• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Top Bar Section

Contact Info
212-462-4050 Contact
Family Mediation PLLC
Law Office of Ellie Wertheim
  • Mediation & Legal Services
    • Divorce Mediation
    • Family Mediation
    • Prenuptial Agreements
    • Post-Divorce Mediation
    • Negotiated Settlements
    • Professional and Academic Programs
  • FAQ
  • About Ellie
  • News & Press
  • Blog
  • Contact

How We Mediators Learn to Listen

Monday, January 22nd, 2018

Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer award winning author of The Sympathizer, wrote in yesterday’s New York Times about the value of listening.  He relates to how parents are role models for children and how he personally, has quieted down his online life in order to connect more deeply in the real world in front of him.  Most relevant to mediation, Nguyen talks about the value of listening deeply to those with whom we disagree.  It is a beautiful piece that resonates — that teaches us what it means to connect deeply to others by listening and wanting to understand.  Such is the challenge to parties in mediation, whether addressing the terms of their divorce, financially and as parents, or other manner of family conflict. He concludes: “I want to reach out to people who are different than me, as we all must. I want to listen to strangers and I continue to listen to my son, knowing that if I do not listen to him, he will not listen to me.

That is true for all of us. Not everyone will listen, caught up in the noise, but enough might. Those who do not listen will never know what those who listen do: that it is the listening itself that matters, that listening is what connects us to others, and ourselves.”

Link to the full essay here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/20/opinion/sunday/what-ive-learned-from-my-4-year-old.html

Filed Under: Blogs

Primary Sidebar

News & Press

  • Tackle Communication Challenges To Achieve Understanding
  • Presumptive ADR: A Sea Change for Litigants and Practitioners
  • Can a Robot Mediator Really Provide a Win-Win Result? From the NYLJ April 9, 2019
  • Most Expensive and Simple Divorce
  • Addressing Human Rights Violations With Mediation
  • Campus Sexual Assault and Mediation?
  • Decision Making in Mediation
  • A Brief Summary of Biases for Mediators to Note
  • Ask the Mediators: Power Imbalances
  • Sibling Relationships and Mediation
What Our Clients Say...

Footer Testimonials Section

Random Slideshow

G.R., Brooklyn, New York

“Thank you both for all your help and hard work. You made a difficult process bearable. Thank you both for listening to me, understanding and then telling me what I needed to hear and know.”

–G.R., Brooklyn, New York

A.T., New York, New York

“Without reservation, I highly recommend Abby and Ellie. They are seasoned professionals whose legal expertise and unique co-mediation teamwork model, coupled with a humanistic approach, was effective in bringing a difficult situation to an amicable conclusion.”

–A.T., New York, New York

J.D., Queens, New York

“I can’t imagine two mediators with more integrity and impartiality. They guided us through the difficult process of divorce with incredible knowledge, empathy, and honesty. Because of them, we established a neutral dialogue that has continued to this day. I am deeply grateful to Family Mediation.”

–J.D., Queens, New York

M.B., New York, New York

“I cannot recommend Abby and Ellie from Family Mediation highly enough. These two attorneys are humanistic and effective practitioners of family law. They will help you and your spouse work through any problems that may arise. They are wise and experienced and most of all, they are decent human beings who really care about their clients.”

–M.B., New York, New York

C.A., Manhattan

“Ellie and Abby were able to help resolve a conflict that had seemed irreconcilable after months of efforts by other professionals. Their deep empathy combined with legal expertise gave me the confidence I needed to withstand the most stressful challenge of my life. Their commitment to achieve optimal results went far above and beyond all my expectations.”

–C.A., Manhattan

Footer Main Section

Contact Info
Family Mediation PLLC
270 West 17th Street
Suite 6-i
New York, NY 10011

P: 212-462-4050
F: 212-944-1497
Email: nyfamilymediation@gmail.com
Map
270 West 17th Street, Suite 6-i, New York, NY 10011
Button
Find out if divorce mediation is right for you. Interested couples receive a free, one-hour consultation.

Free Consultation
Privacy   |   Website Design by Team of Horses   |   ©2005-2023 Family Mediation PLLC - Law Office of Ellie Wertheim