Internal Culture & Communication & Conflict resolution
Our culture is rooted in the goal of our mission – to cultivate kindness.
We intentionally strive for a community built on Respect, Synchronicity and Trust.
What that means to us:
- Respect = Non-judgmental + open to change
- Synchronicity = Relationships + Connection
- Trust = (Credibility + Reliability + Intent) ÷ Self Interest
Our teams are formed to empower creativity, collaboration and innovation to change the world. The thing about change is that it inherently means conflict & we believe conflict can be healthy and strengthen connection.
We at Synchronous Health need to be connected to work well together.
Communication is the key to connection. We aim to create technology products that get out of the way and allow human to human relationships to grow, so please talk to each other, face to face, not just on Teams or text.
Witten word can be misinterpreted, so when you feel like the relational energy is challenged, pick up the phone or stop by the office and see if the person has a minute to chat and schedule some time to get curious about how the two of you or the team can be effective together!
As humans it is our job to be aware of our internal experience and practice communication skills to care for ourselves and each other.
When you experience an internal struggle that seems to be a conflict that isn’t improving, schedule a consultation with a supervisor and lay out a plan to work directly with the person in the conflict. If that doesn’t work ask for a 3rd party to help out. For those we encourage using a format called “S.B.I.”
Situation:
The time and/or place that the behavior occurred…Behavior:
The observable action…Impact: The impact that this behavior had on me…
The impact that I perceive this behavior had on others, the task, and/or the work environment…
Reflection:
Why did I pay attention to this? What does it say about me? What commitments do we have and/or want to make?
##Here is Coaching to Improve Communication
Strategy Example
Move from Certainty to Curiosity Approach the conversation with genuine curiosity about how the other person saw what happened, rather than being certain that what you believe happened is the only possible interpretation (again, the Results Model).
“How do you see the situation?”
“And” stance: Replace the word ‘but’ with ‘and’.
“I see your point, and I have a different perspective that I’d like to share with you.”
Separate Intent from Impact- Let people know the impact of their behavior on us (SBI), without making accusations about their intentions.
“We agreed to meet on Monday to discuss how we would meet the deadline. When you didn’t show up for that meeting, I felt disregarded. Help me understand why you missed the meeting.”
Acknowledge Contributions (let go of blame)- Assigning blame kills any hope for a productive conversation. No learning happens, no solutions are reached, etc. Exploring how each of the parties contributed to the problem results in learning how to best handle the problem in the future.
“I contributed to the problem by agreeing to a meeting time on Monday that I knew wouldn’t work for me given my other commitments that day. In the future, I will speak up if the time will not work.”
Other party “I contributed by not having everyone check their schedules when we agreed to the meeting in the first place and stressing the significance of this meeting to figuring out how to handle the project deadline.”
Describe your Feelings, without judgment- The goal is to take personal accountability for your feelings.
Rather than saying “you disappointed me”, take ownership for your feeling by saying. “I was disappointed that you did not make the meeting and did not call to reschedule.”
*Be kind whenever possible – It is always possible (Dali Lama)
Leadership is Partnership
What Partnership means to us:
In a balanced partnership, an individual has the opportunity to gain confidence through expertise, reinforcing their sense of self-efficacy so that they will reach beyond what they know and venture into new challenges. This requires trusting the partnership to hold a safety net far enough away to allow for creativity and even some failure as the individual learns and develops competency, and close enough to avoid catastrophic failure that risks permanent damage to the organization and/or to the individual.