Emotions are contagious. When we encounter someone who is experiencing stress, we pick up on their stress.2 The same is true for other emotions, including anger, which is why we might feed off of someone else’s anger, causing a conflict to escalate further.
As the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Conflict can grow over time, and you can become resentful of an ongoing issue.
Sometimes we know something is wrong but struggle to articulate exactly what the issue is or our desired outcome. How can you resolve something if you do not know what that looks like?
The longer a conflict has gone on, the bigger your feelings about it and the other person are likely to be. While your feelings are valid
If you are truly interested in resolving the conflict, practice active listening and open communication with the other person.
A neutral third party or mediator can aid in conflict resolution. Since they are not directly involved in the conflict itself, they do not have an emotional investment in the outcome. A mediator can help both parties see an acceptable resolution.
As noted above, it is tempting to get caught up in your perception of a conflict and vision of an appropriate resolution, forgetting that there is another side to the story.
– Consult your job’s human resources department. They can intervene and help you and the other party work through the conflict in a healthy environment.