Diplo Learning Corner

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Month: May 2013 (Page 1 of 2)

Diplomat 2.0: a winning mix

30/05/2013 /

In his TEDx talk, Stefano Baldi explains how being a diplomat today is a mix of tradition and innovation. In the era of web 2.0, currently characterized by Social Media, diplomats are challenged by constantly evolving ways of communication. He argues why an adequate and continuous training will empower the diplomat of the XXI century, the Diplomat 2.0, to be still an essential and irreplaceable resource for the country he/she represents.

Stefano Baldi is an Italian career diplomat with a lifelong commitment to innovation and creativity applied to diplomatic activities. Now that he is the head of the Training structure of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he is particularly engaged in emphasizing and experimenting with shaping the role of the XXI century diplomat.

How to do the impossible

23/05/2013 /

“It always seems impossible until its done.” – Nelson Mandela

What does impossible really mean? Is anything truly impossible?

These are things that obviously aren’t impossible, but because either:

  1. So many people have tried and failed, or
  2. No one is brave enough to give it a shot,

they inherit the label “impossible.”

There’s the problem. And the solution, believe it or not, isn’t all that complicated…

http://advancedriskology.com/how-to-do-impossible/

Business Blogs

22/05/2013 /

In the early days, the blogs (WEB LOG) were nothing but a form of a personal diary or journal available on the web. As the Internet evolved, so did the blog; making it a very powerful medium through which you could get your voice heard.

The book, Business Blog, freely downloadable at Bookboon.com, describes why blogs are an important business tool and how blogs can add value to any business in terms of branding, credibility, achieving goals for the company, driving targeted traffic to generate inbound leads and getting conversions in a very cheap and effective manner.business-blogs

   Bookboon provides a collection of valuable free ebooks for professionals

image surce http:http://goo.gl/n6zHk

4 principles for “Getting to Yes”

21/05/2013 /

In their book “Getting to Yes”, Roger Fisher and William Ury develop four principles of negotiation, which can be used effectively on almost any type of dispute.

The four principles are:

1) separate the people from the problem;
2) focus on interests rather than positions;
3) generate a variety of options before settling on an agreement;
4) insist that the agreement be based on objective criteria.

Read more on http://www.negotiations.com/book-reviews/getting-to-yes/ or http://www.colorado.edu/conflict/peace/example/fish7513.htm

Generate Fresh Ideas

18/05/2013 /

Italian folklorists tell the story of three workers cutting stones in the hot sun. When the first was asked what he was doing, he replied, “I am chipping these stones to make them just the right size.” The second replied, “I am earning my wages.” To the same question the third replied: “I am building a cathedral.”

business-success-287x300

image source http://goo.gl/YXhbU

Get Ready to Negotiate: the Seven Elements (Tool #2)

16/05/2013 /

Last week, it was stressed the importance of getting ready before starting a negotiation (link al post precedente). A specific tool, the Four Quadrants, was introduced in order to help negotiators think systematically and collect the right information beforehand. Today, a second tool, the Seven Elements, is introduced. For more information on these tools please check the book Beyond Machiavelli of Fisher, Kopelman, and Kupfer Schneider .

According to the authors, most of the Seven Elements “were originally introduced as a way of explaining the different components of negotiation, but subsequent experience has proven their usefulness as a preparation tool in any situation where persuasiveness may be demanded.” Therefore, before sitting at the negotiating table try and fill out as carefully as possible each of the items in the chart below.

SEVEN ELEMENTS OF A CONFLICT SITUATION
Interests

Have the parties explicitly understood their own interests?
Do the parties understand each other’s priorities and constraints?
Options

Are sufficient options being generated?
Is the process of inventing separated from the process of making commitments?
Legitimacy

Have relevant precedents and other outside standards of fairness been considered?
Can principles be found that are persuasive to the other side? To us?
Relationship

What is the ability of the parties to work together?
Is there a working relationship between their negotiators?
Are the parties paying attention to the kind of relationship they want in the future?
Communication

Is the way the parties communicate helping or interfering with their ability to deal constructively with the conflict?
Are mechanisms in place to confirm that what is understood is in fact what was intended?
Commitment

Are potential commitments well-crafted?
Does each party know what it would like the other party to agree to?
If the other side said yes, is it clear who would do what tomorrow morning?
Alternatives

Does each side understand its Best Alternative to Negotiated Agreement – its BATNA?
Are the negative consequences of not settling being used to bring the parties together?

How to be Happy

14/05/2013 /

In this TED talk, statistician Nic Marks, founder of the Centre for Well-Being at the UK think tank New Economics Foundation, paints a positive picture of the future where it could be possible to lead happier lives while preserving our planet, introducing the Happy Planet Index.

He also suggests five remarkable actions that each of us can do to improve wellbeing, based on research and studies:

–          Connect
–          Be Active
–          Take Notice
–          Keep Learning
–          Give

Could this be the recipe for happier (and more productive) nations without costing the Earth?

Get Ready to Negotiate: the Four Quadrants (tool #1)

09/05/2013 /

It is often said that a good negotiator is the one who is capable of turning a win-lose situation into a win-win situation. The only way to do so is generating fresh ideas and options which could at least partially satisfy the interests of the parties. However, reaching this goal is extremely difficult, for negotiations are usually characterized by objective (e.g., time constraints, difficult procedures) and subjective (e.g., strong feelings and emotions, misperceptions) obstacles. In order to overcome these obstacles, it is of the utmost importance to get ready for the negotiation. In this post, and in another one that will be online next week/tomorrow, two tools are introduced. They are taken from a great book, Beyond Machiavelli, written by Roger Fisher (founder of the Harvard Negotiation Project and co-author of Getting to Yes), Elizabeth Kopelman, and Andrea Kupfer Schneider. Check it out on Amazon to have more information on the negotiation tools, on how to use them, and on many other interesting ideas they put forth.

The first tool is the Four Quadrants. Before sitting at the negotiating table, try and think analytically and go through with the four categories shown in the chart below. According to the authors of Beyond Machiavelli, “a Four-Quadrant Analysis encourages systematic yet creative problem-solving.”

A four-quadrant analysis for problem-solving
Quadrant I Quadrant II Quadrant III Quadrant IV
What is wrong?

Perceptions of:
– disliked symptoms;
– a preferred situation;
and the gap between them.

 General Diagnoses

Possible reasons why the problem hasn’t been resolved or the conflict settled.

Possible causes (about which somebody could do something) of the gap in Quadrant I.

 General Approaches

Possible strategies for overcoming the identified diagnoses.

 Action Ideas

Ideas about who might do what tomorrow to put a general approach into action.
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