I was sitting in my hotel balcony in 105 degree heat reading and watching my young daughter "splish and splash" in the pool when I came across the "killing in workplace" headline that sent chills through my spine. I felt obligated and drawn to read more."I didn't know the two killed very well except that they were upper management" Larry Hansel, 54, wrote in a letter to USA TODAY from California State Prison in Sacramento, where he is serving a life sentence for the two 1991 murders. As if this wasn't enough to shake you, Hansel, a technician from Elgar, a San Diego based electronic company expresses his strong desire to repeat the act of violence with more determination.Over 30 years, since 1975, the total number of workplace killings amounted to 224. Yes, 224 lives have been lost and what's more chilling is that those horrific acts of violence were not unique to any one state or industry and have come as close as to being in our own backyard, San Diego , CA .In the days following the publishing of this article in the Thursday, July 15, 2004 edition of USA TODAY, I often thought about the killer, those who were killed and the co-workers. What was going through their minds? In the mind of the killer, what could possibly motivate anyone to destroy lives? What about those who were killed? Were they just poor unfortunate souls? Were day taken by surprise? Did they have any chance to reflex for defense before being showered with bullets? And then there were the co-workers, stunned; witnessing a tragic and unforgettable moment while fearing for their own precious lives.USA TODAY'S analysis found that firing is the most common motivator for workplace killings followed by on-the-job arguments, fight or disagreement and last but not least, disciplinary actions for tardy and poor performance. It is needless to say that these motivators seem relatively common acts happening daily in most companies, best and mediocre, big and small and public and private. No matter where we rank in our company's org. chart, we've all in some shape or form, witnessed a fight or an argument maybe even participated in one. Gave performance reviews and disciplined or coached people and yes the "F" word, even FIRED people because they deserved it and let's face it, we all had second thoughts and were fearful for our lives. The truth is Corporate America makes similar decisions every day. Yes, daily we as business owners, leaders, managers and employees make decisions that could trigger "A MOTIVE TO KILL!" And so, businesses must run; and even though we cannot tailor make the consequences of those decisions; we certainly can mitigate them to avoid life threatening disasters.Hansel may have had a motive to kill, but what I conceive it to be that he also had the chaotic workplace to fuel his failure. A workplace, like many, reacting to the constant changes triggered by the imbalance of world economy and changing technology thus; manifesting itself in a form of "Conflict". We face conflicts at home, when our children fight. We face conflicts at work with disgruntled employees. We all face conflicts in our lives because we engage in social interaction with people with different goals, values, and backgrounds and as an inevitable result of social interaction, "Conflict" has the potential to be one of the most productive part of life at home and at work and NOT A MOTIVE TO KILL.Here are 4 tips for you to help you create a SAFEer workplace!• Demonstrate nonverbal communication- Be aware of how your feelings and attitudes affect your nonverbal message. Listeners will "hear" your tone of voice, vocal volume, rate of speech, and body language over and above your words.• Define unfair fighting- It is human nature to want to be on the side that's winning. The problem is for many of us, the fear of losing power and status motivates us to "fight unfairly". The truth is reality is negotiable and if you don't see it your way don't make it personal.• Define fair fighting- As individuals, or as leaders and managers, we must take the responsibility for making sure we are "fighting fairly", limit disagreements to those related to the task and establish an environment in which personal threat is an absolute taboo.• Send a clear message- While listening skills are important, sending a clear, concise and consistent message expressing your true wishes is of equal importance.Up to this point, we are all in agreement that "conflict" is a normal part of work and in fact, I want to be bold enough to say that sometimes it is critical to have "conflict" amongst your team members to allow for different opinions, ideas and expectations to surface.No, I am not contradicting myself at all. While "conflict" is unavoidable, you as managers have to ensure that the outcome of recognizing and dealing with it is one that reaps healthy working relationships in your workplace.The biggest mistake managers do is ignore or avoid conflict. Somehow they convince themselves that if they did so long enough that it would disappear. Not! "Conflict" if not dealt with, will consume you and everyone around you and ultimately transform into a motive to...You have "conflict"; we all do, bring it to the surface, raise the level of its importance and deal with it before it escalates beyond management.In case you missed it, here are some more quick tips for you on "conflict" resolution:• Minimize friction before it turns into a disagreement• Compromise, compromise and compromise• You can only handle one issue at a time. Focus!Vera Haitayan, Principal Consultant of The Leadership Laboratory., a California-based employee development and process improvement consulting firm and is the senior editor of The Stepping Stone Newsletter featuring leadership and process improvement best practices.
http://www.1leadershiplab.com
mailto: vera@1leadershiplab.com
Keyword : Conflict, motive, resolutions, workplace
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