Curiosity: The Key to Winning Arguments and Resolving Conflicts

We’re pleased to share that Richard Birke, workplace conflict‐resolution with JAMS Pathways, is prominently featured in the GOOD article titled “Psychology and business experts agree on one ‘curious’ key to winning arguments”, published November 19, 2025. good.is

Why This Matters

The article emphasizes how conflict—whether at work, home, or elsewhere—can be transformed by a simple shift: leading with curiosity rather than reacting with defensiveness or direct confrontation.
Birke is the only source in the piece quoted multiple times, offering practical insights on how to ask the right questions, reduce defensiveness, and open paths to collaboration.

Birke’s Key Takeaways from the Article

• “When someone says something you disagree with, you have a choice. … you can acknowledge that there’s something you don’t yet understand—even if that ‘something’ is simply how the other person could have arrived at their conclusion.”
• Emphasizing that clarity and directness alone often fail when the other person’s nervous system doesn’t feel safe: “Most people think conflict gets resolved by being more clear or more direct. But if someone’s nervous system doesn’t feel safe, they’re not going to hear you—no matter how clear you are.”
• The power of asking curiosity‐based questions in negotiation: “When you ask someone to walk you through how they’re thinking instead of immediately pushing back you’re signaling to them that they’re not under attack.”

How to Use This Insight

For leaders, teams and practitioners, the article presents a clear mechanism for improving how disagreements are handled:

• Begin difficult conversations with questions—not statements.
• Listen for how someone arrived at their viewpoint, rather than only what they believe.
• Create space where the other person doesn’t feel under attack, so they can actually hear you and you can hear them.
• Use curiosity to uncover priorities, motivations and reasoning that might otherwise remain hidden. good.is

Read the Full Article

“Psychology and business experts agree on one ‘curious’ key to winning arguments” (GOOD)

About Richard Birke

Richard Birke brings decades of experience in conflict resolution, mediation, negotiation and workplace systems design. His feature in this article aligns with his ongoing work at JAMS Pathways, helping organizations move beyond purely adversarial models and towards curiosity‐driven outcomes. Link to Birke's full bio here