Key Points
The best way to avoid conflicts in your meetings is to prepare properly, taking all factors into consideration. It's particularly important to make sure your expectations match what the group is capable of handling. Know yourself, and your team, well enough so that you're aware of tensions that may exist between people – and have strategies in place to deal with them.
If anger and conflict arise, move back to your agenda by questioning people to determine the immediate cause of the conflict. Develop questions to get people to clearly state their problems and issues. By doing this, you'll guide people back to rational thinking, focus group energy, and encourage learning and problem solving.