I recently ran a REAL Masterclass exploring the concept of High Conflict Personalities (HCPs). Many of the participants were looking for some quick fixes and easy tools to use when they came across HCPs in their practice. What they instead discovered was that this desire for a simple solution is in fact one of the […]
CRITICAL REFLECTION: High Conflict Personalities Read More »
What is trust? The word trust can be used as a noun (something you have) or a verb (something you do). As a noun, trust can be defined as “assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of someone or something” (Merriam-Webster) As a verb, trust can be defined as a belief that “someone
Trust between practitioner and client Read More »
What are generations? Generations are groupings of people based on their date of birth into time periods of about 15 years. The five most recent generations are: The Silents / Traditionalists (born between around 1925-1945); The Baby Boomers (born between around 1946-1964); Generation X (born between around 1965-1979); Millennials / Gen Y (born between around
Intergenerational Conflict Read More »
Goal setting is a standard first step in most coaching models. However, goal setting is not always easy or even useful! In this article I will explore some of the potential downsides of goal setting and consider some possible alternatives. “Knowing how and when to set goals in coaching, knowing how to gauge the client’s readiness to
CRITICAL REFLECTION: Goal Setting Read More »
Many of the challenges that arise when neurodiverse and neurotypical people are involved in conflict are due to each person’s different way of experiencing, expressing and regulating emotions, and also the neurotypical assumptions on which many of our conflict resolution processes are based. With greater understanding and flexible approaches in the way we support diverse people
Neurodiversity, emotions and conflict Read More »
The Australian National Mediation Accreditation System Practice Standards refer to power in a number of parts: “A mediator must have knowledge [about] the dynamics of power and violence.” (Clause 10.1(a)(i)) “A mediator must be alert to changing balances of power in mediation and manage the mediation accordingly”. (Clause 6.1) “A mediator must have the ability
CRITICAL REFLECTION: Power balancing Read More »
THIS SPECIAL EDITION OF CONFLICT MATTERS has been written by Carol Bowen, presenter of our webinar about menopause and conflict. In the past ten years of my conflict resolution practice, it became clear to me that there was an increase in my coaching work of people, roughly between the ages of 40 and 55, desperately
Menopause and conflict Read More »
Mediation is often described as a confidential process, however confidentiality is not straightforward and there are many variations and exceptions to the principle of confidentiality in mediation. These variations may depend on what the mediator and the parties agree on, which model of mediation the mediator offers (e.g. facilitative, transformative, narrative), the substance of the
CRITICAL REFLECTION: Confidentiality Read More »
When mediators and coaches first learn how to mediate or coach, they are often taught a particular process with step-by-step instructions. This gives them a framework to follow as they practice and develop their skills. However, rigidly following those frameworks in the long term is likely to be problematic. Firstly, it may indicate that the practitioner
Adapting our box – co-designing a conflict resolution process Read More »
This is the first in a series of short articles that I’ll be sharing in the following months to encourage critical reflection about some of the things that are typically taught in standard facilitative mediation training. These ideas have arisen from my work supervising and mentoring new mediators, who often face challenges when putting their
CRITICAL REFLECTION: Ground rules Read More »
