The thinking mind is the part of the mind that tries to make sense of the world by analysing situations, imagining scenarios, and telling stories. But it is limited by several cognitive bottlenecks, such as how much information we can process at one time, how many tasks we can focus on simultaneously, and how many parameters we can consider when making decisions.

The thinking mind

Our limited sensory capabilities mean that we tend to overestimate our cognitive ability. We try to simultaneously process multiple streams of information or work on several tasks at the same time. So we respond by multitasking. We believe we will be quicker by combining two tasks. We also trust we can consider many different facts when making complex decisions. But our thinking mind is limited by two bottlenecks: attention and working memory.

Intrinsic limitations of the thinking mind

<ul><li>Attention: Research shows that we're bad at dividing our attention between different tasks.</li><li>Working memory allows us to hold multiple bits of information for the short term. This is important for activities such as reading, writing, having a conversation, and making decisions. But the working memory is a bottleneck as it is limited in capacity and duration. </li></ul> Every person will have different levels of attention and working memory, which will vary throughout the day and years. Being aware of these cognitive bottlenecks can help you to avoid being overconfident and make better decisions.

Two bottlenecks: Attention and working memory

<ul><li>Offload some of your thinking. Instead of relying on your mind alone, use tools for thought that help you collect and connect ideas together.</li><li>Plan for focused chunks of work. Instead of multitasking, define your tasks and block time to complete them.</li><li>Practice mindful productivity. Instead of blaming yourself for getting distracted, gently bring back your attention to your tasks.</li></ul>

How to manage your cognitive bottlenecks

Cognitive bottlenecks limit how much information we can process at one time, how many tasks we can simultaneously focus on, and how many parameters we can consider while making a decision.

Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology

problemsolving

Problem Solving

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

Cognitive bottlenecks: the inherent limits of the thinking mind

Grabbing short-term opportunities can lead you to settle for a small present reward rather than wait for a larger future reward. This tendency is known as the present bias. While it may feel good at the time, it can negatively impact long-term planning and decision-making.

Seizing short-term opportunities

The classic experiment to show if the present bias is at play is to ask, "would you prefer $100 today or $110 in one week?" The desire for instant reward will cause many to take the $100 now rather than waiting for the reward. A study showed stronger activation in reward-related areas of the brain when participants were asked to make decisions that would lead to an immediate reward. However, with delayed gratification, there was far less activation within the brain's reward centres.

Illustrating the present bias

It’s tempting to take a reward that is available right now, but the cognitive bias can harm your future self. For example:<ul><li>You may work hard to get a place on a law degree course, but then give in to the present bias and spend most of your time socialising at the expense of your exams.</li><li>Being offered a higher salary can cause us to forget about our long-term career goals.</li><li>The desire for instant gratification can lead to reckless spending rather than putting money into a long-term investment.</li><li>Procrastination can prevent you from making progress on a project well before the deadline.</li></ul>

How the present bias impacts your success

Managing the present bias consists in staying mindful of your long-term goals.<ul><li>Write down your long-term goals. Create a list of what you want to achieve this year or over the next few years. Then, when you're faced with a choice between different rewards, refer back to your list to ensure you're on track.</li><li>Delay new purchases until tomorrow. The extra time will lower your impulsivity level and allow you to make an informed decision.</li><li>Follow the ten-minute rule. If you procrastinate on a task, tell yourself to start right now for just ten minutes. You may find yourself continuing.</li></ul>

Strategies to manage the present bias

The present bias is our tendency to seize short-term opportunities, settling for a small present reward rather than waiting for a larger future reward.

Present bias: how instant gratification impacts your long-term goals

The only way to lead<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/ludmila-praslova/details/education/1635491374289/single-media-viewer/"> effectively</a> when you can’t force people to do something is to be an example, share information, and lead from a place of caring.If the true goal of leadership is motivating people to achieve goals and effect change, the old model of using positional authority may never have been the most effective.

