Conflict is a normal part of family life. As a mediator, you have the skills to facilitate peaceful resolutions to conflicts, but it can be challenging to apply them so close to home. In this article, we'll discuss how mediators can be the peacemakers in their own family conflicts by providing strategies for identifying unique considerations, assessing the situation before engaging, addressing power dynamics between family members and recognizing the limitations.
Family gatherings can bring feelings of warmth, excitement and joy. Like most of us these days, you may also be bracing yourself for dreaded toxic political conversations. A couple of my peers and I wondered what happened to simpler times, when people had healthy debates on front porches. From those musings, we developed a project called Porch Talks, to guide conversations from toxic to healthy. I have lifted some of those ideas to share six simple ways to prevent family gatherings from being derailed by politics.
If you feel more agitated than usual when the temperatures rise, rest assured, most likely there’s nothing wrong with you. It is normal to feel uncomfortable and cranky when we become overheated. There is a reason the English language is loaded with idioms such as “hot and bothered,” “boiling over,” “hot-tempered” or “crash and burn.” (Read on, this article is loaded with them.) In fact, studies have demonstrated higher temperatures are accompanied by higher rates of aggression, violent crimes and global conflicts.
