For this week’s episode of Gentle Power, we welcome our very first guest: Joe Dillon, founder of Equitable Mediation. Joe has spent nearly two decades helping couples navigate the high-stakes, emotionally-charged negotiations of divorce without lawyers, achieving outcomes that protect both their finances and their future relationships.

In our conversation, we explore the surprising overlap between divorce mediation and salary or job offer negotiations, including:

• Why “don’t decide before discovery” can save your leverage

• Common mistakes that derail negotiations, from unrealistic comparisons to letting emotions lead

• How to normalize feelings without letting them control the process

• Why assuming best intent often leads to better agreements

• Practical ways to run a business with your spouse while keeping both the work and the relationship healthy

We also discuss Joe’s path from corporate negotiations to Harvard negotiation training to achieving a 98% mediation settlement rate, and the mindset shifts that keep even tense deals from collapsing.

If you’ve ever had to protect your value, bridge a high-emotion gap, or keep a conversation moving toward a win-win, you’ll take away proven tactics to approach any negotiation with clarity, empathy, and ideal outcomes.

Learn more about Joe and his work at ⁠EquitableMediation.com⁠

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