A New Kind Of Leadership

There are six bases of interpersonal power, or the ability to effect change.<ul><li>Legitimate power: inherent in a position, such as a supervisor’s job title</li><li>Reward power: ability to grant bonuses, raises, promotions, and privileges</li><li>Coercive power: power to punish via termination, demotion, undesirable scheduling, or unpleasant assignments</li><li>Referent power: based on our identification with leaders and the intrinsic desire to follow their example</li><li>Expert power: belief that the leader has a deeper understanding of relevant topics and "knows best"</li><li>Informational Influence/power: adds an element of learning</li></ul>

Effective Leadership Is Not the Same as Formal Authority

<ul><li>Remote and flexible work challenges the traditional workplace authority model.</li><li>Now, positional leaders who used to rely on rewards and punishments have limited options.</li><li>They can attempt to use surveillance where it is likely to harm productivity, such as remote knowledge and creative work.</li><li>Force people into the office, double-down on using reward (perks, bonuses) and punishment (paycuts, firings) power, but risk losing employees and having to deal with a reduced replacement talent pool.</li></ul>

Leadership Without Surveillance

Leaders can lead through referent, expert, and informational power, using purpose-centred inspiration while changing work organization to replace domination with the focus on wellbeing, outcomes, flexibility, and participation.Positional leaders still can and need to use legitimate, reward, and even coercive power when appropriate. However, as work becomes increasingly cognitive or even emotional, the relative importance of the referent, expert, and informational leadership will continue to grow.

Alternate Way Of Leading

Referent power is about leading by example. Aspiring leaders and those retooling to lead in the post-pandemic world can develop their referent power through modelling transparency and authenticity, as well as listening and compassion.Activist leaders must practice what they preach. An effective environmental activist can’t be irresponsibly consuming resources. Similarly, if one expects colleagues to contribute high-quality work, setting an example of competence and commitment is non-negotiable.

Leading By Example

In addition to authenticity, listening to and understanding others underpins human connections. Relationships are much more intrinsically motivating than transactional rewards and punishments. Even before the pandemic, 78% of employees were willing to<a href="https://www.businessolver.com/workplace-empathy-executive-summary"> switch jobs to get more empathy</a>. And 77% were willing to give more hours of work to an empathetic employer. Now, as the stress and burnout are taking a toll on employees, managers face an even taller order to exhibit<a href="https://hbr.org/2022/05/how-to-be-a-compassionate-manager-in-a-heartless-organization"> compassion</a>.

Building Relationships

To build on the referent, expert, and informational power, leadership must center on shared purpose. Both activism leadership and thought leadership unite diverse people from around the world because the <a href="https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/movements-social-change-apartheid-civil-rights-suf/#:~:text=Throughout%20history%2C%20movements%20that%20promote,the%20efforts%20of%20these%20leaders.">cause</a> or the idea intrinsically inspires them. Authentically uniting talent around a sense of purpose is increasingly the task of all leaders. Earning the respect of people and supporting them with care and dignity provide the relational foundation for the intrinsically inspired work.

The Bottom Line

Leadership isn't just about giving orders.

Influence is the new power, and managers have a lot to learn from activists and thought leaders.

We’re in the midst of a fundamental shift in leadership

Emotional intelligence is the ability to manage and identify your emotions, expressing them in respectful and helpful ways. In the workplace, this aids in responding with supportive feedback and may help you understand your coworkers better.Emotional intelligence is a necessary skill for navigating the important relationships in your life. When you develop the ability to be aware of your emotions and express them in a healthy way, you’ll have a greater chance of success, both professionally and personally.

9 Tips To Improve Your Emotional Intelligence

<ul><li>Self-awareness</li><li>Ability to manage your own emotional responses</li><li>Empathy for others</li><li>Ability to maintain healthy relationships</li></ul>

Characteristics of emotional intelligence

Being aware of your emotions and emotional responses to those around you can greatly improve your emotional intelligence. Knowing when you’re feeling anxious or angry can help you process and communicate those feelings in a way that promotes healthy results.

