Customer Reviews

Mediation Career Guide: A Strategic Approach to Building a Successful Practice

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Forrest Mosten has written what must be the definitive book for those who are considering or might consider a career in mediation.

I have known the author since 1970, when he was a law student working part time for me in the foreign student office at UCLA. Even then he was thinking about how he might incorporate his strong social conscience into the practice of law. Ten years later he found his answer when he committed himself to becoming a professional mediator. For Mosten, mediation is more than an efficient means of resolving disputes, it is a way to work as a peacemaker at the person-to-person level. It provides its practitioners who are attorneys with an alternative to the adversarial nature of the legal system, which weighs heavily on many lawyers. Of course it provides the same benefit for clients. He makes his point about mediation as a peace effort dramatically in chapter one, where he states "...don't jump into a growing but still uncertain field like mediation unless you eat, breath and dream about creating peace and resolving conflict and are willing to risk everything to make it happen".

In addition to maintaining a highly successful mediation practice in Los Angeles, Mosten trains future mediators and he has established a nation-wide network of mediation centers. He also is the author of three previous books on mediation.

The author's purpose in writing the book is stated in the first paragraph of the preface, where he says "It was an uphill climb to build my mediation practice. This book is my effort to help you avoid many of the costly mistakes I made along the way".

The book is organized into three parts, each with several chapters, followed by nine appendices. In the first part, "Is Mediation right for You?", he covers the question of what it takes to be a mediator, such as being a good listener, patient, tolerant and neutral, flexible, and empathic, among other traits. In the chapter on "Education and Training", he discusses the question of non-lawyers as mediators. Mosten admits that lawyers have certain advantages, but he lists other fields which often provide a good background, such as therapists, business persons, teachers and clergy. Whether they come from the law or other fields, he states, extensive training in mediation will be required. Here Mosten goes into some depth on this subject which is dear to his heart because he wants "...mediation to be the first stop on the conflict resolution highway", which means having "...enough trained and experienced mediators available to meet this need".

Part Two, "Building Your Career as a Mediator" deals with the creation of a mediation signature, which includes advice on writing vision and mission statements to distinguish your particular practice. He also advocates having a board of directors to help with these tasks and to provide a sounding board along the way which he had earlier described as an informal group of persons whose judgment you trust. (He might more accurately have called them a "board of advisors). Another chapter, "Creating a Mediation-Friendly Environment", gets down to reading materials and arrangement of the reception room. Most important, he introduces the idea of the client library, described as a consumer-friendly collection of books, video tapes and other resources which will help clients learn what they need to help solve their own problems. This concept is related to Mosten's preference for informed client consent, and he reports that his library is well used by his clients.

Part Three is "The Nuts and Bolts of Private Practice", which covers topics such as finding a place to practice, naming your practice, forming strategic partnerships and networks. With respect to networks, he uses his own Mosten Mediation Centers as an illustrative model, in which he has established local mediators around the country as subcontractors. In the chapter entitled "Strategic Planning and Investing in Yourself", he gets very specific about the time and money required to establish a mediation practice, including a breakdown of out -of-pocket costs which add up to $57,000 over a five-year period.

Even though he has stated his desire to see a great increase in the number of practicing mediators, Mosten in no way sugarcoats the obstacles and challenges facing anyone who plans to enter the field. His candor, at times, would almost seem to discourage, but at least anyone who has read the book would enter the field fully warned. More important they will have read a well integrated combination of philosophy and nuts and bolts, each supporting the other.

This is a critical book for those contemplating a career in mediation, it is a useful book for anyone contemplating using the services of a mediator, and it is an interesting book for those who are attracted by the concept of mediation as a force for more peaceful interpersonal relations.

I usually wait a little longer than this to write a review of a book, but I'm thoroughly pleased and excited by this one.

Forrest "Woody" Mosten will be familiar to most readers of this page, so I'll just mention that he's been a professional mediator for more than two decades and has written other books on this subject. In the present volume, he provides something new: a thorough, beginning-to-end nuts-and-bolts overview of what's involved in making mediation your regular job. (So far as I know, the only book even remotely comparable is Mosten's own earlier "complete" volume on the practice of mediation.)

And since that's exactly what I'm interested in doing, I'm pleased to say that less than twenty-four hours after receiving the book, I'm _already_ a thousand per cent better informed about what it takes to build a career in mediation.

Mosten starts at the very beginning. After a short introduction explaining how he moved into mediation himself and found it more consonant with his core values than the ordinary practice of law, he puts his readers through a few chapters of self-analysis to help us determine whether mediation might be right for us, too. (And I'm happy to say that I'm now even more firmly convinced that I'm going into what is, for me, the right field.)

Then there's plenty of good advice about how to prepare for such a career, including the all-important question: should you go to law school? All of Mosten's discussions are finely nuanced, with carefully balanced summaries of the factors weighing on each side; the one about law school is especially so. (I'm currently in an evening law school program myself, at the tender age of 38, and I would certainly caution would-be mediators to consider carefully whether such a rigorous program is necessary to their practice. I wish Mosten had also addressed the separate question of what factors tell in favor of and against actually taking the bar exam, but since I plan to take it anyway, it's not a burning issue for me personally.)

