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Do you struggle with difficult discussions in your workplace, your volunteer life, your community? Do you often leave a meeting feeling dissatisfied? You may find yourself in situations where you argue but get nowhere. Or you are afraid to speak up and say what you really think and feel. One or two people may monopolize the conversation. Or, a meeting seems to run smoothly, everyone is polite, but you know the group is not really getting to the heart of the matter. What makes a discussion difficult? It's the conflict we feel when we have differences of opinion, belief, personality. How we deal with that conflict affects the quality of the outcome and how we feel about ourselves. Managing conflict poorly results in unsatisfactory, often devastating outcomes. It divides people into camps and destroys relationships. It causes misunderstandings, entrenches positions and creates frustration. It produces mediocre results. Poorly managed conflict does more than just waste our time, it saps our creative energy. Ultimately, poorly managed conflict kills productivity. Have you ever had an experience when conflict was handled well? We have. People didn't run from disagreement. In fact, they embraced it, voicing their views with great passion. There were moments of considerable tension and discomfort. Early in the discussion, there was the risk that people would descend into personal attacks, intractability and ultimatums. Yet they didn't. They kept working together through the difficulties in front of them. In the end, everyone felt better informed; had a deeper insight into the issues; and had a deeper appreciation of each other. We call that a rich conversation - an authentic exchange of what we think and feel - our concerns, hopes, fears, expectations, perceptions. A rich conversation reflects our values and beliefs, who we are and what is important to us. A rich conversation generates creative energy that encompasses and then transcends individual opinions, beliefs and personalities. A rich conversation gets to the heart. It is the process by which we manifest group wisdom. Go to About Us to read about some of our experiences. Want to leave your meetings satisfied? Want to get the best out of yourself and others? Speak from your heart. Listen with your heart. You have something to contribute. You have something to learn. You have the capacity to work through tough issues. Make rich conversation. What you do and say does make a difference. When you make rich conversation you inspire others to create productive, sustainable solutions, even in the most difficult discussions. And you grow through the experience. How do we help you get to the heart in your difficult discussions? We demonstrate rich conversation with our On-Line Episodes of real issues. We make rich conversation with you through our On-Line Forum. And we point you to articles and resources you can use to help you manage your difficult discussions better. You get immediate access to strategies, resources and feedback you can use right now to improve your ability to handle difficult discussions. Get our free Introductory Episode Spring Fling where we have a live discussion about a real issue. After the conversation, we debrief with comments and suggestions to make the discussion even richer, the outcomes even better. Rich conversation is much more than a simple "how to". We go deeper. When you make rich conversation, you move past technique to experience insight; past the knowledge of the mind to the wisdom in the heart. Go to Join the Community to read about all the benefits of membership. Increase your ability to make rich conversation and you and your group will be more productive - guaranteed. What you learn here may just take you out of those time-wasting, energy-sapping meetings into a world of rich, meaningful results for you, your workplace, your community. |
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