Emphasize information, not advocacy. When the decision comes down, someone wins and someone loses. The council ceremony emphasizes points of view, not debating points. Instead of determining winners and losers, the tribe must come up with a decision that serves the interests of the entire group. Truth, not turf.
People argue for a position based on where they sit or what they do.
In the council ceremony, those preestablished positions are the first thing to go. The reframing of roles is so dramatic that it forces a reframing of thinking. A slower process yields better decisions. Rather than looking for the fastest answer to a pressing problem, the council process accepts the need for careful, in-depth reflection. With the understanding that implementation is faster, easier, and more successful if it comes after all implications of an issue have been thrashed out, the process doesn't address the question of action until the latter stages of the discussion.