Isn’t it irritating when people don’t do things the way we would do it? I’m sure sometimes you may have given rise to the thought “I wish everybody was like me….” No? Well like most people I do have opinions. Sometimes fairly strong opinions on some subjects, and often views that are at odds with other people’s. Whilst occasionally this can be quite irritating, I’ve come to realise that a difference of opinion can be a good thing. It can be quite difficult however, to make that step change in thinking, when you find yourself in conflict with someone, but it can be so so rewarding. My personal recommendation is that you try the following the next time you find yourself confronted by somebody demonstrating a different perspective to yourself. Try saying something like “that’s fantastic I’m glad that you disagree. Why don’t you help me understand how you see it”. This can be a great way to identify things that you may not have considered but also to defuse a possibly confrontational situation. After all wouldn’t it be dull if we all saw things the same way? I certainly think so.