Five Star Survey

What do friendship, your love life and your workplace all have in common? They are all potential places of  conflict. During the holidays, because of heightened stress, the feelings of conflict can escalate. This weeks’ poll is about how YOU deal with conflict? Do you love it or hate it?

Now that you’ve established how you view conflict, how do you deal with it? Here are some great strategies that get to the root of the problems and resolve conflicts for all kinds of people.

1. Listen: Hear the other party out. Try and stay curious and imagine yourself in the other person’s shoes without judgement. Remember to listen without interruption until the other party has said everything they want to say.
   
2. Repeat: Once you’ve heard the other person’s opinions, feelings, wants and needs, repeat what you’ve heard back to the other person. This will affirm that you have taken in what the other person has said.
3. Dig Deeper: Oftentimes, the conflict at hand only represents a deeper issue. You might be able to resolve the immediate issue with more ease if you address the other person’s fundamental fears. For example, many arguments over money are rooted in a fear of not having enough.
4. Compromise: Think about your TRUE objectives. Do you want to just win the argument, or do you want to resolve the issue effectively?  Even if you’re SURE you’re right, think of your ultimate goals– sometimes giving a little in the short term will pay off in the long run for your relationship– whether it’s business, romantic or friendly.

This is the first in our series of asking YOU what you think about what’s going on in the world around us today.  How well do you know your current events? And, what’s your opinion on hot topics that are happening in the media now?

[image: washingtonpost.com]

The web is on fire with the Tiger Woods scandal. If you’ve been under a rock, here’s the story. Allegedly, Tiger Woods was having an extramarital affair with another woman, and his wife became physically abusive with him once she found out. Their altercation led him to driving while upset, having an accident, and crashing his car.

Domestic violence has been a huge topic in the media recently, highlight by Rihanna breaking her silence on Chris Brown’s violence towards her (which also occurred over alleged cheating and in a car) on the American programme 20/20 with Diane Sawyer.

One thing we’ve notice in our office is that people tend to be much more forgiving of domestic violence against men (many YouTube gurus make fun of the situation, laugh, and joke about the incident).

What do you think? Is it funny that Tiger Woods was the victim of violence but tragic that Rihanna was beat? Weigh in below: Is domestic violence from women towards viewed as more acceptable in our society? Make sure to take the poll and add any extra comments you’ve got below as a response.

Christmas is a time for the familiar traditions you’ve grown up with and lived with. It’s also a time to create and celebrate your own tradition. In that vein, we want to know what your favourite Christmas soundtrack is– please elect your favourite type of Christmas music is, from a swinging jazz christmas to traditional hymns and pop christmas albums. The choice is yours!

Have we forgotten your favourite? Respond in the comments with the name of your preferred album!