![]() “Sometimes people really can resolve issues on their own, and there's no need to turn a molehill into a mountain,” Friedman adds. You don't want to go to your boss with petty or interpersonal matters that you are expected to resolve yourself.” If Joe leaves his coffee mugs in the kitchen sink or Mary in the next cubicle mumbles during her lunch hour, take matters into your own hands, she says. “Situations such as the potential major loss of revenue, for example, should be discussed with your supervisor,” Taylor says. Others fail to address conflict at work because they don't want to come off as tattlers, complainers, or brown-nosers.īut in most situations of serious conflict in the office-especially if the conflict has to do with the boss-it’s important that you let your manager know what’s going on. That person should be you, if you want to reduce stress and thrive in your job.” Communication dissipates, and so does the relationship, until someone bravely steps forward. “However, problems fester when they're shoved under the rug. “It's not something any of us look forward to resolving because of the emotions and stress involved.”Īnother reason most employees and bosses avoid interpersonal conflict at all costs: They feel that such problems will disappear over time, Taylor says. “We normally want people to see things the way we see things and if they don't, then we feel threatened, or that we've lost the battle.”Ĭonflict can hurt our morale and negatively affect how we feel about work, he adds. Teach believes most employees get uncomfortable because the word ‘conflict’ implies some sort of fight, battle or struggle. ![]() The result is an implied social contract whereby the general population allows many potential issues to simply pass.” This has imbued our genes with a very powerful and automatic aversion to conflict, leaving most people quite uncomfortable with it. “For our ancestors, there was a very real risk of injury or death should conflict arise, therefore, it was taken most seriously. “Conflict is the result of a mental risk-to-reward calculation regarding the value of pursuing the issue or ‘thing’ in question,” says David Parnell, a legal consultant, communication coach and author. The problem is, most employees get uncomfortable when conflict arises and don’t always address it or handle with it with poise. Another workplace expert, Lynn Taylor, author of Tame Your Terrible Office Tyrant, says conflict in the workplace is as common as the office water cooler-“so knowing how to cope with it with finesse will help catapult your career like no other interpersonal skill.”
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