SessionTwo017

C17. Handling Pressure and Conflict with Better Results and Less Stress
BeckyWinant, AlanHecht

Description: Most of us have first hand experience with projects that go wrong. Occasionally we find ourselves discovering a roadblock in what should have been a simple status meeting. And, managers at all levels might see business partner negotiations run amok. As we look back we may notice circumstances that predicted problems. For example, software producers or product managers always feel the three-pronged tension between schedule, features and budget. The maxim is: You can't change one without affecting another. As people push to shrink a schedule, the features have to shrink too, or the budget has to increase. Conflicts arise between IT and their customers, consultants and their clients, and vendors and suppliers and customers. We proceed with one plan neatly tucked away. If it doesn't work we are thrown off balance. How can we deal with the inevitable s t r e s s ?

To examine our options, we can explore our interpretion of the situation and conversations we have with others. Those predicted problems which seemed invisible might suggest traps that we easily fall into. If events prompt conflict, how can we congruently choose what is best, as opposed to feeling pressured into a hasty and uncomfortable decision?

In this session we will examine how choice, courage and imagination enhances our ability to make healthier choices. We will explore how we might see better alternatives when facing personal conflict, conflict within an organization or conflict imposed by external forces.

Learning Objectives

To discover personal blindspots in any potential conflict situation.
To learn personal alternatives for handling pressure
To discover one or more new strategies for handling conflict congruently

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Updated: Monday, July 8, 2002