First of all , leaders tend to kind of fall to one spectrum or the other and have to determine whether their default is to be avoidant or is to be more aggressive , right ?
Secondly , leaders have to meet people where they are . That is the basis of emotional intelligence . As a leader , you need to understand how you approach conflict yourself and then how other people and their teams approach it as well .
Third , I train physicians to improve conflict resolution — whether it is with colleagues or with patients — by gaining a shared understanding . Shared understanding almost always helps leaders come to positive resolution by trying to get to a goal that is better for both of parties .
HOW DO LEADERS CREATE SHARED UNDERSTANDING ?
Dr . Quinn : Richard Boyatzis , PhD , has studied the neural network of shared understanding . It is called the Positive Emotional Attractor , the PEA . There are two things that are super interesting about that study that mapped how the human brain changes with shared understanding .
The first thing is to understand where we go with our minds during conflict . Our brains are hardwired to defend us when in conflict . That is our survival instinct , which is a complex neural network called the Negative Emotional Attractor , or NEA .
The problem is that the NEA becomes invoked very easily with confrontational questions that seem benign . When leaders ask a subordinate something as simple as “ How are things going ?” the employee might automatically take that as a negative .
Emotionally intelligent leaders set the stage by focusing on evoking the Positive Emotional Attractor . Leaders who ask , “ What will it look like to be on time with our project , and what does that mean for your team ?” create shared understanding first , and then ask about the status of that project .
That is where that shared vision pumps in . Imagining what you want to happen and then sharing that with someone else and having them understand that future state , which is so important , keeps them from sliding into the negative .
HOW DO LEADERS IMPACT ENGAGEMENT AND PERFORMANCE ?
Dr . Quinn : Daniel Goleman , PhD , in his book Focus , describes the research that suggests up to 70 % of the organizational climate is set by the leaders . Because of that research , leaders should be paying attention to how much of the positive or negative they are evoking !
LEADERS AT EVERY LEVEL OF AN ORGANIZATION INFLUENCE THE BRAIN CHEMISTRY OF THOSE AROUND THEM .
Employees take cues from leaders as to how they should act and react in different situations . That is why it is important for leaders to set that positive climate by inspiring a shared vision , a shared understanding .
Leaders may not realize the damage to engagement and productivity for teams when not evoking the Positive Emotional Attractor with shared understanding . If leaders set the right tone , having created those relationships that are based on trust and transparency , and even if leaders are very commanding and pace setting , then that is okay . People understand how to react to it . Actually , what is even more interesting is that if you , as a leader , are always commanding and pace setting , employees and teams are more likely to respond positively to you more than if you are erratic in your behavior .
Teams and employees focused on performance prefer to understand what their expectations are , but if leaders act erratically and teams do not know what to expect , leaders create a negative emotional climate , like walking on eggshells .
WHAT EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMPETENCIES FOSTER CONFLICT RESOLUTION ?...
MEET DR . JOANN FARRELL QUINN
Joann is a faculty member at the University of South Florida , teaching in the SELECT Program in the Morsani College of Medicine as well as in the Doctor of Business Administration Program in the Muma College of Business . Joann ’ s research focus is primarily in leadership competencies and identity and in 2015 she founded a special interest group in Innovation and Leadership in Medicine in the Southern Group on Educational Affairs ( SGEA ) within the Association of American Medical Colleges ( AAMC ).
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