Healthy Confrontation


Many shy away from healthy confrontation. I must admit that genetically I've never had a problem with this very important aspect of growth. It's normal to feel a little uncomfortable during a confrontation but an understanding that having difficult conversations is necessary to work through obstacles makes it worth the temporary discomfort. If you are honest, you have one or more people in your life that need to be confronted. Maybe you need to confront yourself. Having honest dialogue with others and self even though it may not be what they or even you want to hear is important to growth. No relationship (even relationship with self) can thrive without confrontations. Many of us continue to let things "slide" so we can feel comfortable. This is not a conducive attitude to growth and development.

It's so easy to settle into the warm and fuzzy atmosphere where everyone is full accord or where some are really not in agreement but are too afraid to speak for fear of retaliation. Leaders owe it to themselves and their teams to create a work environment where disagreements are welcome. Letting the small issues slide due to fear of awkwardness or discomfort will very quickly become big problems. For example, letting an under-performing employee consistently scale through performance reviews year after year does neither the organization or the employee any good in the long run.

It's time to lose the fear of confrontation and confront what needs to be confronted but remember confrontation should always be aimed at finding solutions, not bringing others down.

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