“Beware the distancing spiral.” I just came across this note in one of my notebooks from a decade ago and never has a truer thing been said. The note was scribbled in the margin, clearly quoting one of my conflict management professors.
Finding the note made me smile because I just said the same thing twice in the past two weeks. I said it to my class of graduate mediation students (I now teach where I once studied). And I said it to a coaching client who’d come to me because of frustrations with a few difficult clients she couldn’t afford to fire. Read on >>
Hi Tammy,
Loved your story on the “distancing spiral.” Your messages always make me think. I appreciate the way you frame the story – it is so easy to let distance grow without knowing quite how it began. And as you say, we have the option, once we are aware of what is happening, to do something about it. A strong center is a good baromenter that something is out of joint, and our center will also help us remain balanced as we enter the chaos of confrontation. Thanks so much for your story and the opportunity to comment!