Reflective Practice

Bias, Causes of Conflict, Cognitive Bias, Decision making, Dispute Resolution, Instinct, Mindset, Perception, Reflective Practice

(Paul Sills Mediator & Barrister)/ /2 Comments

Introduction “A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices.” William James Whether as mediators, advisors or parties in dispute, we consider ourselves rational, open minded thinkers. We make decisions in an objective, non-biased fashion, don’t we? Sadly, not often. We are all susceptible to a swarm of cognitive…

COVID-19, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Reflective Practice, Skills, Trust

(Peacekeeping and Conflict Resolution Team)/ /9 Comments

Forced into quarantine due to COVID-19, thousands of miles away from home; I have struggled with silence, but eventually made peace with it, thanks to my Jesuit upbringing. Over a decade ago, as a Jesuit novice, I ventured on a reflective journey called the ‘Spiritual Exercises’ – a month-long retreat that is the hallmark of…

ADR, Clients, Commercial Mediation, Conflict, Conventional wisdom, Creativity, Decision making, Dialogue, Dispute Resolution, Efficiency, Experience, Flexibility, Future of mediation, General, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Mediation as a business, Mediation Practice, mediation process, mediation traditions, Mediation Users/Clients, Mediators’ Conduct, Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), Online Mediation, Patience, Preparation, Promoting Mediation, Reflective Practice, Reflective practise, shuttle mediation, Success in mediation, Time Pressure, Transformation, user perspectives

(Bill Marsh Mediator)/ /20 Comments

For once, I seem to have time. No travel, no trips out, no long walks on the hills. Some zoom mediations, granted, but still much more time. And with that, I find myself reflecting on the significance of time in mediation. Time is a major feature in mediation. Indeed, we ourselves have promoted the process…

Communication, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Mediation Practice, Reflective Practice, Skills

(Greg Rooney Mediator)/ /2 Comments

Mediation: “The insertion of a human buffer between people who need assistance to interact with each other.” This definition speaks to the three core issues facing the mediator every time they enter a session. Human: to what degree does the mediator insert their own humanity into the process of mediation. Interact: to what degree does…

Developing the Field, General, Personal Development, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Reflective Practice, Skills

(National University of Singapore, Faculty of Law)/ /1 Comment

For readers who are new, the “Neuro-Linguist’s Toolbox” series is an ongoing series focused on using Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) in our practice of amicable dispute resolution. The first section (with 6 entries) focused on rapport (the first of which can be found here). This second section focuses on matters of self-care and personal improvement for…

Below the line, Business, Causes of Conflict, Commercial Mediation, Conflict, Developing the Field, Economics, Mediation Practice, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Reflective Practice, Scotland, Uncategorized

(University of Strathclyde)/ /Leave a comment
money

Twice today I’ve found myself responding to mediator reflections in these terms: the money’s not about the money. Both cases involved financial negotiation, even haggling, but that’s deceptive. The key to settlement lay not in the realm of calculation and rationality but in the more opaque social world of face, punishment, justice and emotion. In…

Conflict, Creativity, Developing the Field, Dispute Resolution, Reflective Practice

(University of New South Wales)/ /1 Comment

Holidays are a wonderful thing. Not only are they a great opportunity to step outside the obligations and scheduling of daily life, they open the space where the bigger picture lives. And so it was for me in my lovely apartment at the top of the cliff in Riomaggiore on the Cinque Terre in Italy….

Dispute Resolution, Japan, lawyers in mediation, Mediation Practice, mediation process, Mediators’ Conduct, Negotiation, Neuroscience, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Reflective Practice, Scotland, Stories, The role of the mediator, Time Pressure, Uncategorized

(Core Solutions Group)/ /Leave a comment

“You’ve done what?” It took just a moment. The red mist descended. The words were out before I could haul them back in. “You’ve just gone behind my back and undermined what I set out, and we had agreed, we would do….you might at least have had the courtesy…..” The lawyer had just told me…

Brexit, Communication, Dialogue, Dispute Resolution, General, Growth of the Field (Challenges, New Sectors, etc.), Neuroscience, Reflective Practice

/ /4 Comments

Many years ago, a group of friends were driving in the south of England in a rental car and, in need of directions (pre-Google maps and GPS), we pulled over to the side of the road to ask a gentleman the way. I leapt out, approached him and asked for the directions, to which he…

Cognitive Bias, Creativity, Decision making, Efficiency, History of mediation, Mistakes, Philosophy, Planning, Practical Challenges for Mediators, Reflective Practice, Settlement Agreements, Stories, The role of the mediator, Understanding mediation, War Stories

(FORARB/Charles University)/ /Leave a comment

At a certain point, when another offer was denied, one of the managers showed a real disappointment with the hard negotiation approach presented by the other party: “You know what?! I lost my patience. I will not sit here any further… I will ask my lawyer to finish the formalities and let’s see each other…