Improvisation

ADR, Business, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Deal Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Evaluative Mediation, Impasse, Improvisation, Lawyers, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Negotiation, Neutrality, Scotland, Skills, Stages of mediation, Stories, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

I have never been a great fan of mediator’s proposals. I took the view that the mediator’s job, done well, was to help the parties to come to a solution themselves. Party autonomy and all that. Achieving a satisfactory outcome, I thought, shouldn’t require a specific suggestion by the mediator. I have changed my view….

Causes of Conflict, Communication, Conflict, conlfict coaching, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Europe, Future of mediation, General, Governments/Public Sector, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Improvisation, Interests, Mediation Practice, Memory and Illusions, Negotiation, Neuroscience, peace negotiations, Policy, Public Policy, Reform, Scotland, Skills, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /1 Comment

“The key to doing well lies not in overcoming others, but in eliciting their co-operation.” Robert Axelrod “Although negotiation takes place every day, it is not easy to do well. Standard strategies for negotiation often leave people dissatisfied, worn out or alienated…..” Roger Fisher and William Ury For probably the final time, I am writing…

ADR, Creativity, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Humorous Pieces, Improvisation, Intuition, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Poetry, Skills, Stories, Zen

(Singapore International Dispute Resolution Academy)/ /1 Comment

Hong Kong mediator, lawyer and poet, TK Iu, was introduced to readers by fellow blogger Joel Lee earlier this year. TK’s first published poetic piece on mediation was entitled, ‘A Mediator’s Prayer’, inspired by the Peace Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. If you missed it, it’s well worth the read. In just a few…

Business, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Confidentiality, Conflict, conlfict coaching, Conventional wisdom, Decision making, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Future of mediation, General, Impasse, Improvisation, International Mediation, mediation models, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mediators’ Conduct, Mentoring, Negotiation, Scotland, Skills, Stories, Success in mediation, Tips, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

I write here about two contrasting experiences which have, for me, underscored the richness of the mediation process. In one mediation, involving business partners with an ongoing management issue, one of the protagonists (A) suggested bringing in another partner (D) who was not perceived to be a part of the present problem, simply to observe,…

Australia, Clients, Co-mediation, Commercial Mediation, Conventional wisdom, Future of mediation, General, Improvisation, mediation as a career, mediation models, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Skills, Training, Uncategorized

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /Leave a comment

The legendary cellist Pablo Casals was once asked why he continued to practice at the age of 90. “Because” he replied, “I think I’m making progress”. It is an extraordinary acknowledgement from a man widely regarded as one of the greatest ever cellists. Let’s be clear – Casals was a colossus in his world. Fritz…

Appointment of Mediators, Conflict, Costs in Mediation, Court Procedure and Litigation, Decision making, History of mediation, Humorous Pieces, Impasse, Improvisation, Litigation, mediation traditions, War Stories

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /4 Comments

I am indebted to my friend and fellow mediator Mark Lomas QC for sending me the following email recently: ‘I have come across what I think may be one of the earliest recorded mediations in England, and conducted at the highest level. An Italian called Tito Livio dei Frulovisi wrote an account of the life…

Creativity, General, Improvisation, Planning, Uncategorized

(Mediar360 - Dispute Resolution )/ /1 Comment

Recently I had contact with the Design Thinking process, which is a creative problem solving approach that attempts to bring together tools and techniques from several disciplines and apply them to real problems or challenges. Although it follows no real pattern, as each situation requires unique approaches and solutions, a simple framework can be applied…

Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Improvisation, Stages of mediation, Success in mediation, Tactics

/ /2 Comments

This note is a response to, and affirmation of the idea behind Bill Marsh’s provocative notion that the best mediators and negotiators smoke. Of course, in these non-smoking times, we couldn’t possibly agree with the apparent endorsement of smoking and yet the underlying idea Bill conveys is an important one – about the structure of…

Communication, General, Improvisation, Language, Mediation Practice, Memory and Illusions, Neuroscience, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Skills

(National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law)/ /Leave a comment

[Author’s Warning: This entry involves references to and discussions about the system of Cartesian Coordinates and how it might assist mediators in reality testing and reframing. Readers with a Math Phobia are advised to proceed with cautious abandonment.] [Author’s postscript: As I finish writing this, it becomes increasingly clear to me that some readers may…

Communication, Developing the Field, Improvisation, Language, Mediation Practice, Skills

(University of Strathclyde)/ /6 Comments

I’m not often drawn to practical tips. I once discovered that I am an “activist” learner. This apparently means that I learn best when “thrown in at the deep end” and less well when “absorbing and understanding data” (see http://archive.excellencegateway.org.uk/page.aspx?o=152477 for a description of learning styles and http://www.peterhoney.com for a self-evaluation test). It perhaps explains…