The author says, We rarely take time to search out or excavate these deeper truths in our conflicts, mostly because our attention is concentrated on the mistakes and misdeeds of our opponents or on our own victimization and emotional upheaval. Yet the center and core of our conflicts, what they really mean to us, are far more profound and important than the relatively superficial issues we are passionately arguing and debating over. In conflict resolution, the deeper we look, the more there is we can discover.
This statement above is profound it should make leaders think about how they treat others. Great teachers should experience searching deeper into the lives of students daily. We know that many of the problems that arise at school really stem from what has happened at the student home. Since I am a teacher in an area with predominantly African American and Hispanic students I am always searching for the real cause of the misbehavior. So when I reach a leadership position I will continue with the strategies listed in this chapter.
I did find this chapter very interesting. The Iceberg of Conflict puts a new light on what could possibly be the real reason for a conflict, the underlying issues. The part on this chapter on page 148, Making Organizational Cultures More Empathetic and Honest was my favorite. The example that is given in the book about the Fortune 100 corporation that wanted to create a culture of honesty and empathy is very similar to the the Failure is Not an Option book. You have the staff find their core reasoning for teaching, you build relational trust, you work on common mission, vision, values and goals. You get the staff to agree on the expectation of behavior. You allow for two conversation and feed back.
ReplyDeleteOn page 152, I do think that the initial questions would help when working with the staff to create that relational trust.