A few months ago, I attended a board of directors meeting of the SCMA Education Foundation. At the meeting, the president started talking about "S.W.O.T. Analysis". Not having majored in business, I had no clue to what she was referencing.I have since learned; S. W.O.T. stands for "Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities [Read More]
Negotiation strategy and legal malpractice claims have much in common. This point struck me as I read an article in the California state e-bar journal dated May 2, 2013, listing ten items that can lead to a legal malpractice claim. Looking through them, I realized that many of them will [Read More]
Suppose you have a jar of coins and ask several friends to bid on the jar. The highest bid will be deemed the winner. According to Richard H. Thaler ( "Anomalies: The Winner's Curse published inThe Journal of Economic Perspectives ( Volume 2, Issue 1)(Winter 1988) at pp. 191-202), (Thaler [Read More]
I have never been a big fan or, in truth, much of a fan, of e-mail. I prefer to pick up the telephone and have a real, live actual conversation. Why? To get to know the person, or to get to know her better. Simply put, it is "building rapport"! [Read More]
Recently, I wrote about a new study on fairness in monkeys. (another-study-on-fairness ) "Fairness" seems to be a popular topic as my colleague Linda Bulmash in her One Minute Negotiation Tipspublished by the Los Angeles County Bar, (Volume VI, Number 2, February 2013) (Busmash) takes up the topic of "Defining [Read More]
Recently, someone asked me, "When should I mediate my dispute? Should I wait until the lawsuit is filed? Should I wait until depositions are taken or motions for summary judgment are filed and/or heard? When IS a good time to mediate?" To me, it is always a good time to [Read More]
Recently, I read an article posted on the Harvard Law School Program on Negotiation's website discussing the similarity of improvisation and negotiation. (Improv pp.4-8.) In both, one must be quick on her feet- ready for anything at any moment. In both, one must be ready "... to seize unexpected opportunities [Read More]
In my years as a mediator, it has struck me that the smaller the dispute, the harder it is to settle. And, I have always wondered why. Well, my friend and colleague, Maria Simpson, Ph.D., in her most recent Two Minute Training, explained the "why" quite succinctly: it is all [Read More]
