Unleashing the Power of Conflict
352911
Mark Adams produced a fantastic book on "conflict resolution" by taking concepts from many different disciplines and weaving them together in a very cohesive fashion.  I was amazed at how well he synthesized so much information into this one book.  Mr. Adams dissected conflict into its basic elements and causes.  He provides his readers with the tools to properly address conflict and to keep it from escalating.  He points out the damage caused by our fear of conflict and clearly describes the value it provides, if handled appropriately.  The material in this book could benefit anyone, not just those of us involved in "conflict resolution."  This book resonated with me in so many ways.

Mark B. Baer, Esq., Family Law Attorney, Mediator, Collaborative Practitioner
1774437
Having read the 48 Laws of Power a few years ago, I find myself only now getting to a review of this captivating, if not evil book. The 48 Laws of Power is a menu of manipulation, strategy and cold-hearted stratagem for dealing with your fellow humans competitively, if not mercilessly. Without a doubt, the 48 Laws each have a crucial point about our emotional and psychological thumbscrews, with historical anecdotes to back them up. While admittedly some laws seem to at times mesh against the grain of another, they are not without thought-provoking (if not disturbing) food for thought.
3592
Joe Weston takes conflict resolution a step further and asserts that learning how to confront our differences can bring greater understanding and peace for all of us in our divergent beliefs. Excellent commentary coupled with interesting and useful tools make this an important book in our troubled times. I also highly suggest Joe's workshops. He is a very good presenter who provides interactive exercises that will expand and challenge you in a safe and nurturing way.
4227435
This work must surely be the most plausible blueprint yet presented, to achieving a just resolution of the most complex and protracted conflict environment in the world.

As a case study, the Israel-Palestine conflict is analysed comprehensively in an honest and balanced manner, from its ancient historical genesis to the present time.

Rane exhibits a masterful understanding of Islamic history, placing Quranic verses in their contextual setting, as he progresses logically throughout the book, to develop a sound hypothesis for the reconstruction of Jihad based on non-violence as an authentic and productive form in conflict resolution.

