by Margaret Anderson | May 1, 2013 | Blog
A reader of both my blog and my book, Bridges to Consensus, inspired me to adapt this blog article from one of the sample dialogues in the book. Like many of the sample dialogues, Dialogue 6 revolves around the following scenario: Fran, a hard-working volunteer, has...
by Margaret Anderson | Apr 25, 2013 | Blog
What do you say when you don’t know what to say? Someone catches you off guard with a question you don’t know how to answer, an incredible statement, or an insult. You’re stumped, flabbergasted, or angry. The first thing to say in that initial confused, emotional...
by Margaret Anderson | Apr 17, 2013 | Blog
Would you like to motivate someone such as an employee, student or child? You’re probably not surprised to learn that praise helps. According to an article in Psychology Today[1], we feel as good when praised as when given monetary rewards. But, you can bump...
by Margaret Anderson | Apr 10, 2013 | Blog
A recent article in Psychology Today[1] validates my Silver Rule of Consensus, “Avoid making other people wrong.” The particular form of wrong making addressed in the PT article is criticism. Author Mary Loftus states, “There is mounting evidence that criticism can be...
by Margaret Anderson | Apr 3, 2013 | Blog
[This article is adapted from a program I presented for Women’s History Month, March 2013.] My job is training people in what, for church groups, I call consensus building skills. But I’m going to let you in on a little secret. These are the same skills...
by Margaret Anderson | Mar 27, 2013 | Blog
As many of you know, I am a great proponent of positive terminology. While we must sometimes view things negatively in order to identify a problem to be solved, I prefer, thereafter, to speak about the positive opposite we wish to gain. For example, instead of “war on...
