How can you avoid unnecessary conflicts and misunderstandings at the workplace?

Respect work pyramid scale, stay professional and never take it personal.     thank you.

Stay in limits , do not interfere in others work , if any other work fellow interfere in your just warn him politely, don't give free advice,

 

"Respect the elders, love the youngsters" 

Said By Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

Steps toward Conflict Resolution

When groups of people work together, misunderstandings and conflict are inevitable.  In a business organization, both misunderstanding and conflict can lead to serious problems.  Misunderstanding can cause expensive mistakes and business failures, while individuals engaged in internal conflict have less time and energy to spend on working toward the organization’s goals.  On the other hand, both misunderstanding and conflict are valuable tools for reaching the authentic understanding that allows a group of people to collectively accomplish a task.   Misunderstandings allow the group to locate topics where clearer, more complete, or more detailed communication is needed.  Similarly, conflicts are a signal that some kind of problem exists, which must be corrected if the group is to remain productive.

Very few people enjoy misunderstanding or conflict, of course, and most people will go out of their way to avoid dealing with either one.  In a business organization, however, ignoring, avoiding or dismissing either one can create even more problems for the organization.   If misunderstandings are dismissed as “personal problems” between individuals, the group can miss an opportunity to clarify and solidify its shared understanding.  Similarly, when the causes of a conflict are ignored, the organization is in danger of ignoring dangers that could lead to serious consequences if they are not corrected.

Preventing Misunderstanding

Without a doubt, most conflict in the workplace is caused by misunderstandings of one kind or another.  If these misunderstandings can be prevented in the first place, or resolved before conflict develops, communication has been used to its very best advantage.  Sometimes we think only of communication when it seems to have “broken down,” failing to notice just how often a good communicator checks for misunderstanding and repairs the message so that the overall communication doesn’t break down.

Communicators should always try to avoid misunderstanding by using a clear, concise business style, of course, and following expected communication formats.  Even the best communicators will sometimes find themselves misunderstood, though, or find that they sometimes have trouble understanding others.  The best communicators will not simply create or listen to a message and assume that it has been understood exactly as intended.  The choice of communication channels, personalities of the individuals involved and the organizational environment itself can all play a role in the final quality of communication. 

Understanding the communication processes that accomplish these goals begins with an understanding of conflict itself.  Many definitions of conflict emphasis the degree to which problems arise due to perceptions of divergent interests or goal incompatibility (Lulofs & Cahn,3).  When communication focuses first on uncovering the sources of dissimilar perceptions of a situation, a problem can often be prevented or solved before it ever escalates to the level of conflict.  When communication does uncover incompatible goals, conflict is often defined in terms of competition for scarce rewards or resources within interdependent relationships (Lulofs & Cahn,4).  Participants can resolve the underlying causes of many conflicts by shifting the focus of their communication away from immediate material goals toward the more fundamental issues of maintaining the long-term relationship.  Finally, conflicts are sometimes characterized as interpersonal when individuals are distressed by the methods others use to gain even common goals (Lulofs & Cahn,5).  Communication that is sensitive to the personal preferences, culture and resources of participants in the relationship will allow individuals to work more productively toward their common goals.

Communication Channels

Selecting the most effective channel of communication is, of course, an aim of quality communication processes, but sometimes, participants don’t realize they haven’t made a good choice until misunderstandings have occurred and caused a conflict to erupt.  When your message doesn’t seem to have received the result you expected, one of the first things to ask yourself (or your conversation partner) is whether the message has somehow been garbled in transmission.

Email

Email has become such a convenient tool of communication that we sometimes forget that it is not the best way to communicate everything.  Conflicts can easily erupt when people don’t get all the information they need.  It might take a whole series of emails to cause and unsuccessfully clarify a misunderstanding that could easily be cleared up in just a five-minute phone call.  

Even more dangerous is the possibility that people will read the wrong emotions between the lines of short, cryptic email messages.  If a positive relationship does not exist, email is especially bad for problem solving communication, since people will tend to take things more negatively.  Even in positive relationships, email that is meant to be nasty is often misread as neutral (Davidhizar, Shearer, & Castro,). 

