This week I have been asked to: Think about any disagreements, or conflicts, you have recently experienced or are currently experiencing at work with a supervisor or colleague, or someone in your personal life. Share at least two strategies you have learned about that might help you manage or resolve the conflict more productively, and why these strategies might be effective. For example, could you suggest a compromise? Could you look for a broader range of solutions to your disagreement? Could you use some of the principles of nonviolent communication or the 3 R's to better help you resolve this conflict?
Right now I have that person at work, and while I normally consider myself a fair communicator, I often find myself at a loss for my skills when communicating with this person. So, what have I learned this week that could help me with that. I think that Gerber's 3 R's are a starting point. The 3 R's "promote the idea that relationships are built over time through respectful, reciprocal, and responsive interactions" (Gerber, n.d). By using these 3 R's I know that I have to step back and rethink my interactions with this person at work, as I know where are times that my interactions have not been respectful, reciprocal or responsive.
Also, I think that the principles of Nonviolent Communication will also help me resolve conflict more productively. By being more clear in my requests, differentiating feeling from thinking, and connecting more with her person needs/values I think that I will be able to more successfully communicate with my partner at work.
Will our communication ever been 100% effective? Probably not, but maybe with the use of the skills I am learning in this class we can get up to 90%? 80%, maybe ;)
Machaela,
ReplyDeleteI agree with that using the 3 R's for better communication. My weakness is reciprocal. I know that I need to use this more to be more effective and show others I am listening. I am going to make an effort to do this more at work.
Tanya
Hi Machaela! I really liked how you defined and simplified Gerber's 3 R's and applied them to your situation. You are so right that learning to communicate respectively takes time and a whole lot of work! Good luck to you!
ReplyDeleteMichelle
Machaela,
ReplyDeleteI think it is great that you are going to use what you have learned to help with this situation.The strategies that we learned this week can be very helpful in various situations.