Getting To Yes

11 Pages 2654 Words

Getting To Yes!

“A back-and-forth communication designed to reach an agreement when you and the other party have some interests that are shared and others that are opposed.” This is the simple (and accurate) definition of a negotiation, given by Roger Fisher. You are a negotiator. Like it or not, admit it or not, everyone participates in negotiation processes everyday. What you want for dinner, which movie you should see, which route you should take, whose turn is it to tell the boss no: all of these are examples of negotiation. Negotiations can take place formally or informally, openly or ambiguously, but they are a constant part of all our lives. In Getting To Yes, Fisher and Ury convey their opinions on the problem source found in many of our negotiations. Ury and Fisher go on to identify what they believe to be the four crucial steps in a successful negotiation as well as confront the most prevalent walls we (as negotiators) run into or inadvertently build ourselves.

By definition, a positive (or wise) negotiation should wield an agreement that is mutually beneficial to all of the parties involved. Perhaps the biggest piece of baggage many negotiators bring into the discussion with them is their preconceived notions of their position and what that subsequently means. But, by arguing over positions, negotiators often remove the possibility of a truly wise agreement. The danger that often time arises from positional bargaining is that the more one reiterates their position and reinforces how strongly they are bound to that position, the stronger that position truly becomes. Being that the point of a successful negotiation is for each party to remove themselves from their personal opinions on the matter and allow each other to meet in the middle, refusing to budge will quickly stonewall any discussion. With every point made regarding one’s “superior position” another viable point is lost in the fray as mo...