discuss- mgt2 and response

Responses

Class,

During an event with a manager, he consistently would not acknowledge that I was in his office trying to brief him on a situation that had the potential to explode.  After about five minutes of the one-sided conversation, I excused myself from his office.  Two days later he approached me asking about this issue that I attempted to talk with him.  I replied that he was too engulfed with his phone looking at different things that he did not acknowledge that I was in his office trying to discuss with him.  He reevaluated the period that I was in his office and said he had more important things happening at the current time.  This is a direct reflection that he did not want to act and listen to the problem. 

The issue that caused the conflict was his lack of attention to the event.  However, overconfidence does have some economic, psychological, and even evolutionary benefits  (Mottola, 2009).  The way that he could have helped me understand the direction I was coming from was to lay his phone down.  He could have moved out from behind his desk and asked to get out of his office.  By removing himself from his office would have taken any distraction that he had and listened to the situation.  Therefore, anyone in a leadership position should take all events seriously.  He could have given me some guidance to better not only me, however, himself showing a small amount of concern.  When feedback is given honestly to you it can reduce the size of your blind area (Window, 2013).  Should have he listened to me he could have given feedback defining that he indeed was listing to what I was saying.

 

 W.

References

Mottola, G. &. (2009). Group decision-making: Implications for investment committees. Vanguard Investment Counseling and Research, 1. Retrieved from http://agb.org/sites/agb.org/files/u16/Vanguard%206.pdf

Window, J. (2013, 11 10). Understanding the Johari Window model. Self-awareness Organization UK, 1. Retrieved from https://www.selfawareness.org.uk/news/understanding-the-johari-window-model

 

 

Class,

My boss told me many years ago that I wanted to gear up and board a plane for a month the next day at the National Training Center in the Mojave Desert, not exactly the most attractive business trip. I appreciated my boss, but he was the one who chose conflict prevention, which is why I was picked for this duty. Within my team, there were three others that were qualified to meet this responsibility, but the common denominator that absolved them from this obligation was that they were all married with children. I was the only suitable NCO to fill the role and therefore the one least burdened with the possibility of this undesirable trip and, in his opinion, less contentious.

From my perspective, I was discriminated against based on my marital status, my counterparts were equally qualified to perform this duty. Though single, I had too had obligations and assets to secure. Although I was willing to perform the duty (like I had a choice) and understood the rationale behind the decision, the principal bothered me, and I let my emotions got the best of me. I highlighted the issues that I perceived were discriminatory against my disposition in a less than savory manner which provoked colorful reactions from some of my counterparts. In retrospect, my concerns were valid; however, my message was tainted by my emotions and was not well received. In the end, a compromise was made so that I could take some leave after the rotation ended. This experience is a classic example of how one’s reaction is important, especially during an unfavorable situation.

On the other hand, I find it easier to recall a little more of a conversation I had with my sister by using the technique for active listening. The talk was about her work and some of the things she does on a regular basis, not in a broad way, but in-depth about how she really does her job. The reason I have wanted to question her about the more technical aspects of her work is that it is a new topic and I do not have any previous experience of any of the systems or procedures used. Using active listening made the topic difficult for us all.

Even my sister found that it looked like I was trying to observe her. Personally, I agree that I went too far into the specifics and answered way too many questions. Active listening can have the benefit of getting more interested in the interaction that you have (Active Listening, n.d.). The experiment proved to be successful because it had the desired result of being more interested in the debate.

Del

References:

Active listening: Hear what people are actually saying. (2016). Mind Tools. Retrieved from https://www.mindtools.com/CommSkll/ActiveListening.htm

Issues Teams Face: Managing Conflict (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.sagepub.com/upm-data/54195_Chapter_7.pdf