There are 3 stages to the Mastering the MetaSkill 4C Conflict Leadership process.

1️⃣  First, we address fundamental questions of "How do I turn currently up for conflict?", and "How do I want to turn up for conflict?" 

2️⃣ Second, we learn the unique MetaSkill 4C Conflict Leadership Process - effective conflict tactics for any conflict situation

3️⃣ Finally, we take a deep dive into the skills and competencies required to be an effective Conflict Leader. 

Join us at our MetaSkill online platform for curated lessons, activities, resources and 3 group coaching sessions that will empower you with the mindset, understanding, tactics and strategies that allow confident navigation of the shifting conflict landscapes to achieve the best solutions that the conflict situation allows.

Through increased conflict style awareness, appropriate assertiveness, the ability to centre and emotionally regulate, to de-escalate others, and to apply a 4 step conflict leadership process, which includes listening and problem-solving skills, you will feel confident in a wide range of conflict scenarios, both personal and professional. This course will provide a comprehensive theoretical background and practical tools delivered in a group setting with like-minded professionals. 

Talk to us about the benefits of mastering Conflict Leadership for your team

An understanding of the MetaSkill approach to effectively dealing with conflict can be understood by consideration of the three fundamental concerns that I had with the programs currently on offer:

The standard Conflict Management Programs were overly complex and not easily applicable in the moment

My initial concern with the standard Conflict Management Training packages that I was asked to deliver was that they were complex and not very memorable for someone dealing with aggressive conflict in the moment. In that moment, you need to have embodied a simple process that you can immediately tap into. Or, to use a metaphor from the 4C process, if conflict was a landscape, you need to be able to always locate yourself within that landscape and thereby know what your next move should be. For example, if you are attempting to show empathy and using your listening skills to understand your antagonist's issue, but they are still angry and are not making the collaborative journey with you, you need to understand that and act appropriately. Perhaps your appropriate response is to instruct them to meet with HR where they will be given a letter, which will be their first warning of three. The problem that we are addressing here is that without a clear understanding of where you are in the process or landscape, you won't be able to match your tactics with that stage. A unique aspect of the MetaSkill Conflict Leadership Program is precisely an easily remembered and logical approach to any conflict situation, which will always allow you to position yourself with respect to the conflict and know what you should be doing at that stage. This by itself removes much of the stress and anxiety from conflict - the clarity you have about the situation allows you to remain centered and to make the tactically most appropriate moves, while being appropriately assertive and empathetic.

Conflict Leadership versus Conflict Management and Conflict Resolution

My second major concern was the terminology - conflict management and conflict resolution. The terminology assumes that conflict is universally bad and needs to be managed or resolved away. However, if we view conflict as disagreement with added elements of intimidation, aggression, inappropriate language, or body language, then a better outcome is to lead that conflict into constructive disagreement and mine the potential in that disagreement for your team or organization. Therefore, I propose a process of conflict leadership - a method for leading any conflict situation to a better outcome. Part of the inspiration for this approach is the Japanese martial art of Aikido where confrontation is typically met by a blending movement resulting in control and leading to a non-aggressive outcome. A straightforward translation of Aikido would be The Way (Do) of Harmonious (Ai) Energy (Ki).

How can we make training stick?

My third concern is typical for trainers, viz., how to make the training stick when we are well aware that a lot of training can be a waste of time, for many reasons, but perhaps first amongst them is that the culture of the home organisation or team will be stronger than a once off training event. this concern we approach from 2 levels, organisational and personal.  For the organisational level, I introduce the idea of a Learning Organisation and we explore how we can ensure that your team or organisation is equipped to absorb and employ a new model of behaviour around disagreement and conflict.  At the individual level, we know from James Clear's Atomic Habits that personal change needs to happen at the level of identity, so we begin with some basic psychometrics to ascertain how we currently turn up for conflict as compared to how we would like to turn up for conflict.  And it turns out that this is a very important consideration of how we are in the world and how well our persona is working for us.

We recognise how challenging this work can be. Each person has a unique relationship with conflict, often influenced by their family background. This can lead to being conflict-avoidant when assertiveness is needed, or being too casual about conflict and not realizing its impact on others, especially in hierarchical situations. Personally, I have been deeply moved and sympathetic to clients who carry stress and anxiety from work into other areas of their lives, such as constantly feeling on edge about difficult interactions with co-workers, managers, clients, or parents (in the case of teachers). It is a privilege to help lessen that burden.

The result - The MetaSkill 4C Conflict Leadership System

We have created the MetaSkill Conflict Leadership process, a conflict leadership methodology designed to guide difficult conversations towards the best possible outcome. This approach is based on the crucial elements of insight, self-awareness, character development, and the necessary competencies for effective conflict leadership, including assertiveness, de-escalation, process awareness, responsive listening, and problem-solving. Our methodology also draws on valuable insights from coaching backgrounds such as Narrative coaching and neurophysiological-based coaching, ensuring a comprehensive approach.

To find out more book a complimentary discussion on your conflict issues and take your first steps towards conflict competency for you and your team. 

Upcoming Sessions

The program will be offered regularly online and is also available customised to accommodate time constraints and face-to-face if that is a better fit for your team or organisation. 

Book a call and let me know in the Inquiry Form how we can best assist you and your team.