1. Be more self-aware

Emotional intelligence may start with self-reflection, but it’s also important to gauge how others perceive your behavior and communication. Knowing how to adjust your own message based on how you’re being received is an important part of being emotionally intelligent.

2. Recognize how others feel

People communicate via both verbal and nonverbal communication, so it’s important to listen and watch for potentially positive and negative reactions. Taking the time to listen to others also indicates a level of respect that can form the foundation for healthy relationships.

3. Practice active listening

Strong communication skills are essential for emotional intelligence. Knowing what to say or write and when to deliver information is crucial for building strong relationships. For example, as a manager in a work environment, communicating expectations and goals is necessary to keep everyone on the same page.

4. Communicate clearly

Nothing is more contagious than a positive attitude. Emotionally intelligent people understand the power of a positive word, an encouraging email and a kind gesture. When you’re able to also stay positive in a stressful situation, you can help others around you remain calm. This attitude also can encourage further problem-solving and teamwork.

5. Stay positive

Considering how others might be feeling is an important quality of emotional intelligence. It means you can empathize with feelings that you may not be feeling yourself and respond in a way that’s respectful and comforting to others.

6. Empathize

Emotionally intelligent people are easy to approach because they’re good listeners and able to consider and understand other perspectives. They’re also open to learning new things and embracing new ideas.

7. Be open-minded

It’s important to be the kind of person who can hear feedback, whether it’s positive feedback on a recent presentation or more critical recommendations on how you should delegate tasks more efficiently. Being open to feedback means you can take responsibility for your actions and are willing to improve how you communicate with others.

8. Listen to feedback

It’s important to be able to approach stressful situations with a calm and positive attitude. Tensions can easily escalate, especially when people are working under deadlines, so keeping steady and focusing on finding a solution will help everyone meet their goals.

9. Stay calm under pressure

“When awareness is brought to an emotion, power is brought to your life.”-Tara Meyer Robson

Quote

9 Tips to improve Emotional Intelligence.

Emotional intelligence is a necessary skill, especially at work. Discover nine ways to develop this trait.

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

mentalhealth

Mental Health

communication

Communication

teamwork

Teamwork

There are both practical and psychological reasons why a colleague might try to go above you, says Adam Galinsky, a professor at Columbia Business School and coauthor of "Friend and Foe: When to Cooperate, When to Compete, and How to Succeed at Both". Practically speaking, they may want a different answer or outcome than you’ve given. Psychologically, it’s possible that they’re keen to show they have more clout or authority than you do. It could also be that they’re conflict averse and afraid to address the issue with you directly.

What The Experts Say

Webb suggests you start by considering what you actually know. You may think your coworker went over your head to spite you, but perhaps you’re misreading the situation. Look at only the facts and avoid snap judgments. For example, rather than thinking, “He completely disregarded my authority,” tell yourself, “He had a conversation with my boss about the initiative he’s working on.”

Question Your Assumption

If you don’t know all the facts of the situation – perhaps you just heard about the conversation through the office rumor mill – try to find out what really happened, says Webb. You might go to your boss and ask in a neutral way about what transpired: “Hey, I heard you and Carlos were talking about his new idea.” Take care to maintain a casual, non-accusatory tone so that your boss doesn’t think you’re trying to start a feud.

Find Out More

Ask your coworker if the two of you can talk — preferably in a private room. Keep an open mind as you enter the conversation, says Webb. “Don’t go into the conversation with the intention of sticking it to your coworker. Instead think about the importance of your working relationship.” Focus on your ultimate goal, whether it’s to restore trust or to protect your authority. And be ready to hear what he has to say about the situation and why he did what he did.

Approach Your Colleague

Begin by saying what you know in a “straightforward” way, says Galinsky. Explain why you’re disappointed, but stay away from words like “angry” or “betrayed,” Webb adds. That may be how you feel, but it’s going to put your coworker on the defensive. You might say something like: “I heard you talked to Roger about your initiative after we discussed it and that made me feel a bit concerned that we’re not communicating well.” Then ask for — and listen to — his perspective.

