One of the saddest results of ongoing conflict is the destructive impact it can have on relationships. What could otherwise be a productive or even loving relationship has taken damage that often seems irreparable. This damage is especially sad when it affects other innocent parties, like family members, co-workers, or large groups of people. While...
Conflicts are a part of everyday life; which is why human beings, and animate life in general for that matter, are natural problem-solvers. Indeed, resolving conflict occurs multiple times every day, and most human conflicts are short lived. Of course, on the other hand, some conflicts last for years, seemingly unresolvable. One reason for the...
Most individuals and groups who appear stuck in long-standing conflicts define themselves, at least in part, as “the ones who must fight.” Whether they see themselves as victims, dominants, or simply as having to struggle to survive or thrive; whether this struggle is with another party or simply within themselves (the individual’s life or among...
How Do You Run a Productive Meeting? Recently, a business client of PPS was experiencing massive communication problems within the executive team, which led to dramatic inefficiency and stress. The CEO asked us to help. In talking with him, it became clear that some of his executives were not totally confident in their fellow team...
Understanding Conflict & Cooperation To understand conflict, we actually have to understand cooperation because they are both two sides of the same coin. In other words, if we’re not in one state, we’re in the other. At all times, we are internally either in conflict or cooperation with ourselves; similarly, we are at all times...
There is a vast literature on the origins, functions, and proliferation of religious cognition, and an equal amount of debate among its researchers. Although no uniformly agreed-upon theory of the evolution of religion currently exists, there are particular hypotheses that have gained traction. One generally undisputed benefit of religion’s adaptive functionality, which helped drive the...
A client (we’ll call him Jason) recently came to me for counseling prior to a negotiation between him and his business partner. Jason and his partner have been friends for 20 years, but they have only recently gone into business together. Jason had a list of concerns and steps that he wanted to see taken....
