If you believe you have more power:

• Consider working through the conflict in a location that is the most comfortable for the other person.
• Share the resources you have (e.g. information, expertise).
• Be willing to listen to the other person first.
• Do not use your power base to intimidate or retaliate against the other person. Seek to develop a ‘level playing field.’
• Look for indications that the other person perceives you as having more power, and clarify how you intend to use your power.
• Respond to challenges non-defensively.

If you believe you have less power:

• Find ways to increase your own power sources.
• Describe the consequences of a competitive use of power and the benefits to the other person of a collaborative use of power.
• Assert yourself and continue to keep your needs on the table while continuing to listen and acknowledge the other person’s needs.
• If asserting yourself results in the other person exerting his or her power over you, shift temporarily from a focus on your needs to a focus on the other person’s needs.
• Think about ways to lessen your dependence on the other person’s source of power.

Destructive Conflict and Constructive Conflict

Conflict can be defined as ‘destructive’ or ‘constructive’ in quality and outcome (Deutsch, 1973; Folger, Poole & Stutman, 2005).