Conflict Resolution

Everyone argues. It is inevitable and never pretty. It is not meant to be. Conflict is how many things are fixed and leads to progression. Knowing this, I do not like conflict. I am what many would call an avoider. I avoid the problem, situation, or issue at hand until it has resolved itself or disappeared from the topics of discussion. If I see that the problem cannot be avoided, I will accommodate the other person in hopes that they are better off in the end. However, at school and work, I am far from an avoider. I pursue the conflict like a lion its prey, until my desired outcomes and views are met. Neither option is pretty and both carry their share of downfalls, but in assessing the situations, they provide a blanket in which I can rest
on.
I like to avoid conflicts and arguing in general.
Along with avoiding the conflict, I will avoid topics where conflict may arise. I am not a fan of the tension, shouting, or aftermath of a bad match. I tend to ignore phone calls, people, and issues; never realizing that with each ignored action, the conflict is only growing. With my family and friends I use this approach. When I feel that communication will only lead to tension, I walk away from the situation and will try my best to create a new subject. This is not always an effective tool and leads to bigger issues, but it is one that I tend to lean more towards, especially if feel that I am in the wrong. For example, with my brother I will keep conflicts to myself and let them fester in my head until I can no longer hold it in. After some time, what started as something small has now grown into something that I have no control over. One such case was when I would get mad at my brother over his definition of clean dishes. I kept quiet and several unacknowledged conflicts later, I let out on him months of tension, thus jeopardizing our
relationship.
Although I am not one for conflict, I understand that it happens.
For instance, as a manager at a growing call center, I deal with a myriad excuses from employees on their attendance and job performance. Unlike with my family and friends, I do not sit quietly and allows things to blow over. I quickly try to assess the situation and will use my power of position to correct any issues. I am upfront about the problem and tend to take a competitive, assertive view. After all, it is a business and I cannot let an employee try to breach the line of hierarchy. A tactic I personally like to use is threatening. It is effective because there is some credibility and truth behind each threat. Threatening has been very useful for me and while one major downfall of it is that employees see me as strict dictator, it allows for a business that flows and maintains minimal job errors. The same could be said about conflict that arises when I am working with a group on a school project. I do not want my grade to suffer and therefore take on a competitive approach to the conflict in order to secure my interest.
Arguments, tension, and conflicts will always exist as long as humans talk and do things. They are part of communication just as much as is communication itself. It should almost never be avoided, nor ignored. This is not my approach however. I avoid it. I walk away, never fully realizing that being ignorant of the conflict only makes it worse. That is not to say that I avoid all conflict.
At work I take a much more active approach and believe I have a balanced conflict style because of it.