<ul><li>Constructively deal with difficult coworkers and behaviors through compassionate candor, not avoidance or fueling negativity. </li><li>Lead with empathy, but also courage. </li><li>Understand the context and motivations driving behaviors, and find common ground.</li></ul>

Compassionately Addressing Difficult Behaviors 

Drama results from miscommunications, misunderstandings, and misdirected efforts between coworkers.

Clearly set and enforce healthy boundaries around how team members engage with and treat each other, aligned with company values. Don't accept abusive, manipulative or intimidating conduct. Walk away if boundaries are violated. Enforce consistently, not punitively.

Setting Healthy Interpersonal Boundaries

Proactively mitigate unnecessary drama by setting clear mutual expectations, providing regular positive and constructive feedback, questioning assumptions rather than jumping to conclusions, and communicating directly to prevent distortions. Maintain open, mature dialogue.

Proactively Mitigating Drama Through Clear Communication

<ul><li>Proactively encourage open sharing of dissenting opinions, disagreements, and honest concerns to prevent hidden resentments. </li><li>Make it psychologically safe to voice issues early before they silently escalate into drama. </li><li>Value transparency, diversity of thought, and addressing issues.</li></ul>

Fostering Open Sharing of Diverse Perspectives

<ul><li>Manage your own reactions first before addressing drama. </li><li>Diffuse situations proactively through self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, conflict wisdom and nonviolent communication. </li><li>Model desired change.</li></ul>

Leading with Emotional Intelligence

Recognize that workplace drama stems from unclear expectations between coworkers, ineffective or avoided feedback, selective listening, assumed negative motives, and poor conflict management. Left unaddressed, drama breeds polarization, erodes trust over time, and drains energy from productive work. Be aware of these root causes.

Recognizing How Workplace Drama Originates

Workplace conflict consultant Anna Maravelas draws on her long experience to explain how to prevent and resolve workplace clashes.

"Maravelas is the best source on workplace irritability and tension." --Matt Villano, New York TimesThe human longing for respect and dignity is deep and pervasive. Yet, while resolving more than 300 workplace conflicts, author Anna Maravelas has met thousands of individuals struggling with tension and mistrust. Creating a Drama-Free Workplace contains strategies to avoid and reverse these troubling trends. Learn why trust and connectedness slip through our fingers despite our yearnings for workplaces that are grounded in collaboration and success. Stop common missteps before they walk out the door with your most valuable assets--trust, morale, and productivity. You can create the environments you desire and deserve with these proven skills grounded in neuroscience.In this book you will learn how to: <ul><li>Take the drama out of disagreement and enhance your ability to problem solve.</li><li>Eliminate the 5 root causes of workplace tension.</li><li>Be hard on the problem and soft on the people and create lasting alliances.</li><li>Preserve your integrity by talking to people rather than about them.</li><li>Replace bitterness about the past with a shared responsibility for the future.</ul></li>Knowing how to transform conflict into collaboration affects the outcome of every interaction, challenge, and opportunity.

communication

Communication

teamwork

Teamwork

books

Books

“Maravelas is the best source on workplace irritability and tension.” —Matt Villano, New York TimesThe human longing for respect and dignity is deep and pervasive. Yet, while resolving more than 300 workplace conflicts, author Anna Maravelas has met thousands of individuals struggling with tension and mistrust. Creating a Drama-Free Workplace contains strategies to avoid and reverse these troubling trends. Learn why trust and connectedness slip through our fingers despite our yearnings for workplaces that are grounded in collaboration and success. Stop common missteps before they walk out the door with your most valuable assets—trust, morale, and productivity. You can create the environments you desire and deserve with these proven skills grounded in neuroscience.In this book you will learn how to: <ul><li>Take the drama out of disagreement and enhance your ability to problem solve.</li><li>Eliminate the 5 root causes of workplace tension.</li><li>Be hard on the problem and soft on the people and create lasting alliances.</li><li>Preserve your integrity by talking to people rather than about them.</li><li>Replace bitterness about the past with a shared responsibility for the future.</ul></li>Knowing how to transform conflict into collaboration affects the outcome of every interaction, challenge, and opportunity.