Social intelligence

“I’ve been trying to tell you, but you didn’t listen. You’ve got to go down more deeply and take more time, you’re rushing it and it’s too superficial. You’re hardly disturbing the surface. You’ll…

 Kua hinga te totara i te wao nui a Tane   I had expected that this blog would be a report on the annual conference of the Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ (AMINZ) held in Wellington last week. This would…

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that's the essence of inhumanity.” The Devil's Disciple, Act II (1901). G B Shaw I ended my previous…

I was twenty-five years old when I joined Young Mediators' Initiative (YMI) and first participated at the Andalusian System for Labour Conflict Resolution (S.E.R.C.L.A) as an official mediator. At…

This blog entry arises not so much from any mediation, but from one aspect of regular social encounters that is all too normal a part of negotiation and mediation. As the title suggests, it’s about…

Global Legal Post recently carried an article intriguingly entitled “Lawyers find Eureka moments in the shower". Sadly the article itself lacked the slightly salacious promise of its title. …

Talking to Dr Gilbert Wong Senior Superintendent, Commanding Officer, Police Negotiation Cadre, Hong Kong   Walking into Gilbert Wong’s office is like stumbling into Aladdin’s Cave – a treasure trove…

Next week I am going to interview one of Hong Kong's leading police negotiators, Dr Gilbert Wong, Commanding Officer of the Police Negotiation Cadre (PNC). When I first emailed with Gilbert, I was…

I have been reflecting recently on the individual and collective professional journeys we all undertake – and on the different stages we reach. My reading has taken me to a thought-provoking book by…