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Tag: Diplomacy (Page 1 of 2)

How empathy shapes outcomes of diplomatic negotiations

20/06/2018 /

Why do some peace summits succeed while other fails? In this work of Marcus Holmes and Keren Yahri-Milo, the authors highlight the importance of empathy between leaders. In fact, they first demonstrate that numerous findings suggest that empathy—the ability to understand the cognitive and affective states of others without necessarily sympathizing with them—is required for overcoming long-standing hostilities.

In this regard, they significantly report the words of the UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold: “you can only hope to find a lasting solution to a conflict if you have learned to see the other objectively, but, at the same time, to experience his difficulties subjectively”.

Hence, demonstrating empathy to your adversary is not a signal of weakness or vulnerability but a demonstration that you are negotiating in good-faith.

You can read more about this issue here

 

Image source: Yuriy Somov – Wikimedia Commons

Smart power + Diplomacy = Smart Diplomacy?

15/02/2017 /

During the last decade, Professor Joseph S. Nye introduced and developed the concept of Smart Power as a combination of coercive and soft power to achieve goals in international relations, arguing that neither soft nor hard power alone could produce effective foreign policy.

A few years later, under the Obama administration, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton popularized smart power and defined it as choosing the right combination of tools – diplomatic, economic, political, legal, and cultural – for a particular situation.

In this article, Younes El Ghazi advocates for the concept of Smart Diplomacy as the practice of smart power beyond traditional diplomacy, identifying as well the three critical pillars that could grant effectiveness to this new paradigm: Digital Capabilities, Multi-Stakeholder Diplomacy and Feminist Diplomacy.

smart-diplomacy

Image source: Pixabay – geralt (Public domain)

 

 

 

Introverts and diplomacy: a possible marriage?

13/09/2016 /

The principle behind the art of public diplomacy is not new: in order to advance your goals you need to engage, listen, discuss, persuade and ultimately influence others.
Now, if all this is true, is there a chance for introverts to be good diplomats?

In this TED Susan Cain suggests a very interesting answer.

First of all, she explains what introversion is. She argues that Western culture misunderstands and undervalues the traits and capabilities of introverted people although some of our leaders in history have been introverts: Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, and Gandhi.

Nowadays, according to Cain, we entered a new culture that historians call the culture of personality and introverts are pressured to act like extroverts instead of embracing their serious, often quiet and reflective style.

In our workplace when we think to leadership, introverts are routinely passed over for leadership positions, even though introverts tend to be very careful, much less likely to take outsize risks and introverted leaders often deliver better outcomes than extroverts do. Introverts tend to be more empathetic, modest, deep-thinking and innovative.

Cain is not seeking introvert domination but a better balance and inclusion of different work styles, acknowledging that big ideas and great leadership can come from either personality type.

Introvert

Image source: Flickr – Bill Strain (CC BY 2.0)

 

 

15 diplomacy strategies for negotiations

10/03/2016 /

The word diplomacy often invokes power and intrigues. Nonetheless, diplomats deal with the world’s biggest problems. Although people have often the impression that diplomacy does little for the wealth of the world, the world would be worse without it.

In this article Anna Mar, underlining the role of diplomacy in the relations among countries, suggests to use diplomatic techniques and strategies in everyday business negotiations.

She points out 15 diplomatic strategies that can be used:

  1. Use an advocate (Shutter diplomacy)
  2. Superrationality
  3. Use of objective criteria
  4. Tit for tat
  5. Buy time
  6. Ignore imposed constraints
  7. Name the trick
  8. Call bluffs
  9. Build golden bridges
  10. Avoid escalation
  11. Anchoring
  12. Make your ideas seem their ideas
  13. Never allow your opponent to lose face
  14. Code words and politeness
  15. Set uo your opponent’s victory speech

To read more about these strategies, click here

Diplomacy strategies

Image source: Flickr – Immaginario diplomatico (CC – BY – NC – ND 2.0)

How jet lag hurts diplomats

03/03/2016 /

Jet lag is a pain for every traveler. For diplomats and leaders it can be a killer.  The effects of jet lag can impair leaders, diplomats and the negotiations they are engaged in.

In this article, published by The Washingotn Post, Dan Caldwell and William G. Hocking give us some examples of well-known leaders who suffered from the effects of jet lag.

This is the story of Secretary of State J.F.Dulles. In 1956 he agreed to provide Egypt with economic aid to build the Aswan dam. After a long return flight to the USA, he found out that Egypt had bought weapons from the Soviet Union. Therefore, he immediately decided to cancel the agreement just signed. Years later, Dulles regretted this decision and affirmed that it was due to the effects of jet lag.

The article indicates other anectodes involving leaders such as J. H.W. Bush, H. Kissinger, H. Clinton.

Possible strategies to cope with jet lag are the use of melatonin, a substance that helps sinchronysing the cyrcadian system, or the use of sleeping pills, as many leaders admit to do.

Another alternative for the Gouvernments could be the return to residential diplomacy, that means relying more on their diplomats posted in the foreign countries.

Read here the full article

Jet.Lag

Image source: commons.wikimedia.org

Music and diplomacy

29/10/2015 /

Music and diplomacy are deeply interrelated. The volume “Music and diplomacy from the Early Modern Era to the present” deals with all the aspects of diplomacy which are connected to music, from the thoretical, philosophic or practical prespectives. Concepts, terminology, practices and institutions of the music shape the world of diplomacy. For instance, “to act in concert”, “improvisation” are terms which remind us both the world of the music and the world of diplomacy. In addition, music has always contributed to promote intercultural exchange and to build positive international relations. Rebeka Harendt, Mark Ferraguto and Damien Mahiet gathered sixteen international scholars with different backgrounds to discuss all these aspects.

Here you can find the introduction to this volume

Music and diplomacy

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