Mental Preparation
You may have lived with your dispute for along time and feel that you know everything about it and are ready for the mediation, think again. You may have told your story many times to many people, however this is a fresh opportunity to tell your story with the hope of resolution.
Think about how you will present your perspective to the mediator and to the other side. What do you want to communicate to them? It may be anger, pain or frustration. But there may be questions you want to ask. Think about what you may want to ask the other side.
Whilst your story of the dispute will be familiar to you, how the dispute appears from the other side’s perspective may be something you have given no consideration to.
You should think about what it would take to settle the dispute. What are you willing to give up and what are you willing to receive? What do you think the other side want? What is realistic? A good mediator will work with you during the pre-mediation phase to help you prepare to ensure that the mediation has the best chance for success.
Most excitingly you should think about what would it mean to resolve the dispute. What would your life be like if the dispute was resolved? How much time, emotional energy and resources would be freed up to grow your business or get on with your life? This can seem like an impossible dream, but some mediators will ask the ‘what if’ question as a way of helping people to visualise a future without the dispute.
Practical preparation
There are lots of questions that need to be addressed before you arrive at the mediation session.
- Who will attend?
- What information / documents do you want to refer to or use at the session?
- Will everyone have lawyers?
- How much time do you think the mediation will take?
Talk with the mediator about these queries to help you to prepare.