, makes everyone clearly aware of their responsibilities and makes it less likely that there will be disputes that arise from subjective interpretation of your words. Clarity is important, whether you’re having a conversation with a co-worker or you’re giving instructions to your team.
It may not be possible to reduce all conflict in your workplace, but there are specific things you can do to make where you work a better, more productive and more peaceful place for yourself and others.
By Meagan Kerlin for Vertu Marketing LLC
