Coaching
Have you ever seen a team take the field, a fighter take the ring, or a debate team take stage without a coach? How foolish would that be? The coach can see what’s going on all over the field whereas a single player doesn’t have that ability. Even the quarterback when looking for an open receiver can’t see every player on the field. There is always something else going on that the quarterback can’t see, like missed assignments. Negotiations are like that, you’re running along thinking “This is great” and all the sudden and you get blindsided because you didn’t ask an essential strategic question.
Negotiations are tough, if you are serious about getting the best possible outcome be prepared. How do you prepare? A coach can help you analyze your options and alternatives and act as a sounding board as you explore and speculate about your “adversary’s” options and alternatives.
Mediation is a structured negotiation, intended to resolve some dispute, generally within some type of defined time frame. Developing and maintaining a negotiation strategy can be a daunting task. Oftentimes the process is fluid. New information may cause a need for you to change your approach in the midst of the session.
To depend solely on your attorney, who has a limited time and many clients might not be your best option. Perhaps you were referred to us by your attorney. The Attorney is your advocate, your representative your access to information regarding legal issues and positions. A coach will help you identify your needs and underlying issues and generate multiple options for agreement rather a single position for you to defend.
As you know there are usually two sides to an argument in a lawsuit and two attorneys arguing opposing positions. What are the valid points of their argument? Do you know? What do they want? And why?
If you are honest with yourself, you may also recognize that you are “bouncing ideas” off people who may have no idea about the premise for your argument or the point of view of your adversary. Perhaps you complain excessively when you are in conflict and their response is to appease you, not to be taken as advice. Suppose you are discussing your lawsuit with your sister and her response is “Sue the #@*, take everything he has!” Is this a valid option?
Do you need to bring structure and clarity to your dispute? Put the experience of a registered mediator to work for you. We can assist you in building a course of action that will help you separate the people and emotions from the problem. Our only objective is to help you get the best agreement possible. Call for a consultation with a negotiation coach. 478.784.9448
But you ask, "What can this “coach” do for me?". A coach can
| Help you define objectives |
| Identify interests |
| Look for concessions |
| Clarify positions |
| Identify alternatives |
| Help you determine when it's time to walk-away |
| Help you lay out a plan |
| Keep you on track |
| Won't let you leave money on the table |
You don’t have to face the unknown alone. When you work on a problem alone it might seem overwhelming to address each and every issue in detail. You might miss something. This might happen for any number of reasons. Most often failure in negotiation is due to lack of planning, disorganized structure of information or simply not having a strategy. Wouldn’t you prefer to have someone beside you who’s been through this many times before? We don’t intend to imply that people don’t know their business, we have however been involved in situations where this type of help in addition to the use of outside professionals has resulted in an agreement that the parties could not even imagine. We have also had people call us after the fact distraught at the agreement that was forced upon them by either a coercive opponent or coercive mediator. When we asked, “Did you consult your accountant?” there was an extended period of silence. If you are about to make a decision that involves thousands of dollars doesn’t it make sense to think through as many options as possible?
We think so, we’ve seen it work.
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