Long ago, I came across Friedrich Glasl's conflict model and fell in love with it.
It describes nine vivid stages in the breakdown of human relationships.
It's worth thinking about the two extremes — the first stage and the last.
The end comes when one side wants to destroy the other, even at the cost of destroying itself.
"Together into the Abyss" is the final turn of the downward spiral.
Now look at how fruitfully it all begins.
"Tension" certainly brings confusion, irritation, and discomfort.
But it is also the necessary condition for creative synthesis. Any sculptor, composer, or screenwriter will tell you the same.
Everything genuinely new is born in heat and tension. An electrician would say that without a difference in potential, no electric current flows.
Uniformity and sameness cannot produce anything. There has to be some difference. And the greatest creative potential lies in opposites.
So, Glasl's nine stages of conflict tell only half the story. There is another half that remains hidden from view.
A physicist might say that "Tension" resembles a bifurcation point.
The system can collapse downward... or soar upward.
Then the opposing forces stop fighting and start collaborating
The final stage of their co-creation is called "Together into Paradise."
Down or up — the choice is yours.
Sincerely yours,
-Alexander
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