Modelled on the non-violent elements of the victory over apartheid in South African, Rane provides a framework for world-wide pressure to be applied to the Israel-Palestine conflict on the basis of international law and human rights by eliminating the argument for self-defence.
1494306
Crucial Conversations offers a well organized approach to examining those very select conversations that we all have where the stakes are high, there's a difference of opinion and there is an emotional investment. How these conversations are handled  truly separates the good from the best. A friend of mine, who read this material revealed to me that they wished that they had understood (in the early years of marriage) that "it is possible to be both honest and kind". My friend believed that this would have potentially saved the relationship with their spouse.
These are the conversation in which we find ourselves responding in the grip of our style under stress, inevitably behaving in ways that lead us farther and farther away from our deepest-held objectives. The power of recalling what we really want in a crucial conversation that has moved toward silence (withdrawing, attacking, avoiding) or violence (labeling, contolling, attacking)offers transforming potential for sharing tough content honestly and respectfully.
The format of this book offers the reader a nicely structured set of 7 principles, associated skills and easy to use key questions and anecdotal examples for practical application. All together Crucial Conversations has all the makings of a communication bible for those interested in expanding their influence, leveraging the wisdom of a group and enriching their relationships.
152737
This study could be used as an organizational management text book in a business school class.  The author begins with a review of Mahan's principles, e.g., focus on the most essential task, never divide your fleet, and then applies these principles to the history of the Pacific War.  Familiar historical episodes illustrate how difficult sticking to these simple principles is in practice.  In the real world, competing demands from diverse power centers -- and competing personalities -- easily makes loss of focus and dilution of effort the more likely outcome.  By the end of the book, we learned some lessons applicable to daily life, as well as some history.  The writing style is engaging and non-technical.  The reader need not possess detailed knowledge of history or military affairs.  At the same time, endnotes are plentiful and probably helpful to more academic readers.
1539364
This is an excellent book to provide a good context and background to the incredibly complex issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  As someone who has spent a month in Israel studying these issues by meeting with people on both sides, I found Myre and Griffin's book to be extremely valuable, and wish I had read it before the time I spent there.  I am not sure that the book should be the first introduction to the subject, but it is well worth including in a reading list of books that the person interested in understanding multiple perspectives, and interested in learning about the time period of the second intifada.  For me, This Burning Land served to strengthen what I already knew about Israeli and Palestinian perceptions of issues.  You can not understand the Israeli mindset without understanding how that has been shaped by years and years of conflict.  The Second Intifada is critical to that understanding.
2734937
This impressive book began as an academic thesis and is brought to life by relevant and diverse contemporary operational experience; the text is amplified in quality by the perspicacity of a considerable intellect.  Mike Martin demonstrates that the success of any military intervention or assistance operation, is only as effective as the proponents understanding of the operating environment.  That understanding was boasted by many in Afghanistan, including one former NATO commander, who ironically opines how useful this book would have been to him had it been written during his tenure of command.  Men like Mike were present throughout; if only they had been afforded a voice.
It is the product of considerable study and demonstrates precisely the appetite for learning and adaptation essential to keep armed forces relevant in such difficult times.  It should have been encouraged, nurtured and I am proud of the small part I played in helping Mike obtain sponsorship for his thesis and supporting him in getting the book published despite MOD attempts at censorship.
Planning for British military involvement in Afghanistan was blighted by inadequate or confused policy direction and a complete lack of understanding of the Afghan context, particularly in the South of the country.  This is an institutional malaise, despite protestations to the contrary.  The army has shown an alacrity to learn tactical lessons that has not been replicated at the operational or strategic levels.  The aspiration to develop better levels of operational level understanding has not been supported by the right attitudes and emphasis in policy or execution.
Senior officers have boasted operational level understanding and vied for the strategic high ground.  In reality the quality of British military strategic thought and advice has been poor, and yet those involved in Iraq (as Chilcott will soon report) and Afghanistan would have us believe they made not a single mistake in either theatre.
The book signals an opportunity for a change in attitudes and mind-set. Reform would start with a willingness to admit mistakes and embrace the need for different ways of doing MOD and staff headquarters business, instead of the prevailing cuts-driven mentality that protects heritage at the expense of capability.  It needs leadership from senior officers of a different pedigree: people born of a much better-informed selection process, reinforced by appropriate education programmes at key stages of long careers and training that equips people for their specialist jobs.  The army deserves open-minded innovators prepared to challenge the dogma of establishment.
The army must learn better to distinguish between cuts and reform, and wake up to the need for further change, starting amongst its senior leaders.  All you who serve: beware charm that masks hubris; regimental loyalty that breeds group-think and cronyism that passes for career management.
4078301
Vandergriff begins this monograph with the observation that fundamental ways of thinking about conflict must change from defeating other armies in set-piece battles to successfully resolving "fourth generation" conflicts that are practically never decided by battles. He characterizes this change as a shift from "linear" to "complex" thinking.

Many others, of course, have made this same observation, and Vandergriff duly acknowledges the big names in the field. Where Vandergriff makes his original contribution is in proposing specific methods for creating leaders who can carry out the program of change that he envisions. He calls his methodology the "adaptive course model" (ACM) and states its purpose as " ... creating leaders who understand and practice adaptability, while encouraging Army senior leaders to nurture this trait in their subordinates." As he notes, to accomplish this purpose, the ACM must encompass three elements: a culture of learning, a program of instruction designed to nurture adaptive students, and a corps of highly trained and competent instructors.

Vandergriff does an admirable job of explaining each element in the 40+ page Chapter 3, Creating Adaptability. It is worth noting that he draws on the latest research on leadership, including the data supporting the concept of "recognition-primed decision making," and employs a variety of techniques to make the program as "experiential" as possible. The name of the game is "adaptive leadership," and under Vandergriff, you'll be doing a lot of it.

Will it work? I am pessimistic, not because I doubt the power of his methodology - similar approaches have worked in the past - but because of the role of the Army in fourth generation warfare. Frankly, I don't see one. It's quite likely that Vandergriff's recommendations can create a better Army, but how do we judge "better" in a world where the threats appear to be nuclear-armed states on the one hand and shadowy, transnational "terrorist" groups on the other? It's not clear that we would risk land combat against the former and it certainly isn't clear what role the Army can play against the latter. To the extent that this view is correct, the Army doesn't have much incentive to change its comfortable culture in order to become more relevant in the 21st century.