State Your Position 

Once you’ve shared your views with one another, decide together how to remedy the situation. “Try asking them for their thoughts first, then build on their suggestions. Research shows that people feel far more attachment to any idea that they’ve had a hand in shaping,” explains Webb.

Problem-Solve Together 

You should also discuss how you’ll handle similar situations in the future. Ideally, you and your colleague will agree that she should come directly to you next time. But if she’s not immediately on board with that plan, try to show her that going over your head is not only hurtful; it’s also ineffective, says Galinsky. Explain that you and your boss are in regular contact, so you’re going to find out if someone goes over your head. You might say, “I meet with Roger regularly to discuss our group’s priorities and he usually lets me know if he gets requests from other teams.”

Clarify The Lines Of Communication 

This breach in the chain of command may have annoyed your boss or caused her to question your ability to do your job. And, if she failed to redirect the colleague to you, you might be ticked off at her. So, once you’ve settled things with your colleague, make sure to also sit down with your manager to talk about what happened, why it happened, and how to avoid similar situations in the future. Again, lay out what you know and how it made you feel, then listen to her perspective: “I heard that Carlos talked to you about his initiative and that made me concerned that I might be out of the loop.

Repair Your Relationship With Your Boss

<ul><li>Keep an open mind and be willing to hear your coworker’s side of the story.</li><li>Avoid words like “angry” or “betrayed.” Even if authentic, they will put your coworker on the defensive.</li><li>Talk to your boss to be sure your reputation isn’t damaged.</li></ul>

Principles To Remember Do's 

<ul><li>Make assumptions about why your colleague went over your head.</li><li>Rely on rumors and hearsay. Instead, find out the true facts of the situation.</li><li>Leave next time up to chance — ask your boss to redirect your coworker to you.</li></ul>

Principles To Remember Don'ts 

What can you say and do when someone tries to sidestep you?

career

Career

What to Do When a Coworker Goes Over Your Head

The following suggestions about how to build trust were provided by Carthage Buckley, a stress and performance coach.

How to Build Trust: 12 General Tips

The point of building trust is for others to believe what you say. Keep in mind, however, that building trust requires not only keeping the promises you make but also not making promises you’re unable to keep.Keeping your word shows others what you expect from them, and in turn, they’ll be more likely to treat you with respect, developing further trust in the process.

1. Be true to your word and follow through with your actions

Poor communication is a major reason why relationships break down. Good communication includes being clear about what you have or have not committed to and what has been agreed upon.Building trust is not without risk. It involves allowing both you and others taking risks to prove trustworthiness. To navigate this, effective communication is key. Without it, you may find the messages you’ve intended to send aren’t the messages that are received.

2. Learn how to communicate effectively with others

Building trust is a daily commitment. Don’t make the mistake of expecting too much too soon. In order to build trust, first take small steps and take on small commitments and then, as trust grows, you will be more at ease with making and accepting bigger commitments. Put trust in, and you will generally get trust in return.

3. Remind yourself that it takes time to build and earn trust

Only make commitments that you are happy to agree to. Have the courage to say “no,” even when it disappoints someone. If you agree to something and can’t follow through, everyone involved is worse off.Be clear about what you have on your plate, and keep track of your commitments. Being organized is a necessary part of building trust with family, friends, and colleagues. It enables you to make a clear decision as to whether to agree to requests of your time and energy.

4. Take time to make decisions and think before acting too quickly

Trust often results from consistency. We tend to have the most trust in people who are there for us consistently through good times and bad. Regularly showing someone that you’re there for them is an effective way to build trust.

5. Value the relationships that you have—and don’t take them for granted

When you take an active role in a team and make contributions, people are more likely to respect and trust you. It’s also imperative when building trust in a team to show your willingness to trust others.Being open and willing to make contributions and to engage demonstrates this. In other words, take what others say into consideration, show that you are listening actively, suggest your thoughts and feedback in a respectful way, and demonstrate that you are willing to be part of the team.

