Term Papers on Two-way Communication

Term Paper Title	Two-way Communication
# of Words	1043
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	4.17

Two-way Communication

Two-way communication, with both parties able to express themselves on the most
deep-rooted issues and really hear the other, is key to change in a family
business. That was the central point of John Messervey's address to the Family
Business center, September 9, 1997 at the Springfield Sheraton.
Messervey, of the National Family Business Council in Lake Forest, Illinois,
believes that nearly every family business will benefit by change&emdash;and
that those who attended are ready to catalyze that process: "You are here
because you want something to change."
The specifics will vary from business to business; in recent cases, Messervey
encountered these desires: a son wanted his father to invest in a new project; a
mother was accused by her child of meddling; a sibling looked for ways to
prevent his brother from antagonizing key employees; another sibling was asked
to "quit pretending she's working."
Messervey's analysis concentrated on the family, which he sees as "the prototype
for all organization; business patterns are just an extension" of the roles
played out in family dynamics. In every family there will be "customers for
change"&emdash;those who stand to benefit from upsetting the applecart, often
the family scapegoats or those who feel disenfranchised. But there are also
"guardians of the status quo," who like things just the way they are and
vigorously protect their turf. One of Messervey's clients compared change in his
family to "bowling in sand."
Every family has its own set of myths, roles, and rules or customs. But at the
same time, there are "secrets" and "unspeakables"; these hidden shames are the
action points for change
To demonstrate, Messervey showed a short clip from "Prince of Tides," showing a
sharply dysfunctional family. Nick Nolte plays a husband who blocks his wife's
every attempt to bring up important issues. But at the same time, he and his own
mother have some serious unfinished business to take care of&emdash;deep and
dark "unspeakables"&emdash;which causes every interaction between them to run up
against a wall of mutual hostility.
In Nolte's fictional family, as in any other, those who are ignored find a way
to act out and be noticed. And since family members know better than anyone else
how to hit the "hot buttons" that will get a reaction from other family members,
the stakes can be pretty high. When you know how to get someone really furious,
you run the risk of starting a long-lasting feud that could run for decades. But
Messervey comments, "they must have really cared for each other; you don't fight
if you don't care."
He believes many of the silly disagreements among family members are "to add
heat. Over time, all relationships cool." These little sparks are a way to keep
the relationship fresh and interesting, even after a half-century or more, as
Messervey demonstrated with a second video clip, from "For Better or For
Worse"&emdash;where, despite 56 years of happy marriage, a couple still can't
let go of an ancient minor argument.
But that family was able to openly air their disagreement. In families with
deeper problems, attempts at communication are continuously ...

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