One group that can adopt Vandergriff's ideas is modern business. Many of the techniques he recommends to create and evaluate adaptive leaders in the Army will work with obvious modifications for business. They are sorely needed: As Deming preached, virtually all the problems of US industry over the last generation can be traced to failures of leadership. It's instructive to contrast senior military and civilian leaders on this point. The top generals of the Army really do see their people as their primary resource, and they aren't reluctant to spend money to develop them. To be competitive for promotion, for example, officers need to spend four or five of their first 20 years improving their civilian and military educations at the Army's expense. This is not a philosophy that permeates private industry: An executive vice-president at Wal-Mart, for example, complained to the board in October 2005 that workers with seven years experience at the company cost more than new hires but were no more productive, a statement that would flabbergast any military professional.

For those who do want to improve the performance of their companies by improving the capabilities of their people, Vandergriff's little book cuts through the fluff and delivers a tightly packed duffel bag of philosophy, ideas, and techniques, many of which were tested by Vandergriff himself during his years of training future officers (he was ROTC Instructor of the Year in 2003).
953542
For the first time the realization of Sun Tzu that there must be "ordinary" and "extraordinary" forces has been combined  into one concept of war instead of the endless heavy versus light, armor  versus airborne, firepower versus maneuver squabbles; or the sea-service  imposters trying to copy the WWII Nazi blitzkrieg--- we really need BOTH in  our world that moves by the AIR and increasingly communicates in the higher  regions of space. America doesn't have a properly thought-through  warfighting doctrine now, it hopes/wishes for sea and aircraft delivered  "posturing" to coax enemies into giving up, when such  ship-centric saber-rattling and callous bombing fails to hinder let alone  kill the enemy's ground forces but does kill innocent civilians, and drains  the national treasury with expensive million-dollar-a-shot cruise missiles.  These things have their place---but as supporting means to a decisive  warfighting capability which comes from being able to control the ground  where human beings live. Sun Tzu said "what matters in war is VICTORY,  not prolonged operations, however brilliantly executed". In contrast  turning the civilian populace against you with high-altitude, stand-off  bombing and having a "glass jaw" that you are unwilling to put  men on the ground are the same recipes for disaster that led to the fall of  South Vietnam. The authors finally solve the riddle of Vietnam and show  that there is a better way---use Army and Air Force aircraft power to  deliver decisive ground forces that are shielded and mobile in light  armored vehicles, with high-quality infantry to collapse enemies whenever  possible; if not kill them quickly---and not civilians who are vulnerable  to 4th Generation War psychological attacks via mass media. It takes Army  Soldiers/Paratroopers on the ground, delivered rapidly by the air to do  this, and Air-Mech-Strike shows us how to do it with primarily existing  equipment and not bust our budget. This book is THE most important defense  policy book written of our time, and gives America the means to keep the  peace and win fights--enemies that know that we can dominate the ground  fight will be inclined to use peaceful means to correct their differances  with the west.
If you care about peace in your lifetime, read this book  and see that your Congressman/Senator have a copy to read, too!
Airborne!
472563
This work contains one riveting chapter after another.  Each of the nine chapters is titled by the name of an individual whose story provides compelling detail and color for the point being discussed in that section.  The work is divided into three sections titled: The Advantages of Disadvantages (And The Disadvantages of Advantages), The Theory of Desirable Difficulty, and The Limits of Power.  In developing his underlying theme, the powerful are not as powerful as they seem  nor the weak as weak, Gladwell provides multiple examples beginning with a review of the biblical encounter of David and Goliath and thus his title.  He deftly describes ancient military structure comprised of cavalry, infantry, and projectile warriors (todays artillery).  I was impressed by his analysis of the various stones, and their type, density, and availability at the location of the legendary confrontation.  The author cites ancient sources to support his argument on military structure and relies on a ballistics expert to describe the force generated by an accomplished slinger.  One such expert claims that an accomplished slinger could generate a force 34 meters per second which I calculate to be a bit more than 76 mph.
Gladwell, using this speed, imagines being hit in the unprotected forehead by a pitched baseball at close range.  Being knocked flat and out is easy to picture in this context.

