To find out what the real interests are in your negotiation you need to follow Roger Fisher's advice: separate the people from the substantive issues.
Over the years, I have been an observer and adviser to many global negotiations with individuals and companies that fail to heed this advice, and they always fail.
Read MoreSpend a moment thinking about the messages you received about winning as you were growing up. Think about sport, study, games, finances, and career. Think about your friends’ attitudes to these activities too. It’s probable that most of you are conditioned to think that winning, in any competition, is the most important part of the game.
Read MoreOne of the toughest negotiations is when one side wins and the other side loses. For example, a mining company wants to mine in a forest area and a local government wants to stop the mine because they want to preserve the forest. If one side wins, the other loses.
This is so difficult because each side brings a position and then spends all their energy defending their position or attacking the other side's position.
In the toughest negotiations, we need to look beyond positions and explore interests.
Read MoreHow does one transform a sometimes hostile, high stakes negotiation into an empathic process of cooperation? That question has puzzled and frustrated negotiators for decades. A while ago, I sat down for a chat about preparing for high stakes negotiations with Stephen Kozicki, best-selling author, business educator and Australia’s leading specialist in breakthrough business strategies. How he handles high-stakes negotiations will most likely change the way you think about role-play simulation.
By Soren Malmborg
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