Neuroscience

ADR, Book Review, Business, Causes of Conflict, Clients, Cognitive Bias, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Developing the Field, Future of mediation, General, Improvisation, Language, Mediation Practice, Mediation Users/Clients, Neuroscience, Policy, Scotland, Skills, Stories, Success in mediation, Tips, Training, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /1 Comment

It’s funny how one thing leads to another. Regular Kluwer blogger Ian Macduff posted a great blog earlier this week on the importance of asking questions. That reminded me that I had intended to get hold of a book by Edgar Schein entitled “Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling”. So, I…

Commercial Mediation, Deal Mediation, Dispute Resolution, Employment, Ethics, Europe, Family Mediation, Future of mediation, General, Governments/Public Sector, Greece, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), History of mediation, Interests, Ireland, Joint Sessions, Language, Lawyers, Legal Issues, mediation as a career, Mediation Lawyering, mediation models, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, mediation traditions, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Memory and Illusions, Neuroscience, Nigeria, Particular Sectors (e.g. Construction, Banking, etc.), peace negotiations, Planning, Policy, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Public Policy, Reform, Scotland, Settlement Agreements, Skills, Sport, Stages of mediation, Standards, Success in mediation, Switzerland, Tactics, Transformation, Trust, UN and International Organizations, Uncategorized, Understanding mediation, Workplace

(Core Solutions Group)/ /1 Comment

I was all set to write about climate change and, more particularly, to reflect on some excellent writing on that subject which addresses so-called climate change sceptics or deniers. It seems to me that there is much to be learned about the motivations and psychology which affect such people and which can easily be read…

Business, Causes of Conflict, Commercial Mediation, Communication, Conflict, Costs in Mediation, Decision making, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Future of mediation, General, Improvisation, Interests, Joint Sessions, Mediation Agreement, Mediation Outcomes, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Neuroscience, Scotland, Skills, Sport, Stories, Success in mediation, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /6 Comments

As 2014 comes to an end, it is good to reflect. How privileged many of us are. I often remark to others that my “job” is better than “real work”. What do I mean when I say that? As mediators, we have an extraordinary window through which we view life, other people and what happens…

Book Review, Conflict, Developing the Field, Family Mediation, General, Intuition, Neuroscience, Stories

(Sabine Walsh Mediation)/ /Leave a comment

At this time of annual reflection, I always feel it is worth looking back and picking out some of the better readings and materials I have come across over the past number of months. My father recently said he wished he had been in possession of a wheel barrow when visiting Harvard University’s bookstore, and…

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…

Apology, Causes of Conflict, Clients, Communication, Conflict, General, Instinct, Language, Lawyers, Mediation Practice, Mediators’ Conduct, Mistakes, Neuroscience, Scotland, Stages of mediation, Stories, Time Pressure, Trust, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /3 Comments

It was just a few moments. “You can’t play on our course without proper golf shoes.” “But we played here two days ago in these shoes.” “My colleague must have made a mistake”. “But it was you who let us play…”. “It’s in our rules.” “Where?” “Here.” “No it’s not. There is nothing about soft…

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(Core Solutions Group)/ /2 Comments

I have been reflecting recently on the individual and collective professional journeys we all undertake – and on the different stages we reach. My reading has taken me to a thought-provoking book by theologian Richard Rohr, entitled Falling Upward. Rohr’s thesis, put very simply, is that there are two stages to life. The first, necessary,…

Creativity, Developing the Field, Future of mediation, Language, Mediation Practice, Neuroscience, Uncategorized

(University of Strathclyde)/ /1 Comment

There are times in mediation when emotions are so powerful that it’s impossible to think of anything else. This week I witnessed, at the very least, despair, fear, anger, hurt, sadness, care, love and relief. They can be fleeting – a flicker of amusement, a nod of recognition, a disdainful glance. Or they can be…

Communication, General, Language, Neuroscience, Skills

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

Much has been written about the impact of body language on communication. I have in a previous entry addressed the connection between non-verbal communication and the building of rapport. While body language is the commonly used term, I prefer the term non-verbal communication for two reasons. First, the term “body language” is a metaphor that…

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…