In subsequent chapters, he addresses such disparate topics as youth basketball, optimal classroom size, financial wealth, big fish, small pond and its converse.  He discusses the Impressionist artists, the London blitz, dyslexia, leukemia, civil rights, and the troubles in Northern Ireland.  Finally, he focuses on Californias three strikes, you're out and the Huguenots from the South France rescuing Jews in WWII.  Each and every section reveals remarkable storytelling and persuasive reasoning in support of the main thesis: the powerful are not as powerful as they seem  nor the weak as weak.

I was particularly intrigued by Gladwells discussion of the Blitz and the acquired courage which resulted in those who survived the remote misses.  Another appealing section was his discussion of authority achieving legitimacy.  To be recognized as legitimate governance must assure that those under authority have some voice, that the law is predictable, and that the exercise of authority has to be fair.  Gladwell includes a telling note on taxes in this section that is both rich and revealing.  Finally, the review of Californias Three Strikes was illuminating and triggers considerable thought about how to deal with the vexing problem of criminality.

The introductory section describing Goliath possibly suffering from the medical condition, acromegaly, was quite interesting.  Nevertheless it seemed too speculative to be convincing.  Other than this minor quibble, I thoroughly enjoyed and learned much from this terrific book.
2796411
From its catchy title to its wonderful Chapters - "D is for Drama Queen", "P is for Paranoid", master mediator, Victoria Pynchon walks the reader thru strategies for dealing with everything from the neighbor with the barking dog to the guy about to rob the convenience store.  Drawing from her vast professional experience and knowledge of human behavior, Pynchon offers a fresh look at strategies to resolve any and all conflicts that arise in our lives. She examines the different types of difficult people we may encounter, how we address conflict, and ultimately how we acknowledge, interpret and resolve that conflict.  A great read for everyone.
2226493
A powerful book that both frightens and offers a way out of the nuclear dilemma.  The nuclear danger is real, and Blight and Lang develop a variety of realistic doomsday scenarios that should serve as a wake-up call, a call that urges us to realize the necessity to abolish nuclear weapons.  These scholars have felt the weight of the nuclear threat for a long time because their research has brought them in direct contact with some of the key decision-makers in the Cuban Missile Crisis from all sides of the conflict: the Former Soviet Union, the United States, and Cuba.  A chilling encounter in Havana between Fidel Castro and Robert McNamara (orchestrated by Blight and Lang) years after the Missile Crisis is described in vivid detail.  That is when McNamara, former U.S. Secretary of Defense, learned how very close the world had come to nuclear war, closer than he had understood when in the midst of the Crisis.  Blight's and Lang's trailblazing research through the method of Critical Oral History led to the development of this important book, which will, I hope, become a staple in college and university Global Studies, Recent American History, Peace and Conflict Studies, and Political Science courses.  As gripping as any outstanding novel, the story this book tells is powerful, sobering, and true.
4700019
Conflict?

We don't need no stinkin' conflict!

Except that the reality of business, both for-profit and non-profit is that there will be conflict. People will clash and ideas will run contrary to each other. Most leadership books I've read focus on either conflict avoidance or victory.

Coleman/Ferguson present strategies for dealing with conflict and growing success from it. It may be necessary to "win" some conflicts, but more often companies must manage conflict on the way to resolution.

The presentation here is easy to work through, and that is valuable. While a business leader should read this book at a time of theoretical study, you're more likely going to pick it up right when you think you need it. Which is two days later than you did.

Each chapter features assessments to work though what type of conflict is at play, and what type of leader you may be.

