Managing Emotions During Workplace Conflict

In a workplace, many individuals with significantly different views, attitudes, and cultures come together to work in the same space. While it is relatively easy to rely on each other to bring out the best in a project, this is not the case when it comes to getting along and improving your interpersonal connections. It is conceivable for a workplace conflict to occur when extremely varied people express their distinct opinions, resulting in disagreement.

However, it is probable that the individuals concerned may lose control of their emotions, exacerbating the problem. This may jeopardize not just the positive work culture, but also interpersonal connections. When people involved in a workplace conflict do not regulate their emotions, they may say or do things that can potentially get them in hot water. As a result, Amy Gallo outlines a few efficient techniques to regulate your emotions during a workplace conflict in this YouTube video on the Harvard Business Review channel.

Managing your emotions during workplace conflict

Amy’s first and most important tip in the video for remaining calm during a workplace conflict is to notice and identify your feelings. As Amy suggests in the video, emotions are only temporary sources of data that may or may not be useful. She claims that seeing emotions as facts allows you to be more objective about them. Aside from that, she recommends practicing differentiating your feelings.

Understanding how you feel and what caused you to feel that way might help you get to the bottom of the problem and address it right away. Second, she says that if your emotions are too overwhelming to understand, you should transfer your focus to your body. She proposes identifying a few critical aspects of how your body reacts to a stressful scenario. When you change your focus on your body during a workplace conflict, you will observe the same patterns and signal to yourself to cool down before doing anything you may regret.

Interrupting or taking a break is one of the finest strategies to remove yourself from the situation and clear your thoughts for a change. If taking a break is not an option, she recommends anchoring yourself with little focused physical gestures like tapping your fingers or placing your feet firmly on the ground. She then proposes using visualizations to help you get out of a daunting situation.

If you are having trouble relaxing and feel like your mind is racing with rage, try envisioning something quiet or tranquil. She also believes that concentrating on your breath is an excellent way to relax. Counting your breaths or concentrating on the beat can begin to alleviate your stress and restore your capacity to think, listen, and feel empathy. Finally, she recommends repeating a soothing phrase.

This, she claims, will considerably calm you down and help you regain control of the situation. Emotions may cause you to do things during a workplace conflict that you may later regret. As a result, obtaining control of your emotions, especially during heated moments, is critical; a roadmap to which is provided above.