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Julie likes to be liked. Rather than express her disagreements, she acquiesces on most things, which often results in less than satisfactory resolutions of the problems she faces on her job and in her life.
Sean loves to disagree. If he finds even the slightest aspect of a situation with which he cannot go along, he vociferously and dogmatically expresses his opinion. This may make Sean feel important but it antagonizes everybody else.
Yes, it is important to express disagreement. If everybody agreed all the time, we would make little progress and perhaps not even survive in this competitive world. Yet, it is easy to express ones dissent without rancor or unpleasantness.
CLARIFY THE DISAGREEMENT
Often what appears to be a disagreement is a breakdown in communication. Before expressing disagreement make sure that you really do disagree. Perhaps you did not really understand the arguments presented or you interpreted the message differently. Ask questions about what has been presented. Make sure you understand what has been said in the same way as the person who said it.
In many cases you may agree with many or even most of the points that have been made, but disagree on others. Separate the areas of agreement and disagreement so you can direct your arguments on the areas of dissent, not on the entire situation.
BE POLITE
The objective of disagreement is to call to the attention of the other party another approach to the situation that is being discussed. To accomplish this objective, you must win the other person to your...