Conflict can be an opportunity

Chapter 3 from Have a Nice Conflict continues on with John's story. In an unconventional manner, John's trip to the "conflict" counselor/doctor yields more than he expected. I am finding this story to engaging and revealing because it shows how we can help people understand why it is said, "your greatest strength can also be your greatest weakness". Mac is explaining in easy and relatable ways on why great contributors may not make the best leaders or managers. We can see how John's perception of how he understands the world is changing.

I liked this specific line in the chapter "Conflict can be an opportunity to step back, assess the situation, find creative solutions." (p. 35) To further build upon this point, I like how Mac de-escalates conflict. This is something that takes time to learn and practice and even after years, there is still a struggle to get it right. I wish I read this book 20 years ago when I struggled with certain types of people. Turns out, it wasn't exactly them. It was more how I read into their motives.

Trying to figure out the person's motivation is key in this chapter. I have taken it to heart and use it figure out how to adjust my interaction based on how others behave. I found this chapter enlightening because it also shows how John defines himself. All too often we have career people defining who they are by their job or how successful they are at a job. Is this you? What will you do when your job goes away or if you are no longer successful? Is your self worth tied to your career? Things to ponder.

Looking forward to next week as we dive into Chapter 4 for John's next assignment - feedback on how he comes across. It looks to be a brutal one.