A fellow coach supervisor recently described her interaction with officials who were enforcing fire safety regulations in the shared hallway of her property. Their overbearing and pre-emptory manner was intrusive and she was quickly consumed by fury. Mid melt-down, she realised that being angry wasn’t helping and used all her skills and experience to de-escalate …
Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about disagreement and how it arises. It’s a subject closely connected to my dialogue work – too many conversations begin with good intentions yet end badly as individual agendas collide. It’s evident that one root of disagreement is difference of opinion. When handled skilfully, an exchange of contrasting positions …
I’m always searching for persuasive ways to convey the potential of dialogue practices in changing our everyday conversations. While I know, as an experience, the distinctive feel of a conversation shaped by the principles and practices of dialogue, I find it difficult to put into words. Others struggle too. Clients say they handle their important …
Most leadership is enacted through the medium of conversation – whether meetings, presentations or one-to-ones. Yet many of us don’t pay attention to the ‘how’ of our conversations – we focus on the ‘what’. We don’t consider how we’ll create the conditions for exchanges that generate both good outcomes and greater rapport and confidence amongst …