This is a valuable read, especially if you are in an organization that does not accept that the solution to conflict is to fire one or both of the conflicted people. You can grow through it, and make it work.
1946426
A practitioner of ba gua zhang since 1973, I learned these movements from Masters Y. C. Kwong and Wen-shan Huang, who taught this technique of circle walking with complex footwork and hand movements not as a martial art but as inner alchemy - nei dan shu.  I've persisted with this practice, because it has proven extremely beneficial for dealing with stress and promoting creativity. What is remarkable about Tom Bisio's approach to the ba gua zhang, as exemplified in Strategy and Change, is his lucid and pragmatic explication of the relationship of internal energy and body states to external situations of crisis. His approach is holistic, not linear, so one can enter this book at any point and find insight. By relating internal flow of energy to external battle plans from military thinkers as diverse as Sun Tzu to Mao Ze Dong and Belisarius to Clausewitz, Strategy and Change offers numerous examples of how spontaneously deploying internalized strategies consistently overcomes traditional martial maneuvers. For me, the real benefit of this book is its application to the strategic moments we all face daily, of holding and releasing power in the body with mindfulness, whether negotiating in business, competing in sports, disciplining one's self (or one's kids!), or any circumstance where one's self goes out into the world with intent, not necessarily to conquer but to persuade and prevail without resentment or backlash. I highly recommend this book of strategy, which so compellingly demonstrates the Daoist principles of transforming conflict into creative tension and the emotional resolution and satisfaction of achieving victories that free us to move forward by leaving behind only the soft echo of self.
2611997
Methods of conflict resolution have been thought up and implemented since the first clash of ideas and wills arose between the earliest of our primordial ancestors. We live in an era when these conflicts seem more prevalent and intense than in previous times: I suspect that, if they could, people living in those bygone centuries would disagree.

Perhaps the importance we place on even the most mundane issue, and the intensity with which we feel the emotionality of it, is related to our ability, thanks to technology, to access and distribute far more, and more detailed information, and to a wider, reading audience and over greater distances than ever before. Sadly, we don't seem to have acquired any better knowledge about negotiating compromise or developed the skills to create stasis-- a reasonable degree of balance in our communal or personal lives. This seems particularly true in the areas of politics, religion (spirituality), and inter-personal relations.

Daniel Shapiro, PhD. founder and director of the Harvard International Negotiation Program has written masterfully in Negotiating the Nonnegotiable: How To Resolve Your Most Emotionally Charged Conflicts of a new paradigm for resolving conflict. It entails realizing that the root of all conflict lies in ones own, personal identity. The methodology that Dr. Shapiro has developed he terms Relational Identity Theory. And its an eye-opener.

My chief interests have for most of my life been religion (spirituality) and politics; since I was a university student, Ive expressed myself in these areas most deeply and personally through writing poetry. Time and space don't allow me to review at length Dr. Shapiros entire philosophy and methodology. But, I will say that the three chapters titled, Assault on the Sacred, Identity Politics, and Uncover Your Mythos of Identity are ones I will read again and again as I struggle to find and actualize my ability to recognize conflict (within self and with others) and to create balance in my own life.

As a 74 year old man--an adoptee at the age of 8-- the last mentioned chapter just above has already begun to open my mind, and my heart, to an understanding of who I am, and why I think and feel as I do on so many aspects of life. I look forward to reading and re-reading these chapters. And then, see if I cant delve more deeply into other areas the Dr. Shapiro addresses in his book so as to gain more self-knowledge and learn more effective and workable ways of relating to the people, known and unknown, with whom I share life on this progressively smaller-and-smaller planet.

Perhaps Ill even find that no I longer need to be as defensive (or combative) on Facebook as I now see I have been!
1431649
This is a great text to introduce you to conflict resolution. While it was written from the perspective of an experienced martial arts teacher, it should be part of the team building process everywhere from classrooms to corporate corner offices. While a lot of books on the topic can be filled with technical jargon and burdened with the author's need to impress you, Norton's writing style is very user-friendly and his stories from his experiences working in martial arts and in personal security add interesting color to the succinct models and principles used to organize central ideas.

Two things really stand out in giving you a sense of the philosophy behind the book and the sincere spirit of the author. One is the fact that he recommends pausing after the first moment a conflict has become physical and offering the aggressor another chance to let logic catch its breath before going on down the path of escalated violence. The second is the pride he clearly takes in recounting a story not of some wild, victorious martial arts battle, but of a time when he talked a knife-wielding character down from a high-conflict status.

I challenge you to read this book and not wish you had more people like Norton on your teamfrom teachers to tax attorneys.