6. Develop your team skills and participate openly

The message you convey should always, always be the truth. If you are caught telling a lie, no matter how small, your trustworthiness will be diminished.

7. Always be honest

Helping another person, even if it provides no benefit to you, builds trust. Authentic kindness helps to build trust.

8. Help people whenever you can

Being open about your emotions is often an effective way to build trust. Furthermore, if people know that you care, they are more likely to trust you.Emotional intelligence plays a role in building trust. Acknowledging your feelings, learning the lessons that prevail, and taking productive action means that you won’t deny reality—this is the key to building trust.

9. Don’t hide your feelings

Acknowledgment and appreciation play an important role in building trust and maintaining good relationships. Recognizing and appreciating the efforts of others shows your talent for leadership and teamwork and increases the trust others have in you.On the other hand, if people don’t demonstrate appreciation for a good deed, they appear selfish. Selfishness destroys trust.

10. Don’t always self-promote

Doing something purely for approval means sacrificing your own values and beliefs. This decreases trust in yourself, your values, and your beliefs. Always doing what you believe is right, even when others disagree, will lead others to respect your honesty.Interestingly, when building trust, you must be willing to upset others on occasion. People tend not to trust those who simply say whatever they think others want to hear.

11. Always do what you believe to be right

When you attempt to hide your mistakes, people know that you are being dishonest. By being open, you show your vulnerable side, and this helps build trust with other people.This is because they perceive you to be more like them—everyone makes mistakes. If you pretend that you never make mistakes, you’ll make it difficult for others to trust you because you have created an unnecessary difference between the two of you. When all that a person sees is the “perfection” you project, they likely won’t trust you.

12. Admit your mistakes

“To be trusted is a greater compliment than being loved.”-George MacDonald “Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”-Stephen Covey

Quotes on Trust

This article explains how to build trust and the importance of trust in relationships as the keystone of successful and healthy relationships.

loveandrelationships

Love & Relationships

10 Ways To Build Trust in a Relationship

Change efforts begin with knowing who you are and what unconscious factors drive your decisions, then linking that Self with the greater world. The one element in the change management process that you completely govern is yourself.

The “Use-of-Self”

“A shared purpose captures early involvement and support for the change, reduces tensions and conflict and leads to better results.”

1. Be deliberate about your decisions and take accountability – check your biases and consider choices while make sure you’re aware of all the facets of your thinking.2. Foster “Use-of-Self as an instrument of change” – embrace and face people’s resistance to change.3. “Reframe” - when you reframe, you find new perspectives from which to view your experiences.

Six precepts of Leading Meaningful Change

4. Utilize “the dynamics of power” – there is always people/team with ‘power; formal/informal. Analyze, leverage and align the flow of ‘power’.5. Deliver and request feedback – continuous improvement only can be done with feedback6. Recognize and leverage diversity – see each person as there will be differences in each of us; be sensitive with it.

<ol><li>Build a common goal</li><li>Make people involved</li><li>Maintain interpersonal connection</li><li>Make your plan aligned with the goal</li><li>Build a culture that align with the change</li><li>Make all part is ready for change</li><li>Always do continues monitoring and adjustment</li></ol>

Seven principles of Leading Meaningful Change

Remember to do “Envisioning Success Exercise“; asks participants to project themselves into the future, visualizing the success of your change initiative, and retrace the steps that got them there. This will build a common shared purpose.

Envisioning Success Exercise

This plan should cover:<ol><li>Role models</li><li>Comprehension and commitment</li><li>Formal procedures</li><li>Enabling people, enhance their skill and knowledge</li></ol>Your change should cascade down through four levels – “corporate, project, supports and communications.” Factor in the structures and supports needed at each level to accomplish your change goals.