Finally, email is so simple that people sometimes do not recognize it as an important act of communication.  When what you say doesn’t matter quite as much as the act of saying it, email might not do the job.  Apologies, for example, are rarely as effective in email as they are in person (Davidhizar et al.,), and a thank you note is always more impressive when it comes as a “real” document. 

Conversations

Conversations are such common, everyday occurrences that people sometimes forget how important they are in the creation and maintenance of positive work relationships.  Good conversation structure and careful word choice are important for making each person’s meaning clear, of course, but so are the facial expressions, tone of voice and gestures used to accompany those words. 

When individuals adopt the straightforward, assertive problem-solving tone of “businesslike discussion,” disagreements are more likely to be understood as a routine aspect of organizational like.  Conflict is more likely to be resolved when the conversation remains conversational, with both parties maintaining a friendly and communicative tone of voice, pleasant facial expressions, and open body position (Zivin,). On the other hand, approaching the conversation as a supplicant, a critic, or a complainer is likely to elicit negative responses, giving rise to interpersonal conflict as a consequence. 

Do not provoke and poke in others work, Do your job and help others.

Try to controll yourself instead of others, be polite, and do not poke your nose in others matter unless required.

Never leave any problem unattended as a small problem can eventually become a major reason to worry later on. The problems must be addressed on an open platform and all related employees must be invited. Never discuss any problem separately with individuals as the other person might feel neglected. Prefer a conference room or the board room to discuss the problems and find a solution to it. Never always depend on verbal communications. Official communications must be preferably through emails marking a CC to all the participants as it is more reliable and transparent.

Transparency must be maintained at all levels and superiors must be easily available to the subordinates to avoid confusions. Gossips and backbitings must be avoided at workplace as it is considered seriously unprofessional and lead to conflicts among individuals. Be straight forward and learn to express your views in a convincing way. Never be partial at workplaces. Do not support anyone just because he is a friend. Support him if he is right and do correct him if he is wrong. Understand the other individual as well. Don’t just impose your ideas on others, instead consider their views also. The superior must know the strengths of his team members and should assign the responsibilities keeping in mind their interests and specialities.

Communication also plays a very important role in avoiding conflicts at work places. Be very clear and precise in your communication. Never adopt a casual attitude at work as it would strictly go against you.Never deliver any speech or presentation at a noisy place as no one will be able to understand what the other person intends to communicate resulting in misunderstandings.

Develop the habit of using planners to avoid forgetting important dates and tasks. Do not criticize or make fun of your colleagues. If he is not wearing the tie in the desired way, let him know the correct way. He will feel happy and look up to you in the future. Never ever rely on politics in the office as it spoils the environment completely. Blame game must be avoided strictly as it just adds on to the problems and doesn’t provide any solution. You will not become unimportant if you accept your faults. Don’t always expect the other person to come to you and discuss things. Be the first one to take the initiative. Learn to own your responsibilities and never pass on the blame to your colleagues. An individual must keep his personal and professional life separate.

Never carry your problems to work as it never allows you to concentrate in your work. For an employee, office must come first and he must keep his personal interests on the backburner. Learn to trust your colleagues. Always approach the right person and don’t spread rumors unnecessarily. One should not be too adamant at workplaces. Be a little more adjusting and flexible. Every employee must try to compromise to the best possible extent and try to find out an alternative. Create a healthy and a professional environment at office.

Differences, problems are bound to arise at workplaces, but steps must be taken at the right time to avoid unnecessary fights and disagreements. Conflict not only spoils the ambience but also reduces the productivity of the employees. They feel highly demotivated and don’t feel like going to offices. Employees waste all their time and energy and nothing productive can be expected out of them and ultimately the organization is at loss.

 

ifully agree with mr emad>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

i fully agree with Mr. Emad Mohammed said abdall ,

Professionalism should always be in mind and heart of each individual to avoid conflict. From which, work can be done properly without doubt and reserved emotion against everyone.