Let's make conflict happen. The right way.
1️⃣ Name it as a good thing.
- Tell your team directly: “Healthy teams can disagree out loud. That is not a problem. That is how we get to better answers.”
- When someone pushes back, say “I am glad you said that” instead of moving on, taking it personally, or seeing it as a personal attack.
- Model it yourself. Ask for push back. Ask people to argue the other side.
- Bonus points: Try it yourself in another environment when your team isn't around. Don't shy away from the difficult conversation. Get into it. See if it's as bad as you thought it would be. Probably not.
2️⃣ Know the difference between healthy conflict and unhealthy conflict.
- The prize for healthy conflict is higher quality decisions.
- Healthy conflict is about ideas, decisions, and direction.
- Unhealthy conflict is personal, repetitive, or goes unresolved.
- Your job as the leader is to encourage the first and shift the team away from the second quickly.
3️⃣ The question to bring to your next meeting:
“Is there anything we have been dancing around that we need to just say out loud?”
Ask it. Then be quiet. See what happens.
⚙️ THIS WEEK’S TEAM TOOL:
No worksheet this week. Just one question and the willingness to let the room get a little uncomfortable.
Write this on a post-it and bring it to your next meeting:
“Is there anything we have been dancing around that we need to just say out loud?”
That is the tool.
Try it. Let me know how it goes.