Make a Master Plan of Change

Acknowledge the current culture, deep dive to find its root concepts. Take this into account when you need to do a change. Change agents should look out for mismatches between intention and results, inside and outside influences, and risks. Remain nimble, receptive to feedback and willing to innovate.

Culture and Change

Anticipate that the four stages of a change will be in steady movement as you plan, convey and assess the arranged change. The stages are:<ol><li>Alignment – get all stakeholders into account and to get your common definition of successful change</li><li>Integration – you may start to find resistance to be addressed. Consider to have workshops, team sessions, etc.</li><li>Action – always look back your change Master Plan, adjust when necessary</li><li>Renewal – Evaluate everything, assess your change against your purpose</li></ol>

Four Stages of Change

Teamwork becomes the glue that bonds people together around the shared purpose and collectively engages their hearts and minds. The five main team dysfunctions to look out for are mistrust, conflict, poor commitment, avoiding accountability and inattention to results.

Beverley Patwell encourages people to embark on a “change journey”. She shared jargon “Use-of-Self” that focuses on the individual as the pivotal point for meaningful change. It also provided deeper explanations on four-stage process of align, integrate, carry out and renew your change process.

"Straightforward and practical, this book is a must-read for any leader or change practitioner."―Mark Porter, Executive Vice President People & Culture, WestJet Airlines Leading Meaningful Change is an essential guide for executives, leaders, managers, consultants, and other professionals who need to go beyond applying tactics in a change plan to truly capture the hearts, minds, and souls of the people they lead. Based on her research and 30 years of experience helping people lead and manage meaningful change, Beverley Patwell offers a new framework to guide and enhance the change journey. This approach is humanizing, engaging, and results in the belief in a higher purpose that permeates throughout the organization while at the same time achieves outcomes that are far greater than one person's single contribution. Patwell's framework is effective in: - creating a shared vision that compels people to be engaged and involved in the change journey; - developing internal leaders and strong, cohesive and aligned teams to lead, manage and support the changes; and - developing strategies to effectively lead, manage and evaluate the human side of change. At the core of the framework are the Use-of-Self principles applied to the change process as seen through interviews with 24 multi-generational emerging, current and long-service leaders who explain why Use-of-Self remains a key element in successfully leading and managing change. The book also includes practical tools to help leaders and managers across the globe address change leadership challenges. Of special note is a two-year case study of the Senior Leadership Team in the City of Ottawa who led a significant city-wide culture shift using the framework.

philosophy

Philosophy

books

Books

"Straightforward and practical, this book is a must-read for any leader or change practitioner."―Mark Porter, Executive Vice President People & Culture, WestJet Airlines Leading Meaningful Change is an essential guide for executives, leaders, managers, consultants, and other professionals who need to go beyond applying tactics in a change plan to truly capture the hearts, minds, and souls of the people they lead. Based on her research and 30 years of experience helping people lead and manage meaningful change, Beverley Patwell offers a new framework to guide and enhance the change journey. This approach is humanizing, engaging, and results in the belief in a higher purpose that permeates throughout the organization while at the same time achieves outcomes that are far greater than one person's single contribution. Patwell's framework is effective in: - creating a shared vision that compels people to be engaged and involved in the change journey; - developing internal leaders and strong, cohesive and aligned teams to lead, manage and support the changes; and - developing strategies to effectively lead, manage and evaluate the human side of change. At the core of the framework are the Use-of-Self principles applied to the change process as seen through interviews with 24 multi-generational emerging, current and long-service leaders who explain why Use-of-Self remains a key element in successfully leading and managing change. The book also includes practical tools to help leaders and managers across the globe address change leadership challenges. Of special note is a two-year case study of the Senior Leadership Team in the City of Ottawa who led a significant city-wide culture shift using the framework.

