Conflict Management
I can’t see the sea. Which is disconcerting as it was there 20 minutes ago.
I am on my balcony, observing the smog that now hangs above the beach; the product of a thousand disposable barbecues that seem to have been lit in unison by the throng of holidaymakers below.
All day, snippets of arguments have drifted through my open window.
- “Darren, I asked you to put sun cream on me, not cover me in sand”…”We’re on the bloody beach Danielle, what do you expect?”
- “Joshua, I will not tell you again…GET-OUT-OF-THE-SEA!”…But, Muuuuuum, we’re at the seeeeeea-siiiiiiide, you are SUPPOSED to go in the seeeeeea.”
- “Brian, don’t put the windbreak there. I’m sure those young girls don’t want you ogling them all day!” .. “I wasn’t ogling them, Maureen” ..“Oh, so you have noticed them, then?”
But now…it’s all gone quiet.
It seems that the little parties on the beach that have been bickering all day have been reconciled, and all for the price of a packet of sausages.
As the smog begins to drift away, I can just make them out; Darren and Danielle are lying on the sand, looking at the sky. Joshua is sitting on his dad’s lap – eating a burger. Brian and Maureen are sharing a bottle of wine. Someone is playing guitar, while another performs a not too bad rendition of Enya’s ‘Orinoco Flow’.
So, there you have it. The way to get people to chill out and forget their differences is to gather around a little metal tray and cremate some bits of meat together. Who knew?
If your team is not getting on as well as you’d like them to, and you can’t afford to bring us in to sort the problem out, well…just grab a disposable barbecue and head to the beach. Conflict Management for under a tenner. Can’t be bad.
Click here for details of our Conflict Management Courses or get in touch to discuss what you need.
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