Embracing Conflict: Turning Tension Into Team Growth

Host: Debbie Lariviere, Founder of Monter Coaching Guest: Laurie Fainer, Founder of Dynamic Alchemy Advisors

🔑 Episode Summary: Conflict in real estate teams isn’t just inevitable—it’s a powerful lever for growth when handled with strategy and empathy. In this episode of Real Estate Leadership Unlocked, Debbie sits down with Laurie Fainer, HR strategist, conflict resolution expert, and founder of Dynamic Alchemy Advisors, to unpack how leaders can transform friction into fuel.

From the five levels of conflict escalation to her HOME framework for resolution, Laurie shares practical tools leaders and team members can use to create healthier communication, stronger trust, and sustainable business culture.

Whether you’re a broker, team lead, or agent, you’ll learn how to embrace conflict instead of avoiding it—and how doing so can accelerate your leadership and your business.

🧭 What You’ll Learn:

The five levels of conflict escalation—and how to stop issues early

Why transparency isn’t the same as being “blunt”

How leaders can use vulnerability to build trust

Laurie’s HOME framework for conflict resolution: Hear fully, Own your view, Map the terrain, Execute with clarity

The role of authenticity and values alignment in hiring the right people

Practical coaching tools to silence inner conflict and create action

✨ Spotlight on Strategy: Conflict as a Growth Catalyst Conflict doesn’t have to derail teams—it can strengthen them. Laurie shows how miscommunication, skipped conversations, or mismatched expectations can escalate quickly, and how intentional dialogue stops problems from becoming entrenched.

The HOME Framework Laurie’s simple, memorable approach helps leaders and agents alike lean into hard conversations: Hear fully. Own your view. Map the terrain. Execute with clarity.

Authenticity in Leadership True trust is built when leaders show their humanity. Vulnerability, paired with accountability, creates cultures where people can thrive and feel heard.

Take Action: Ready to turn conflict into an accelerator instead of a setback? 👉 Ask yourself (and your team) after every meeting: “Is there anything we’re not saying that we should be?”

🔗 Connect: Laurie Fainer — Dynamic Alchemy Advisors | LinkedIn Monter Coaching — montercoaching.com Follow Debbie — @montercoaching

📣 Listener Challenge: ✅ Reflect on your last conflict—did you resolve it at a “level 2” or let it escalate to a “level 10”? 💬 Share this episode with a fellow leader who struggles with conflict on their team. 🗣 Leave a review if Laurie’s HOME framework gave you a new way to lead with clarity.