Beverley Patwell

Leading Meaningful Change

This mediation process works between groups as well as individuals. “We don't get harmony when everybody sings the same note. Only notes that are different can harmonize. The same is true with people.”-Steve Goodier

The Five Steps to Conflict Resolution for Managers

The definition of conflict resolution is to resolve an issue or problem between two or more people, but is there a correct way to handle conflict? What are the effects of poor conflict management? Disagreements in the workplace are inevitable, as employees have different personalities, goals, and opinions.

Conflict Resolution Defined

The more information you have about the cause of the problem, the more easily you can help to resolve it. As a manager or supervisor, you need to give both parties the chance to share their side of the story. It will give you a better understanding of the situation, as well as demonstrate your impartiality. As you listen to each disputant, say, “I see” or “uh huh” to acknowledge the information and encourage them to continue to open-up to you.

Step 1: Define the source of the conflict.

Often, it is not the situation but the point of view of the situation that causes anger to fester and ultimately leads to a shouting match or other visible and disruptive result. The source of the conflict might be a minor issue that occurred months before, but the level of stress has grown to the point where the two parties have begun attacking each other personally instead of addressing the real problem. In the calm of your office, you can get them to look beyond the triggering incident to see the real cause.

Step 2: Look beyond the incident.

After getting each party’s viewpoint, the next step is to get them to identify how the situation could be changed. Again, question the parties to solicit their ideas: “How can you make things better between you?” As mediator, you have to be an active listener, aware of every verbal nuance, as well as a good reader of body language. You want to get the disputants to stop fighting and start cooperating, and that means steering the discussion away from finger pointing and toward ways of resolving the conflict.

Step 3: Request solutions.

You are listening for the most acceptable course of action. Point out the merits of various ideas, not only from each other’s perspective, but in terms of the benefits to the organization. For instance, you might suggest the need for greater cooperation and collaboration to effectively address team issues and departmental problems.

Step 4: Identify solutions both disputants can support.

The mediator needs to get the two parties to shake hands and accept one of the alternatives identified in Step 4. The goal is to reach a negotiated agreement. Some mediators go as far as to write up a contract in which actions and time frames are specified. However, it might be sufficient to meet with the individuals and have them answer these questions: “What action plans will you both put in place to prevent conflicts from arising in the future?” and “What will you do if problems arise in the future?

Step 5: Agreement.

“Conflict can and should be handled constructively; when it is, relationships benefit. Conflict avoidance is *not* the hallmark of a good relationship. On the contrary, it is a symptom of serious problems and of poor communication.”-Harriet B. Braiker

Constructive Management Approach

Collaborative effort equals enhanced quality of life and work.

What is conflict resolution? The art of conflict management can be the key to professional growth. It all starts with our five-step conflict resolution process.

corporateculture

Corporate Culture

The Five Steps to Conflict Resolution

Many managers regard inefficient, unproductive or boring meetings as an unavoidable business flaw.Acknowledge that meetings can cause a lot of frustration, and assess your meetings to seek improvements.Rather than getting rid of meetings, solve your problems with them by applying science.Critically evaluate your meeting facilitation skills: Are they as good as you think they are?Carefully craft meeting agendas. Make participants “directly responsible” owners of their agenda items.

Meetings Are Inevitable Even If We Don't Like Them

<ul><li>Holding a meeting for 48 minutes will catch your colleagues’ attention.</li><li>Invite fewer participants to reduce “social loafing”; encourage input before and after from “secondary stakeholders.”</li><li>Walking and standing meetings add variety to your meeting culture and ensure that people “don’t get too comfortable in that chair.”</li><li>“Deflate negative energy from the start” and create technology-free meeting zones.</li><li>Encourage silence to bring out every team member’s input.</li><li>Pay special attention to audio-only telephone conferences.</li></ul>

Scientific Meetings: Key Takeaways

Everyone needs to meet for team discussions, inter-department alignment and group decision-making. But everyone needs to meet effectively. Meetings can cause frustration, especially when they waste time and energy due to a bad meeting culture.Bad meetings should never be accepted as an organizational norm.

