When an interviewer asks you how you deal with conflict, never focus on any one person as the source of the conflict. Exemplify the situation and focus your example on the solution rather than the problem (this is nondefensive communication 101). Let's say you were working on a group project and you had a disagreement with someone on your team. Explain the steps you took to work through it. Taking a thoughtful approach by listening to the opinions of others is always a good place to start! Show that you took the initiative and stayed calm to resolve the situation!

"A co-worker was interested in competing for a leadership position. A new location was about to open and several employees were enticed by those few leadership positions which were about to open up. I liked this coworker and offered some suggestions to help them out. But they took the advice all wrong and accused me of trying to undermine their efforts in landing that promotion. But my only motivation was helping them out. So I took a step back and waited for things to settle. I then made extra efforts in my daily interactions with them to convey I was a fellow member of the team only interested in supporting their efforts. After they were passed up for the promotion, I told them I was sorry they didn't get the promotion. They then said they were sorry I didn't either. I then told them I never threw my hat in the ring, and that promotion wasn't conducive to my goals. They acted surprised, and a little embarrassed. After that, our relations returned to normal."