Office communication: how to manage conflict with colleagues when returning after lockdown by listening to each other and sharing the workload
- After months of working from home, it might not be easy to adapt to being back in the office – and as a result, conflict can arise between colleagues
- Recognising and acknowledging your own emotional fatigue or that of other people, and making the effort to communicate, can minimise conflict
People around the world are gradually returning to their workplaces but, after months of lockdown and working from home, many are still operating as if they are in isolation by maintaining a physical distance from their colleagues.
Communication conducted without direct visual, verbal or tactile connection makes interaction less personal, which can sometimes come across as abrupt or even rude. As a result, misunderstanding or conflict can arise between colleagues.
“The pandemic has caused some people to go into survival mode. They might be anxious about the economy and keeping themselves and their family safe. This might lead to people thinking of worst-case scenarios, which create tension within themselves, the family and at work,” says Hong Kong clinical psychologist Dr Monica Borschel.
“When people are in survival mode, they act differently. When people believe that resources are scarce, they might turn on each other. Usually, this is not conscious.”
