We have thought of peace as the passive and war as the active way of living. The opposite is true. War is not the most strenuous life. It is a kind of rest-cure compared to the task of reconciling our differences.
Mary Parker FollettRead
There are three ways of dealing with difference: domination, compromise, and integration. By domination only one side gets what it wants; by compromise neither side gets what it wants; by integration we find a way by which both sides may get what they wish.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes that there are different approaches to handling differences, with integration being the most beneficial for all parties involved.
Mary Parker Follett advocates for a nuanced understanding of how different parties can resolve their differences. While domination favors one side and compromise leads to dissatisfaction for both, integration allows for a collaborative solution where everyone's needs are met, thereby promoting harmony and mutual benefit.
Themes
DifferenceIntegrationCompromiseDominationCollaboration
In practice
Example use cases
In a team meeting discussing project conflicts to illustrate the need for collaborative solutions.
More from Mary Parker Follett
All quotes →Unity, not uniformity, must be our aim.
Mary Parker FollettRead
Leadership is not defined by the exercise of power but by the capacity to increase the sense of power among those led. The most essential work of the leader is to create more leaders.
Mary Parker FollettRead
It is possible to conceive conflict as not necessarily a wasteful outbreak of incompatibilities, but a normal process by which socially valuable differences register themselves for the enrichment of all concerned.
Mary Parker FollettRead
Unity, not uniformity, must be our aim. We attain unity only through variety. Differences must be integrated, not annihilated, not absorbed.
Mary Parker FollettRead
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