Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without

Giving in
By
Roger Fisher and William Ury
Classic Example of Negotiating Minuet
The haggling that takes place between a customer and the proprietor
of a secondhand store

Negotiation may be fairly judged by three criteria:

It should produce a wise agreement if agreement is possible.

It should be efficient.

And it should improve or at least not damage the relationship between the
parties.

(A wise agreement can be defined as one which meets the legitimate interests of
each side to the extent possible, resolves conflicting interests fairly, is durable, and
takes community interests into account.)
Positional Bargaining
Fisher and Ury argue that positional bargaining does not tend to produce good
agreements. It is an inefficient means of reaching agreements, and the agreements
tend to neglect the parties interests. It encourages stubbornness and so tends to
harm the parties relationship.
Positional Bargaining strains and sometimes shatters relationship.
In Positional Bargaining each party opens with their position on an issue. The
Parties then bargain from their separate opening positions to agree on one
position.
Two Children quarreling over an orange, each child wanted an orange so they
split it, but failing to realize that one wanted the fruit to eat and the other the peel
for baking.

Principled Negotiation
A method of negotiation explicitly designed to produce wise outcomes efficiently
and amicably. This method, called principled negotiation or negotiation on the
merits, can be boiled down to four basic points,
o

People: Separate the people from the problem.

Interests: Focus on interests rather than positions.

Options: Generate a variety of options before settling on an agreement.

Criteria: Insist that the agreement be based on objective criteria.

Separating People and issues

Fisher and Ury identifies three basic sorts of problems.
First are differences on perception among the others.
Emotions are a second source of people problems.
Communication is the third main source of people problems.

Focus on Interests
Good agreements focus on the parties interests, rather than their positions.
As Fisher and User explain, "Your Position is something you have decided upon.
Your interests are what caused you to decide.
The story of two men quarreling in a library
For a wise solution reconcile interests, not positions

Generate Options
Diagnosis

Fisher and Ury identify four obstacles to generating creative options for solving a
problem.

Premature judgment

Searching for the single answer

The assumption of a fixed pie

Thinking that "solving their problem is their problem.

PRESCRIPTION
Fisher and Ury also suggest four techniques for overcoming these obstacles and
generating creative options.
To separate the act of inventing options from the act of judging them
To broaden the options on the table rather than look for a single answer
To search for mutual gains
To invent ways of making their decisions easy.

Use Objective Criteria

Objective criteria are factual pieces of information, independent of the parties in the
negotiation, that are relevant to what should or should not be agreed to in that
negotiation.
Three points to be kept in mind when using objective criteria.

First each issue should be approached as a shared search for objective criteria.

Second, each party must keep an open mind.

Third, while they should be reasonable, negotiators must never give in to

pressure, threats, or bribes.

No talk of "win-win" strategies can conceal that fact. You want the rent to be lower;
the landlord wants it to be higher. You want the goods delivered tomorrow; the
supplier would rather deliver them next week. You definitely prefer the large office
with the view; so does your partner. Such differences cannot be swept under the
rug.

When the other Party is More Powerful

No method can guarantee success if all leverage lies on the other side
Protect yourself against making an agreement you should reject
Since success for you in a negotiation depends upon the other side making a
decision you want, you should do what you can to make that decision an easy
one.
Your task is to give them not a problem but an answer
To give them not a tough decision but an easy one

Bottom Line
Establishing in advance the worst possible outcome
If you have not thought carefully about what you will do if you fail to reach an
agreement, you are negotiating with your eyes closed
If the other side has big guns, you do not want to turn a negotiation into a
gunfight
When the Other Party Wont use Principle Negotiation
Fisher and Ury describe three approaches for dealing with opponents who are stuck
in positional bargaining.
First, one side may simply continue to use the principled approach. The authors
point out that this approach is often contagious.
Second, the principled party may use Negotiation Jujitsu to bring the bring the
other party in line.
Third, when the other party remains stuck in positional bargaining, the one-text
approach may be used.
Break the vicious cycle by refusing to react
o

When they attack your ideas, do not defend them

When they attack you, dont counter back

Side Step their attack and deflect it against the problem

Their attack will consist of three maneuvers
o

Asserting their position forcefully

Attacking your ideas

Attacking you

Dont defend your ideas, invite criticism and advice

What if they use dirty tricks?

There are many tactics and tricks that people use to try and take advantage
of you.
The first standard response is to put up with it
They hope that if they give in this time, the other side will be appeased and
will not ask for more.
The second common response is to respond in kind
If they start outrageously high, you start outrageously low
If they make threats, you make counter threats
In the end either one party yields, or all too often negotiation breaks off
Separate people from the problem