How to stop conflict wrecking your relationships is one of the most searched questions in conflict resolution, marriage communication, and workplace disputes. In this episode, you’ll discover practical tools to handle conflict better, build stronger connections, and transform difficult conversations into opportunities for growth.
Dr. Andrea & Jon Taylor-Cummings sit down with Canadian lawyer, mediator, and author Jacinta Gallant to explore how to stop conflict from destroying connection at work and at home. After walking away from a successful but draining career in divorce litigation, Jacinta discovered Insight Mediation and a new way of approaching disputes.
She explains how moving from “knowing” to “noticing” creates space for curiosity, empathy, and real understanding — whether with a partner, a colleague, or a client. You’ll learn how to disrupt defensive patterns, use the “hope question” to calm tension, and bring curiosity into even the toughest conversations.
If you’ve ever wanted to stop repeating the same arguments, improve workplace communication, or build resilience in long term relationships, this episode is packed with strategies you can use today.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS (TIMESTAMPS)
00:00 Welcome and Jacinta’s bio introduction
02:00 Why she left the courtroom to pursue a better way
05:45 Becoming a “learn-it-all” instead of a “know-it-all”
07:15 The first step: noticing defensiveness in yourself
12:30 Disrupting the certainty of “I know” in relationships
16:30 How curiosity transforms long-term marriage patterns
19:40 The neuroscience of curiosity: calming self and others
27:00 From telling to wondering: practical language shifts
33:00 Redefining conflict as defending behaviours, not problems
43:30 Tools for couples: “We need to talk” and interpretation loops
47:30 Going Steady: building connection through discovery
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