Managing Conflict Doesn’t Always Work — Here’s A Better Approach

Part Two: The new “How to Tend and Befriend Conflict” series. If you think you know how to deal with conflict, think again.

Welcome to Part Two of the “Tend and Befriend Conflict” column: A four-part series that will change the way you understand, navigate, and engage the conflict in your life. A reminder that it works for all types of conflict: personal, professional, and in the broader community. As always, would love to hear what you think. (If you missed Part One, check it out here.)

Imagine this scene (true story). A happy couple has just moved in together. Walls have a fresh coat of paint. Furniture has been carefully placed. Boxes have been unloaded and clothes have been put away. Hold up — not all clothes are away. Because the bedroom closet is small, and there is only room enough for one dresser that the couple shares, the woman’s overflow of sweaters finds themselves without a home. And because of a demanding schedule, her immediate solution is simply to fold the items and line them two-high on a bench beneath a window until a better scheme can be had.

Life being what it is, and curious cats being what they are, it doesn’t take long for the sweaters to become disheveled and eventually to tumble…