Conflict is defined as being incompatible, clashing, at odds, sharp disagreement. Most leaders simply react to conflict with natural instinct. What is your personal approach? Can we learn to successful engage conflict to our advantage? A successful repeatable process is in aligning the What, How and Why of the individuals at conflict. As you learn our sales approach, you will see it also involves aligning the What, How and Why. The reality is competition is conflict. Developing relationships to increase our influences requires engaging in rough and tumble world of conflict, called competition. It is a core skill that enhances the strength of all the other relational core patterns.

Have a great idea or vision for new ____? Who can give you insight, clarity on your ideas, challenge or issue? Fortune 500 executives have the benefit of peer executives to share ideas. They also have the benefit of budgets for world class consultants, industry groups, trade shows, local trade groups, continuing education and formal mentor programs.

Each day is busy, sometimes hectic. Seasoned executives schedule quiet time in their day. Each individual invests the time in differing ways. Meditation, prayer, reading, music are examples of quiet time.

When do you subject your ideas, your vision, to the test of clarity and challenge? What are the traits of a Good Thinker? One is they expect to have great ideas that are successful. There are some common traits. They plan intentional time to think. They understand their pond of ideas must have input from an ocean of thought. They take input from other Thinkers. To expand their bank of knowledge, they read books and magazines, listen to media and they plug into the knowledge of other folks who are encouraged to challenge their thoughts. Once an idea hits them, they document it. Keep it in front. Prioritize time think it through. Once the idea has been analyzed in their own thought, grounded in the input of others and survived the process as a good idea, they take action.

Anyone can increase the thinking skill. You may be a Ph.D. or have a 6th grade education. You may be an Engineer or a maintenance superintendent. Your parents may have been poor, middle class or wealthy. You may have disabilities that require a wheel chair or run marathons. Accomplished Thinking is a skill that doesn’t have a boundary.

Executives in the Fortune 500 intend to win and play to win. Setbacks are just bumps along the path, an opportunity to make the plan even stronger… Risks are part of achieving the mission. They make a strong stand for their mission, their beliefs and their values.

Failures are an opportunity to listen and learn. Often what an individual might call a failure the executive sees as simply a set-back. It may even be a Setup for success. The plan is recast, rethought, a new plan is visioned and success is again in their future. They play to win.