There’s conflict all around us.
I was accused last week of being a thief. I ordered something on the internet. The vendor offered me Net 30 terms without my asking for them. The merchandise arrived, along with an invoice, but there was a HUGE gap in the quality of what I ordered and expected and what I received. Instead of trying to resolve the problem, he actually called me a thief. I tried to be reasonable, he called me names. I refused to take the bait and fight with him.
Today an on-going disagreement came to a head when one of our customers stood her ground about how to handle what she claims is a mistake. Again, trying to be reasonable does not guarantee that reason will be returned. The relationship could seriously be in jeopardy over this one situation.
There IS conflict everywhere. Before we wade into the fray, it’s important to think about what end result we want.
My co-workers and I spent quite a bit of time in each of the situations described above discussing how to handle them to ensure we achieved the result we wanted.
In the first case we knew we were right. There was no downside to simply letting the vendor rant and rave and not engage him in the conflict. We ordered the product from another vendor, are perfectly willing to return the product he sent and we haven’t paid him anything.
The second case is trickier. We want to protect the relationship with this customer, yet ensure that this situation doesn’t set a precedent that will ultimately make it untenable for us to work together. So we need to take smart action that will ultimately lead to an amicable solution. We chose to think carefully about our next “move” and examined all the ways the customer could react to what we do or say next.
How do you handle the conflict in your day to day life? Will your responses help or hurt your relationships?