We are not enemies but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained,

it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic courts of memory stretching from every

battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and heartstone all over this broad land

will yet swell the chorus of the union when touched again as surely they will be

by the better angels of our nature.

Those are the closing lines from Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address in 1861.

He was appealing to the common bonds that held the union together,

as conflict between the north and south threatened to tear the country apart.

In the book Team of Rivals, the political genius of Abraham Lincoln, author Doris Kerns Goodwin

examines the cabinet that President Lincoln had assembled after his election in 1860.

Three of his cabinet members had run against him and a tumultuous campaign for the top job.

But Lincoln didn't cast his competitors aside. He drew them closer.

By nominating his rivals to his cabinet, Lincoln ensured that his policies would be

subjected to vigorous debate. He would be forced to contend with deeply held and often opposing

ideas. At the same time, he could harness that range of opinion and service of a common goal.

The country was on the precipice of civil war, and he argued that he needed a cabinet made up

of the most talented figures, even if they had been political rivals. They were people who often

disagreed with Lincoln and with each other, but who also represented the best minds to explore

all sides of an issue. In this episode, we'll look at why disagreements can be productive,

and how conflict can be harnessed to achieve political, scientific, and personal goals.

And I'll talk to author an organizational psychologist Adam Grant about insights from his book,

Think Again, on how to avoid the pitfalls of relationship conflict.

...