The Polarity Man: Transform Conflict into Wisdom
“Polarity Man” has a couple meanings. It could be a short hand for Polarity Management, a technique developed by conflict expert Barry Johnson (which this technique is largely derived from). Or it could be a play on the theme of “straw man,” “steel man,” or my concept of the “titanium man” as a technique to (re)frame arguments.
The polarity man (or “polarity manning”) contains a few steps.
- See that all conflicts or debates involve a polarity — two opposite but interdependent value-poles. A simple example is inhalation/exhalation.
- In order to see the whole picture, both sides of the polarity must be seen as equal. The key is to not favor one side of the polarity over the other. Inhalation is not better than exhalation, or vice versa.
3. Reframe one-sided, either/or arguments into both/and, neutral polarities, and see that both polarities contain positive and negative aspects. Inhalation and exhalation both contain benefits and downsides.
4. Think about how to harmonize both polarities, or consciously oscillate between them to maximize the positive qualities and minimize the negative ones (as…
