There are two essential books about emotions that everyone should read. One is this one, Emotional Intelligence (published in 1996) and the other is Susan David’s Emotional Agility (published 20 years later in 2016). Both books are about understanding and learning to work with our emotions. Goleman’s book starts with an overview of how our […]
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman Read More »
Dr Susan David is an emotions researcher and executive coach. This book is essential reading for anyone working with clients in conflict, and anyone who experiences emotions (yes, that’s all of us)! ‘Agility’ is about breaking free from our emotional habits so that we can make more conscious choices about how to respond when our
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This book has just been released by a UK mediator and former solicitor. It attempts to synthesize much of the recent research about the brain, emotions and behaviour and apply it to our work as mediators. The book chapters focus on Brain, Feeling, Thinking, Intuition, Self, Barriers, Bridges, Persuasion, Prediction, Perception, Money, Power, Truth, Fairness,
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Mediation Behaviour by Stephen Walker Read More »
This is the newest book by Brené Brown, and as usual it provides an engaging and accessible overview of research about emotions, combined with Brené’s very personal anecdotes. The book’s raison d’etre is to help us understand how our feelings, thoughts and behaviours work together, and how our emotions shape our thoughts and decisions. These
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown Read More »
This book is essential reading for anyone who is trying to change, or who supports others to change. The book explains why change is hard, why sustaining change is even harder, and then provides some very practical strategies and scaffolding to support people to do those hard things. The authors identify three surprises about change:
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Switch by Chip Heath and Dan Heath Read More »
Recently I was a guest on Lizzie Bentley-Bower’s Leadership Letters podcast. In that podcast we talked about the importance of effective conflict management as an essential management skill. Lizzie also asks her guests to write a leadership letter, usually a letter to a leader who you admire. I decided to do something a little bit
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Conflict, power and organizational change by Deborah A. Colwill (2022) This new book explores the relationship between conflict, power and change as they relate to the everyday life of the organizational members and leaders. It includes chapters on each topic, and a concluding chapter about the relationship between the three. Each chapter provides a useful
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Power and interdependence in organizations, edited by Dean Tjosvold and Barbara Wisse (2010) If you are interested in the relationship between power, conflict and leadership, this book contains a great deal of valuable information from authors with a wide range of backgrounds. I particularly liked Chapter 16 Leadership and Conflict: Using power to manage conflict
Acting with Power: Why we are more powerful than we believe, by Deborah Gruenfeld (2020) Gruenfeld is a professor of social psychology whose research has focused on power. In this book, she provides an easily understandable and practical overview of power based on extensive research, and also relatable stories and case studies. She takes readers
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Chapter 6 “Power and Conflict.” Morton Deutsch and Peter T. Coleman, eds., The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 2000, pp. 108-130. If you are looking for a very thorough discussion of the relationship between power and conflict, this chapter is the place to go. It provides an overview of
