CONFLICT

It’s all around us and no one is immune from it. In our homes, at work, and in our communities, conflict creates division that pushes us away from “the other”. Issues of local, state, national, and international difference are more prevalent and are deepening the “us vs. them” approach.

For those of us committed to civility, now is the time when we must use the tools we’ve learned in Leadership Montana to engage in and facilitate productive, meaningful conversations. We must listen for the sake of understanding, welcome differing opinions into our conversations, and be open to finding common ground. This is the foundation of Gracious Space.

Creating and offering Gracious Space does not mean avoiding conflict. Rather it is a container for conflict and provides us all a safe place to have hard conversations without making them personal.

Of course we will never all agree. We celebrate diversity of thought at Leadership Montana. But I believe that we can agree to have hard conversations and gain even more respect from each other.

If you are interested in deepening your practice of Gracious Space and using those tools to teach this practice to others, we invite you to consider training to be a facilitator. We plan to bring Pat Hughes to Montana this summer to provide this experience for our alumni. Email me to learn more.

In the meantime, if we can be a resource to help you navigate these hard conversations, please reach out. We’re here and we’re listening…