Welcome to the SCMA Book Club Page!

Are you passionate about mediation and eager to expand your horizons? The SCMA Book Club page is dedicated to exploring the world of mediation through carefully selected books. Whether you're a seasoned mediator or just starting your journey, our book club offers a fantastic opportunity to delve into insightful readings that foster both personal and professional development.

Suggest a Book: Have a book in mind that you'd love to explore? We welcome your suggestions and are always looking for new ideas to keep our reading list dynamic and engaging. Email us at [email protected]. 

Happy Reading! 

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OCTOBER BOOK OF THE MONTH

Positively Conflicted: Engaging with Courage, Compassion, and Wisdom in a Combative World by Sam Ardery

Most of us have a messy relationship with conflict. When confronted with it, our fight-or-flight response kicks in and we either rush into battle or back away. By defaulting to one of these options, however, we risk damaging ties to people we care about, opening ourselves up to future retaliation, or allowing resentments to fester.

Positively Conflicted invites us to reexamine our instinctive and often destructive reactions to conflict. With decades of experience in mediation, Sam Ardery doesn’t offer advice on how to win every fight, nor does he promise a one-size-fits-all solution to complex issues that defy them. Instead, he presents a different perspective—one that enables us to engage with conflict in novel and courageous ways. Readers will learn to:

• Reconsider preconceived notions about fairness
• Listen—really listen
• Respond in counterintuitive ways
• Self-advocate without being combative

Full of stories from the author’s own life and the mediations he’s facilitated, Positively Conflicted shows us how conflict can be productive—even nourishing—when approached with curiosity, kindness, and openness.

Sam Ardery lives in the Midwest with his wife, Patty, and their Boston terrier, Ernie Pyle. Their house backs up to an elementary schoolyard that allows them to enjoy the playful sounds of children each day. A partner in the law firm Bunger & Robertson, Sam has mediated more than four thousand disputes and teaches negotiation at the Indiana University School of Law. He consults nationwide. Sam can be reached via his website, www.samardery.com.

Past Reads:

• The Guide to Reflective Practice in Conflict Resolution - Michael D. Lang

• Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life for Healthy Relationships - Marshall B. Rosenberg, PhD (Author) + Deepak Chopra (Forward)

• The Perfectly Imperfect Family: Real Solutions for Mindlful Parents Navigating Today's Biggest Challenges - Cecilia Hilkey, Jason Hilkey, Anita Sawyer, Dr. Elizabeth Joy Shaffer, Dr. Carrie Mackensen, Dr. Glorianne Vázquez, Annmarie Chereso, Susan North, Layne Burkette

• It's All Your Fault At Work | Managing Narcissists and Other High-Conflict People - Bill Eddy, LCSW, Esq. + L. Georgi DiStefano, LCSW

• Outraged: Why We Fight About Morality and Politics and How to Find Common Ground - Kurt Gray

• Politics, Dialogue and the Evolution of Democracy: How to Discuss Race, Abortion, Immigration, Gun Control, Climate Change, Same Sex Marriage and Other Hot Topics - Kenneth Cloke
• Thinking In Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts - Annie Duke
• Just Listen: Discover the Secret to Getting Through to Absolutely Anyone - Mark Goulston
• The Undoing Project: The Friendship That Changed Our Minds - Daniel Kahneman & Amos Tversky
• Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It: Unlock Your Persuasion Potential in Professional and Personal Life - Chris Voss & Tahl Raz
• Bargaining with the Devil: When to Negotiate, When to Fight - Robert Mnookin
• Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents - Isabel Wilkerson
• Dignity: Its Essential Role in Resolving Conflict - Donna Hicks
• The Opposite of Combat: A Parents’ Guide for Teaching Siblings How to Collaborate and Solve Their Own Conflicts - Susan North
• De-Escalate: How to Calm an Angry Person in 90 Seconds or Less - Douglas Noll
• It's All Your Fault!: 12 Tips for Managing People Who Blame Others for Everything - Bill Eddy
• The Secret to Getting Along ( And Why its Easier Than You Think): 3 Steps To Life-Changing Conflict Resolution - Gabrielle Hartley
• The Power Of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business - Charles Duhigg
• The Peacemaker's Code
• Politics, Dialogue, and the Evolution of Democracy
• Bargaining with the Devil: When to Negotiate, When to Fight
• The Power of Us: Harnessing our Shared Identities to Improve Performance, Increase Co-operation, and Promote Social Harmony
• Negotiating the Impossible: How to Break Deadlocks and Resolve Ugly Conflicts (Without Money or Muscle)
• The Secret to Getting Along (And Why It's Easier Than You Think): 3 Steps to Life-Changing Conflict Resolution
• Never: A Novel