A LITTLE PRAISE GOES A LONG WAY

Not everyone can accept being the loser. A bruised ego and sore pride resulting from some kind of loss can sometimes bring about a conflict. In order to soothe such a “wound”, the right amount of praise can at times work best, helping to restore one’s pride and dignity as happened in the following case.

Raju and Eric are both long-time members of the Elite Sports Club, which gathers those who are keen in various sports including soccer and billiards. With the aim of growing the club, Raju proposed at a committee meeting that membership be opened to foreigners. Eric, who was also present, strongly objected, believing the club should retain its local flavour and thus not accept foreigners into their ranks.

Both men were not ready to budge from their positions, despite many kind words of advice from fellow club members. Both wanted the best for the club and felt that their respective proposals should be accepted by the committee. To get a neutral person to help them resolve their disagreement on the issue, they jointly decided to seek mediation.

The mediation session ended with the two sports enthusiasts stepping out of the mediation room with big smiles on their faces. Apart from the facilitation of the discussion by the mediators, it was also the parties’ cooperation and willingness to work towards a compromise that produced the happy ending.

Observing that both Raju and Eric were passionate about sports and their club, the mediators then targeted their common passion and proceeded to help the parties “dissect” the issues that were bothering them. While doing so, the mediators lauded the duo’s commitment and contributions to the club, at the same time praising both their suggestions which were aimed purely at helping the club to grow and succeed. The mediators reiterated once and again that there was a strong common ground between both parties, which was their love and good intentions for their club. Given that, they should respect each other’s proposals and leave it to the club’s committee to make a decision at a later date.

The session allowed both parties to enjoy some sort of “recognition” for their contributions to sports and to their club, and that certainly placated the two avid sportsmen. With both parties being in a much calmer state and friendlier mood, the mediators worked on helping the parties to gain a different perspective to the issue, by identifying the merits in both their proposals. All these were instrumental in helping the parties reach an amicable settlement.

[Names and other identifying details have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals whose stories are portrayed in this article.]