There's also an excellent chapter on the sorts of job available to mediators -- in, e.g., government, nonprofit enterprises, and other areas. A private mediation practice is presented as one alternative among others, and Mosten doesn't pull any punches in his discussion of what's involved in running your own mediation business; he says to expect it to be tough for the first few years if you go that route.

The rest of the book is devoted to developing and marketing oneself as a mediator. I won't even try to summarize this wideranging and thorough discussion (especially since, so far, I've only skimmed it myself!). I'll just remark that, in general, this is a wonderfully well-written and highly readable work of expository prose, packed with solid advice and plenty of information from one of the world's most experienced mediators.

(The bibliographic references are also excellent, though I didn't notice any surprises; some, most, or all of them may already be in your home mediation library. But it's nice to have Mosten's specific recommendations, and he's caused me to shift some things around on my to-buy list.)

If you're remotely interested in a career in mediation, or even in working in the field part-time, you'll find _lots_ of useful information in this book. I recommend that you add it to your own to-buy list -- _very_ near the top. I don't think anything like it has been published in this field before.

Dear fellow mediators or anyone looking into the mediation profession:

Mosten's book, Mediation Career Guide, is just the book I was looking for to strategically guide me through deciding whether to go into mediation as a profession. The book is well organized and can be read cover to cover or as a reference guide. Some of the key parts of the book are 1) Deciding if Mediation is Right for You and 2) Building Your Career as a Mediator.

The chapter on deciding whether to get your law degree or not for mediation was an especially important chapter for me. I completed one year of law school and then decided to re-evaluate my J.D. path. I enrolled in SMU's Dispute Resolution program to help with my decision. Mosten's book is the only mediation book that directly dealt with the J.D. dilemma. The chapter did not tell me what to do or what Mosten thinks is best. Instead, the chapter asked certain questions about my background to see whether a J.D. is a good choice or not.

Mosten's book is a MUST HAVE if you are deciding whether the mediation profession is right for you and how to build a mediation practice.

Thank you Forrest (Woody) Mosten for this book and all of your contributions to the peace-making profession!

Roseanne Pierre

It is one thing to learn how to mediate, it is another to learn how to start your business as a mediator. This book focuses on the second task. I found that this book contains good, practical advice for analyzing your own abilities as a mediator and setting up your practice. It even talks about how to establish the physical environment of your office. Combine this with Allan H. Goodman's new, second edition of Basic Skills for the New Mediator, and you should be ready to hang out your shingle.

This book is one of the most helpful and insightful books that I have read. If you are thinking of, or already are, a mediator, this book is full of great information, ideas, and helpful hints.
This book is an easy read, you could read it in one evening and then be on your way to implement the things that you have learned.

I am just beginning my mediation practice. This book stays with me all day. It gives practical advice, plus deals with the emotional issues attached with such a leap of faith that is required for entering this field. I highy recommend this to everyone!

This was a great book. I couldn't put it down. Although, if you are looking for a book to tell you about how to be a mediator, this is not the one. This one just does an awesome job at guiding you through the choices of Mediation as a career.

If you want a book that actually goes through the intimate steps of mediation and strategies specific to performing the family mediation process itself, you should take a look at "The Fundamentals of Family Mediation" by John M. Haynes. It actually walks you through intake and strategies to conducting the actual sessions themselves.

Anyway, this book was great from the business standpoint. Very straight forward as far as how to try to build and maintain a successful mediation career/business.

Good read ;0)

J

The Mediation Career Guide is THE first step if you're considering becoming a mediator. It takes you through all of the tough questions you should ask yourself before making a final decision and really helps clarify your thought process. There are also great tips on opening a practice. Forrest Mosten is one of the top mediation trainers in the country, and I suspect, the world. When I took his mediation training in 2000 I quickly knew that mediation was the career for me. I only wish he'd written this book earlier and my transition from law to mediation practice would have been much smoother. Truly a "must by" for aspiring mediators and those who wish to open a practice.

I have a Master's degree in Conflict Resolution (more precisely a Master's degree in a Conflict Resolution Program). This was one of the books in the curriculum. It is a start if you have no clue how to set up a business model (any business model), but if you are looking for the how's to get into mediation, this is not much. The references are dated and the author tries to lead you down the path of setting up a business, which could be most any service business, but fails (in my opinion) to take you where you should be able to go, especially in the field of mediation.
When reading a book or paper, I try and discern the writer's target audience. In this case the target audience is anyone willing to part with their money. Better to find a copy at a library or find people in the mediation business and ask if you can borrow their copy. It will be dusty and relatively unused.
Why two stars and not just one? because it does have some information, just not enough to justify purchasing.
A word of warning, though it may no longer be applicable, when friends in the profession contacted the author for various reasons, he was very anxious to get them to work for him (for a percentage of their fees).
My suggestion would be to get familiar with classics like "Mediating Dangerously", "Leadership and the New Science", etc. Hone your skills (though probably in a volunteer situation) and then you can have a "career".

This was my first book on the topic of mediation as a career and I have to say I feel it was the perfect place to start. It presents a good overview of the thoughts and questions I had formulated in my mind as well as many I had not thought of. Looking forward to reading more of Mr. Mosten's books.