by | | Adele's Toolkit
Most often, those who come to mediation are angry at each other. This anger may take various forms: rage, fury, indignation, irritation, annoyance, aggravation, or displeasure. Initially, I encourage the parties in the mediation to talk to me directly and tell me what...
by | | Adele's Toolkit
The goal of mediation is to resolve conflict. One of the first things I do at the beginning of every mediation is to ask the participants what they aim to accomplish in the mediation. The goals of each party may not be the same, and in order for everyone’s time to be...
by | | Adele's Toolkit
The goal of listening is to cultivate understanding. The goal of understanding between the parties to a mediation is to resolve their conflict. When we don’t understand why someone says something or does something or believes something, then sometimes conflict arises....
by | | Adele's Toolkit
The goal of clarifying is to make sure that what we hear or perceive is what was intended or meant by the speaker. This, in turn, promotes understanding. So often, we assume or draw conclusions from what someone else says or does and if we don’t seek clarification,...
by | | Adele's Toolkit
A goal of the mediation process is to improve communication between people who don’t trust or understand each other. As a mediator, I want to model an effective communication style and assist the parties in using language that will resolve the current conflict,...
by | | Adele's Toolkit
It feels very good to be heard, doesn’t it? I don’t mean agreed with necessarily, but to have one’s feelings or thoughts be recognized. Validation in the mediation process is a form of feedback from the mediator to the parties and ultimately, the mediator hopes,...
