How would you react to the statement that conflict can be healthy for your family business?
Families have been told for years that conflict isn’t good. And you’ve been instructed with the steps to either prevent it or fix it when it arises. The right level of conflict can be good…according to Josh Baron
When we hear the word “conflict,” we often envision scream matches, angry jabbing, and slammed doors. This is named “too much conflict.” It results in limited business growth, fractured relationships, and subpar decision-making.
On the flip side, “too little conflict”—a family business that tiptoes around one another, refuses to engage in healthy discussion, and never challenges one another to be better—results in the same thing: limited growth, internalized resentment, and weak decisions.
Josh Baron refers to this as the “Goldilocks Problem.” The goal for each family business is to find their Goldilocks Zone—a comfortable zone between too much conflict and too little.
To assess your family business’s conflict management, take the three-minute quiz in “Why Family Businesses Need to Find the Right Level of Conflict.”
Read about how to assess your family business’s conflict management here.
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