Seek To Improve Meetings

While you’re stuck with your colleagues in a meeting, you all could be spending time doing real work. When your company manages meetings effectively, meetings add to productivity and organizational cohesion. And when it doesn’t, they add to the cost. In 2014, meetings cost the United States economy about $1.4 trillion – roughly 8% of the nation’s GDP that year.

The Opportunity Costs Of A Meeting

Employees have no lack of cynicism when it comes to meetings. Yet getting rid of all meetings is not feasible. Without meetings, you would lose contact with your colleagues, disconnect from other departments and become single-minded about difficult problems. Rather than eliminating meetings, improve them.

Don't Reject Meetings, Just Be Smart

Rather than overestimating your skills, accept that you might have room for improvement, and strategically seek out opportunities to improve. You can, for example, gain input by asking meeting participants for feedback. If you feel that approaching them in person would bias the results, consider sending around a short, anonymous survey. Collecting data and being open to that information will increase your awareness of issues, which is the first step to improvement.

Evaluate Your Meeting Facilitating Skills

Look for the following signals when assessing your meeting effectiveness:<ul><li>Are participants on their phones or other devices, attempting to multitask?</li><li>Are a few participants talking all the time, while others aren’t speaking at all?</li><li>Are you, as the leader, dominating the meeting?</li></ul>

Meeting Effectiveness: The Signals

What differentiates successful meeting leaders from unsuccessful ones is the willingness to pick the right tool for the job at hand.

Adopt a “servant leadership” mindset and buy into an idea by Adam Grant, a professor at Wharton, that you should be a “giver” who actively assists others and disseminates knowledge without expecting anything in return. Companies with strong servant leadership and giving cultures perform better across all business indicators.

Servant Leadership

Collect meeting feedback through different instruments, including your annual employee engagement survey. You could also make meetings part of any 360-degree feedback instrument that applies to leaders in your company.

Get Meeting Feedback

A meeting will fill in the time you allot it. When you schedule a meeting for 60 minutes, it will most likely take 60 minutes. Your tasks as a meeting leader include making a conscious choice about the meeting length. Consider your objectives, agenda items and the number of participants to determine the best length for a meeting. Once you have an accurate estimate, reduce that estimate by 5% to 10% to add the extra time pressure that makes meetings more effective. Going forward, hold meetings that last 25 minutes instead of 30 minutes, or 50 minutes instead of 60.

Make The Meeting An Odd Number OF Minutes

Many managers regard inefficient, unproductive or boring meetings as an unavoidable business flaw. The author challenges this assumption with ideas on how to stop wasting time and energy by facilitating better meetings.

Preface -- Setting the meeting stage -- So many meetings and so much frustration -- Get rid of meetings? no, solve meetings through science -- Evidence-based strategies for leaders -- The image in the mirror is likely wrong -- Meet for 48 minutes -- Agendas are a hollow crutch -- The bigger, the badder -- Don't get too comfortable in that chair -- Deflate negative energy from the start -- No more talking! -- The folly of the remote call-in meeting -- Putting it all together -- Epilogue: trying to get ahead of the science' using science -- Tool: meeting quality self-assessment -- Tool: sample engagement survey and 360 feedback questions on meetings -- Tool: good meeting facilitation checklist -- Tool: huddle implementation checklist -- Tool: agenda template -- Tool: guide to taking good meeting minutes/notes -- Tool: expectations assessment -- Acknowledgments -- References -- Index

The Surprising Science of Meetings

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Cognitive bottlenecks: the inherent limits of the thinking mind

Present bias: how instant gratification impacts your long-term goals

We’re in the midst of a fundamental shift in leadership

9 Tips To Improve Your Emotional Intelligence

What to Do When a Coworker Goes Over Your Head

10 Ways To Build Trust in a Relationship

Leading Meaningful Change

The Five Steps to Conflict Resolution

The Surprising Science of Meetings

Admitting what you don’t know is key to effective leadership

It's time to Read like a Pro.

It's time to
Read like a Pro.