The flip side of the dangers of shortcuts is the benefit of a detour.  That is, allowing a conversation to wander to where it needs to go to get at the nub of the conflict. For me, useful detours can come up in conflict coaching, mediation, and more general conflict consulting. In coaching, the value can be in a deeper dive into what makes a client tick. In mediation, the detour may be into what else matters to the people involved, beyond what they initially state. In consulting, the challenge can be presented as one of a very specific and limited problem. Let’s take a little detour into how the problem became intractable. And what you can do to prevent the next “very specific and limited problem” from blowing up. If you aren’t a conflict professional, and are directly involved in a conflict, you can consider whether it would be wise to take a look to the side of the issue. Is there something to see there? Perhaps the scenic route is worth the trip.

Do you have comments or suggestions about a topic or guest? An idea or question about conflict management or conflict resolution? Let me know at [email protected]! And you can learn more about me and my work as a mediator and a Certified CINERGY® Conflict Coach at www.dovetailresolutions.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/janebeddall/.

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