Ending a marriage isn’t as easy as saying “I’m done.” You and your ex will have to go through a process to determine who is going to get which assets and what is going to happen with the children. There are a few different ways that these decisions might be made.
Some people can’t work together to come up with the terms so they need to go through divorce litigation. This enables the court to make the decisions. An alternative, which is usually the first option, is mediation. This lets you and your ex negotiate the terms of the divorce. Here are some tips to help you prepare for mediation:
Make your plan
You have to make your plan for what you are going to do. This doesn’t mean that everything is going to go your way. Instead, you need to go through every decision that needs to be made so that you can figure out what is going to be something that you are willing to negotiate or let go. On the flip side, you need to determine what points you aren’t going to budge on. All of this can help you to remain focused on the process instead of veering off track. It might help you to write out what points fall under which category so that you can refer to this list when you are in a mediation session.
Take some deep breaths
The actual meeting for the mediation is going to be stressful. You should prepare for this so that you can handle what comes up. There is a chance that your ex might try to push all of your buttons. Don’t let this happen. Take deep breaths when you need to. Remember that you have the option of stopping the session and speaking to the mediator alone. This might help you to air out your concerns and get the process back on track. If you don’t feel there is any hope to work through the issues, you might need to come back to the process at a later date.
Focus on the outcome
Ultimately, you need to focus on the outcome of the process — legally ending your marriage. Being willing to negotiate is important because this can help you to end the legal process as quickly as possible. While you should stand your ground on the important matters, you also need to bend. Knowing your legal rights and exploring what Texas law says about potentially contentious matters can help with this process.