NEWSLETTER EDITION: September 2018 When emotions are running high or you feel threatened or attacked, it can be difficult to take a step back from the conversation or conflict and reflect. It’s easy to continue fueling the conflict and go around in circles, because our emotions build and feed the argument. Defensive communication is our…

NEWSLETTER EDITION: JUNE 2018 There is a concept in Japan called kaizen, which means “continual improvement.” It is the philosophy that large-scale change can happen via small-scale, incremental actions. Let’s look at this concept further and how it can apply to conflict resolution. Change does not have to be massive or occur all at once….

NEWSLETTER EDITION: APRIL 2018 With all of the attention of the #metoo movement, I thought I’d examine other offensive behavior, short of illegal sexual harassment, that makes work life unbearable. Robert Sutton discusses bullying and other offensive behaviors in his book[1], The No Asshole Rule: Building A Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t. Jerks…

The term “mindfulness” has become a buzzword in the business world. Multiple studies and articles have been published which examine mindfulness, how to practice it, and what the benefits are. Mindfulness is that moment-by-moment awareness of your surroundings, thoughts, and feelings, or a sense of presence and acceptance. Mindfulness is often referred to as the…

Texting, online messaging, and other similar forms of communication have grown exponentially in recent years. While messaging apps and text messages may bring some people closer together and lead to more frequent communication, they are devoid of communication clues, such as verbal inflections, body language and tone of voice, that help give context to our…

This month I’m delighted to feature a guest article from my longtime colleague, Carolyn Parr. Carolyn has graciously agreed to let us post her newsletter article here. To learn more about Carolyn, click here. These days we hear a lot about people living in ‘bubbles.’ In mediation I often encounter parties whose positions are encased…