Become a goal-oriented colleague who can understand him/herself and others

PURPOSE

You would like to establish good relations with your colleagues because you know that this is the only way to achieving desired results. While you need to be goal-oriented, it is also vital that you can approach people and understand their second thoughts, fears, wishes, needs and expectations. You thus need to be able to set a common goal while considering the interests of your colleagues. There will be misunderstandings that should be resolved and different ideas about how work should be done that need to be consolidated.  

What do you do when interests conflict or even cancel each other out? When are common goals perceived differently? When there is tension and everyone insists on their own way? Do you forget about communication rules and take problem-solving to a personal level? When feelings are excited, attacks and insults may follow… 

In such moments, it is imperative to consider the basic principles of resolving conflict situations:

Distinguish the problem from the people. Be hard on the problem and soft on the people. Do not solve problems by attacking people. Work with people to attack the problem.  

Also, consider the following:  

‘Do not look for culprits in the past, look for a solution for the future,’

and you’ll do a much better job.

CONTENT

1. WHAT IS A CONFLICT? WHEN AND HOW DOES IT ARISE?

• Perceiving problems.
• Origins of problems (within a person, in their map of the world or outside it, etc.).
• Personal perception of problems.
• Factors of personal perception (beliefs, values, experiences, emotions, interests, expectations, needs, etc.).
• The most frequent responses.

2. THE PROCESS OF RESOLVING CONFLICT SITUATIONS

• Problem state vs desired state.
• Guiding interlocutors from a problem state to a desired state.
• What tools to employ.
• Controlling your and your interlocutor’s emotions.
• Controlling your and your interlocutor’s responses.
• Resolving conflict situations and duration.

3. THE PITFALLS OF DIFFICULT EXCHANGES (The Harvard Method)

• Every exchange is a combination of three basic types of exchange:                                                             the ‘what happened’ exchange,                                                                                                                              an exchange about emotions,                                                                                                                              an exchange about identity.

• Distinguishing and approaching them efficiently.
• Exploring truth, purpose, and guilt; the most frequent mistakes.
• Purpose vs behaviour vs influence.

4. THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF PROBLEM-SOLVING (HARVARD PRINCIPLES)

• Four starting points:

people, interests, options, standards.

• Four principles:

people vs the problem,                                                                                                                            interests vs positions                                                                                                                      (acknowledge and admit individual interests, find common interests, put the problem before the answer, look forward, not back.),                                                                                                                  insist on objective standards,                                                                                                                        find multiple solutions.

GOALS – Benefits for participants

• You will learn how to respond in conflict situations.
• You will be aware of what is happening to you and your interlocutors in such situations.
• You will know how to choose your response (and not react instinctively when tense, nervous, angry, etc.).
• You will be able to respond proactively when resolving conflicts.
• You will learn about the biggest mistakes when resolving conflicts (e.g., adopting positions such as I am right; I know my interlocutor has bad intentions; and finding a culprit).
• You will learn ways to correct these mistakes.
• You will learn to consider subjective and objective factors in seeking a solution.
• You will be able to find solutions which will ensure more efficient co-operation and better results (goals reached) in the future.

WORKSHOP

The workshop is organised in person or on-line using various platforms (Zoom, MS Teams). The number of hours per meeting is determined by agreement with the customer.

WORK METHOD

Workshops and training sessions consist of: short input sessions, discussions, individual, pair, and group work.

The techniques I employ aim to encourage participants to apply what they have learned to their daily routine immediately.

DURATION

Our basic programmes comprise 16 academic hours, while shorter programmes last 8 academic hours (these programmes involve fewer exercises and practical examples). We recommend a minimum of 24 academic hours if you seek to train your employees thoroughly.

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS

The recommended number of participants per workshop is 20; and 10 per training. The client may, of course, opt for a larger number of participants. In this case, a training becomes a workshop, and a workshop becomes a seminar/lecture (over 25 participants).

PRICE

The prices of workshops, training sessions, seminars/lectures depend on their duration, the number of participants, and additional preparation time (i.e., analysing participants’ level of proficiency, designing customised solutions, etc.). The final price is always agreed upon in advance with the client.