Academy of Professional Family Mediators Launch

I am pleased to announce the launch of a new national organization called The Academy of Professional Family Mediators (APFM). I am not only a founding member, but also a founding Board member, as well as a contributing columnist to our quarterly newsletter.

Below is the article that I wrote for the inaugural edition. I’m also going to include the link to the newsletter itself for those of you would like to see what we are up to or what the organization is all about.

Mojo Marketing & Management

“The Business of Your Practice”

By: Ada L. Hasloecher

Welcome to the inaugural issue of the APFM Newsletter! As a founding board member, I am thrilled to be part of the launch of our new organization. I believe it could not have come at a more prescient time for our culture and community. As mediators, we know that it does indeed “take a village” and as such, are truly a motivating force towards that ideal. We are heartened by your response to our new organization and glad that you are joining us as we re-cast that wide net across the world and gather our forces to the greater good.

This column will be dedicated to the “business of your practice” and I am delighted that I have been tapped to be your guide. It was only nine years ago this spring that I walked into the 40 hour basic training for family and divorce mediation and realized that everything in my life had led me to that exact moment. I threw myself mind, body and soul into becoming the best family mediator I could ever hope to be – a path I continue to walk with humbleness and gratitude for having been given the opportunity to carry out this important and extremely satisfying work. I started my practice with zeal and zero clients! However, I soon figured out, through trial and error, what works and what doesn’t work to build and maintain a thriving practice.

I have devoted myself to getting the word out about mediation and have helped many of my colleagues grow and develop their own practices. Along the way, my associates have shared with me the “blocks” that prevent them from growing their practices, their fears about networking; their best laid plans of mice and men . . . and their dashed intentions. What they have revealed has fascinated me and I’ve been developing some ideas and theories around that which I will share in this column.

I’ll also share my own success and disaster stories as together, we shed some light on the business issues that stymie us, confound us, or just plain terrify us, and prevent us from really “getting out there.”

I titled this column “Mojo” Marketing and Management because mojo has such an interesting connotation. Traditionally, it was known as a magical charm bag – a bag of tricks, if you will. Its modern definition and interpretation has come to mean: “self-confidence, self-assuredness, as in basis for belief in one’s self in a situation.”

We all need that little bag of tricks from time to time. Don’t we dip into it when we are working with a rather challenging client? The same is true when we find ourselves confronted with the challenges of managing ourselves in the ebb and flow of our own businesses.

There are two aspects to the work we do: First there is the process of the mediation itself. And then there is the business of marketing and managing our practices. This column will concentrate on the latter and the very practical application of what this means and how to actually realize it. Both the process of mediating and the process of tending to the business of our practice often require different parts of ourselves and perhaps, one could say, even conflicting parts. Given that we are all in the “conflict” game – we really shouldn’t have too much trouble dealing with our own conflict, right?  Uh-huh.

For example:  How many of us know that we need to lose a few pounds? And how many of us know a good diet, exercise regime, etc. etc. to help us achieve that goal? And yet despite knowing all of that, how many of us are actually losing the weight and keeping it off? Yep, that’s what I thought! Unfortunately, we all know that it doesn’t necessarily translate that we will take effective action on what we know. What I’m interested in exploring as part of this series is that mysterious space between “knowing” and “doing” and tease that little rascal out!

Whether an introvert or an extrovert, who you are while you are the third party neutral in the room with your clients may feel like a different “you” than the one who is faced with an impending networking event, speaking engagement or request to write an article for the local newspaper. Even an extrovert may find themselves backtracking from a commitment due to some unknowable, inexplicable reason. Getting to the core of that enigma is what I plan to investigate, dissect and ultimately reveal. For I believe it is in THAT revelation that the possibility of change in perspective, action, and results can occur.

So no matter where you are on the introvert/extrovert spectrum; what you are trying to accomplish with your practice or what your business goals may be, I invite you to take this ride with me.   We’ll get there together as I share our stories and your feedback. We will explore ideas, search for insights and share a few good laughs along the way. So buckle your seatbelts and join me as I tackle the roadblocks, fast tracks and everything in between.  All are welcome – even the backseat drivers!

Academy of Professional Family Mediators

The APFM Newsletter

If you know anyone who would be interested in reading this blog, do not hesitate to forward it. Please feel free to use the Comments Box below to ask any questions, to comment, or to request more information.