This past weekend I was emersed in the exploration of "Knowing thy
Self".
Our very well respected collaborative colleague, Susan Gamache, arrived
in NYC at Eisner Amper for a daylong adventure in the examination of how you
respond to conflict. It was
outstanding. Everyone who attended
walked away saying, “yeah that's me and wow how right the process was.”
As a collaborative attorney and mediator in the 'people in conflict
over an animal(s) venue' knowing myself and my triggers are crucial. Answering
the questions on the evaluative test was daunting. It was difficult to decide if you would be the person in the
mediation room or just you as you are.
I decided to answer the questions as I stand. I think we bring this
person to our discussions even if we work at keeping our bias' in check.
When I finished and read the description of who I was, it floored me. Exactly was the word that came to
mind. I had done the Meyer/Briggs
test as I ended the New Directions Program and that felt on point. This Squib test was even more so. As I looked around the packed
conference room at Eisner Amper, it seemed everyone was having the same
reaction I was having.
Universally, each of us agreed this test was spot on.
We then got into our respective groups to answer a couple of questions
and we all were in agreement both in the process and the answers. When we spoke of our answers to the
larger group it was amazing how each personality type answered the questions in
a way that projected their personality.
Toward the end we were asked to plan an exercise that included putting
an event together. Again, we broke
into our like personality groups and planned our event. As we planned the event a much clearer
picture emerged. We were all
acting in our personality role. We
were working well together, acquiescing on unimportant things sticking to our
guns on important aspects. We all
started to laugh when we realized the exercise was not about planning the
event. What was so important about the exercise was to see our like
personalities in action. It was
illuminating in a way we would never have experienced had we not taken the
test, been made aware of how we think and react, and watched our similar
counterparts work within this perimeter!
“Knowing thy Self” is key to becoming an effective collaborative
professional or mediator. Unless
you know who you bring in the room you may cause unwanted influence on the
process. I for one was so thankful
I took the time to attend Fridays Lecture and Saturdays luncheon. I had originally planned to attend the
ABA ADR Conference. I attended for
one day and learned so very much.
However, learning on a grand scale, while wonderful for networking and
information gathering (and overload) it cannot compare to learning on an
individual scale which provides insight into who you are and how you can bring
a better you to the conflict.
Thanks go to Dr. Susan Gamache for a wonderful event in which time
flew. It is difficult to enjoy taking
tests that reveal your personality traits. Bravery was on tap for all,
including Susan. I look forward to continuing to acknowledge my personality
traits and work toward using them in a way that will fulfill my needs as a
mediator/collaborative professional and the needs of my clients.
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