For leaders, conflict can be a good thing. A recent posting in the Leadership Freak blog argues as much, noting that the pain conflict can cause often leads to positive change and the end of inertia.

“Many observe that we don’t change until the pain of clinging to the present seems worse than the pain of changing,” the posting notes. “When conflict motivates self-reflection and change, it’s a good thing.”

Another thing to keep in mind – conflict can beat back inertia.

As the blog posting notes, individuals and organizations often face periods of stagnation over time. Conflict can change that, the posting asserts, serving as “a wake-up call that the status quo isn’t working.”

These are things to keep in mind, according to the posting, because managers can spend up to half of their time dealing with conflict. Since they do, the idea is that “it makes sense to get the most out of such a time-consuming activity.”

The full blog posting – “You might Not Like It But There Are 5 Good Things About Conflict” – can be accessed at this link.