How to develop Conflict resolution skills for daily living

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27 Jun 2024

Oftentimes, Conflicts arise in our daily lives. It is important to know how to deal with conflicts that arise so that we have meaningful relationships with people. In today’s blog post, we will be looking at how to develop conflict resolution skills for your daily life.

Conflict resolution is a way for two or more people to resolve a disagreement or issue between them in a manner that suits both parties. It is an important skill to have, especially for individuals with certain kinds of personalities.

If an individual is very good at listening and can communicate very effectively, then conflict resolution could also be a skill that they are yet to discover. Why? Listening is a critical part of conflict resolution. Communicating your thoughts on the matter to the parties involved in the conflict is also equally important.

Conflict resolution could be a problem-solving skill depending on how it is applied. This aims to solve the current conflict and prevent future ones.

The conflict in question might be personal, financial, or emotional. When a conflict arises the best course of action is to resolve it amicably between both parties using conflict resolution skills. This also involves negotiating what both parties want and seeking peace.

The conflict could also arise in the home, workplace, or in a social setting. Depending on where it occurs, the way of settling it will also differ. This is because resolving a conflict at home and in the office would be different. One requires a certain level of professionalism and detail while the other does not.

Experts advise that there are five ways to resolve conflict: avoiding, competing, compromising, accommodating, and collaborating. These five ways of resolving conflicts will be addressed briefly.

Five ways of resolving conflict

Avoiding

This is when you just ignore or do not take part in the conflict. As the name suggests, the individual avoids the other parties involved in the conflict.

Competing

This involves going into conflict with the plan to win. This method of conflict resolution means that one person wins and the other loses. It is useful in sports but not useful in group problem-solving.

Compromising

This is an assertive method of conflict resolution. Parties involved cooperate with one another and each side loses something and gains something as well. The idea is no one wins everything but rather everyone gets a slice of the pie. It is considered a fair method.

Accommodating

This is a conflict resolution tactic in which one party gives in to the request of another. This could be done to maintain harmony or when one party realizes that they are wrong. It usually leads to unresolved issues in some cases.

Collaborating

This is an assertive and corporative conflict resolution tactic in which both parties contribute with the aim that both parties can come to a unified conclusion.

Steps in resolving conflicts

The steps involved in resolving conflict include:

Understanding the problem
Come up with a vision or plan
Look for alternatives in case the original plan does not work
Let all parties agree on an action

Other steps include:

Choose a good time
Avoid blaming anyone
Give relevant information about the problem
Listen well
Discuss very well
Provide feedback

For conflicts to be resolved there needs to be a mediation. This is when an impartial third party comes to settle a conflict between two or more parties using communicating and negotiating skills. Emphasis on impartiality. If a mediator is partial this could result in more conflict.

How to develop conflict resolution for daily living

Develop your listening and speaking skills

Communicating effectively is important for conflict resolution. To be able to resolve conflicts in your daily life you need to be able to listen to complaints from all parties involved and speak clearly on the matter. Without this, you might be creating more issues rather than resolving them.

You need to have confidence in yourself

Having confidence in oneself before intervening in the matters of others is very crucial. You need to be very bold and assertive. I don't mean domineering. Those you intervening for must see that you are not intimidated by the situation. Otherwise, they would seek out other options.

Understand the problem before intervening

Trying to resolve a conflict you know very little or nothing about is not advisable. You need to understand the problem to an acceptable level so that it can enable make an informed judgment. Otherwise, you could end up coming to the wrong conclusion and this might cause more conflict.

Train yourself to avoid taking sides in arguments or conflicts

Taking sides during a conflict might not be pleasant to the other parties involved. Before trying to develop your conflict resolution skills, it is important you train yourself to be impartial when resolving conflict. This means that you need to be careful in your approach towards resolving conflict. Don't be too obvious when giving out advice or when trying to decide who will win the conflict especially if there is something that the other party would lose. My advice, be cautious.

You need to limit your violent tendencies

Understanding your personality type is the key to knowing how to resolve conflicts. If you have violent tendencies you need to train yourself to be able to withstand provocations much better. Otherwise, you could become violent during a conflict resolution. The good news is that temperance often comes with growing. So, if you seem to have violent tendencies now maybe you should just wait a bit and you too could become an excellent conflict resolution expert

importance of conflict resolution

It helps to save time and money
Creates a safe environment
Prevent future conflicts
It is important for many careers
It prevents serious consequences due to conflict
It teaches active listening
It teaches patience
It allows open communication
It fosters skills such as Empathy
It helps to prevent distress
It enables groups to reach goals
It can lead to innovation

Conclusion

Conflicts sometimes show up and it is important to resolve them. This is important for opportunities and development to occur. Whether it is at work, school, or home, as a mediator you should be able to remove conflicts and promote peace, and prosperity. This is only possible once you have developed your conflict resolution skills.

Riddle of the day: If you’re running a race and pass the person in second, then what place are you?

Remember to put your thoughts on the post and your answer to the riddle in the comments. Keep striving!