Conflict or Contention?

A very important part of communicating well is dealing with conflict. I have had to do this a little more frequently in my life these days and I think its important to remember a few things. First we need to realize that conflict and contention are different things. Conflict is content oriented and is something we cannot avoid while contention is something personal that we bring to the communication. In class today I gained a better understanding of the different subjects. I saw that often we human beings bring contention into our conflicts. This is where things get hairy. Here is a very real example of the consequences that being contentious can bring.



I also learned that there are many different ways to handle conflict. I definitely need to remember this in my dealings with others. I sometimes just assume that everyone deals with things like I do when, in fact, that assumption is false. I could definitely be more understanding to others' ways of addressing conflict.

Let us all think twice about how we are dealing with conflict. And remember that contention is not part of conflict... contention is of the DEVIL.