Divorce Mediation Training

1. Do you want a fulfilling career with nearly unlimited potential?

2. Do you want to help people?

3. Do you want to add a new aspect to an already successful career?

4. Are you tired of doing the same old work every day?

If you answered "Yes" to even one of these questions, then this seminar is for you.

You can practice a challenging and lucrative profession while you help divorcing clients plan for their futures.

Mediators help divorcing couples divorce more amicably. In 40 hours, you will learn the essential skills of divorce mediation as well as the procedures necessary to lead a divorcing couple to a win-win agreement.

Use the communication skills you have developed as you step into the role of mediator. Add even more skills to make you effective in this exciting occupation. You will learn to:

• Lower the level of conflict;

• Find what drives durable agreements;

• Help couples settle financial matters;

• Assist parents in continuing the

important relationship with their children.

We’ll make learning easy, with a step-by-step approach that takes you from the initial meeting with new clients to the final court date. You will learn how to help couples negotiate the legal and emotional aspects of their divorce, while continuing to attend to the task of negotiating a mutually agreeable and legally binding agreement.

You’ll get lots of practice. We will demonstrate each part of a mediation, give you lots of opportunities to role-play, and be there to provide individual assistance.

! How to demonstrate neutrality from the very first contact.

! How to build and maintain rapport with both parties in the mediation.

! Introducing your clients to the mediation process.

! Helping your clients increase the number of options.

! Identifying underlying interests.

! Building from small agreements.

! Setting an agenda for discussion.

! Identify and focus on common goals.

! What you need to know about divorce: grounds, division of property, spousal maintenance (alimony), custody and visitation, emotional divorce vs. legal divorce.

! Clarifying clients’ hopes and demands, using the NLP Meta-Model.

! Demonstrating respect through careful listening.

! Creating detailed parenting plans.

! Reviewing clients’ financial information as you help them plan for the future.

! How to discover each party’s criteria for a satisfactory agreement.

! How to recognize and use clients’ Meta-Programs to help them find solutions that will fit.

! How to deal differently with people who are motivated to get away from a bad situation and those who are motivated by the things they want.

! How to help clients who are motivated by internal standards and those who are motivated by the opinions of others.

! Knowing whether a client is motivated by having lots of options or if they will be more comfortable understanding and following a procedure.

! Dealing with clients who prefer to focus on money and things, as well as those who focus on people and experiences.

! How to recognize whether clients have rules for how they or others should behave.

! Discovering what each client needs to be convinced, and how to help them find the evidence they need.

! Empowering the weaker client.

! Assessing negotiating flexibility.

! Using Sleight-of-Mouth to help clients increase their negotiating flexibility.

! Recognizing our own biases.

! Hearing out each client on every issue.

! Using Perceptual Positions (Self, Other, Observer) to maintain your balance and to help clients maintain theirs.

! Reframing the meaning of each client’s demands or complaints.

! Interrupting unacceptable behavior.

! Using outside experts to create smarter, more complete, and more durable agreements.

! How to collect and organize the information about the family and the decisions they are making.

! Drafting a mediated agreement.

! Preparing your clients to go to court.

! Recognizing domestic violence.

! Setting up a mediation practice.

! Marketing your practice.

! Developing your marketing plan.

! Preparing for your first clients.

! Working with difficult couples

! 40 hours of instruction and practice (6 days of training);

! Lunch each day;

! A training notebook full of useful information to get you started as a mediator;

! A copy of the Common Sense Mediation client notebook;

! Client handouts in electronic (text) form for your customization and use, either on an IBM diskette or via email (your choice);

! A Training Certificate, suitable for framing.

Most students at divorce mediation training programs are either attorneys or therapists who are looking for ways to expand their practice into more rewarding avenues, where they will get more job satisfaction and increase their income. Others with an interest in conflict resolution are also welcome.

NLP Practitioner Certification or NLP Skills for Mediators.

9:00 to 5:00 each day

$1,195  ($1,095 if paid by June 20)

$100 per person discount if you are signing up as a team.

Location: Holiday Inn, 5300 W Touhy, Skokie, Illinois. The hotel’s telephone number is (847) 679-8900. Mention the NLP Institute of Chicago to get the corporate room rate (about $95)

Virginia Brubaker & Gail Schiesser have been practicing divorce mediation as a team since 1994. Virginia is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor. Gail is an Attorney. They have been teaching communication skills together since the early 90's.

Partner, Common Sense Mediation

Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor

National Certified Counselor

President, NLP Institute of Chicago

Trainer in NLP, professional practice, and ethics

Certified Master Practitioner of NLP

M.A. in Counseling, Northeastern Illinois University

B.A. in Humanities, Michigan State University 

Partner, Common Sense Mediation

Attorney licensed and practicing in Illinois

Director, NLP Institute of Chicago

Trainer in NLP, professional practice, and language patterns Certified Master Practitioner of NLP

Certified Consultant and Trainer of the Language and Behavior (LAB) Profile

J.D., Chicago-Kent College of Law

B.S. in Writing and Political Science, MacMurray College 

Member: Academy of Family Mediators, Illinois State Bar Association, Chicago Bar Association, Family Law Section of ISBA, Real Property Section of ISBA

Common Sense Mediation is the name of Gail and Virginia’s mediation practice. Mediation provides a way to avoid the cost and emotional turmoil of litigation and to reach agreements that work for the parties involved.

Gail and Virginia work as a team, with both of them sitting down at the mediation table with all parties to the dispute. They find that working with a partner is a great help in reaching good, durable agreements more quickly.

Read more about their services: www.nlpchicago.com/mediate

If you are interested in using mediation to reach a divorce settlement, custody agreement, or to resolve another dispute, please call for more information.