Negotiation Jujitsu Quotes in Getting to Yes
If the other side has big guns, you do not want to turn a negotiation into a gunfight. The stronger they appear in terms of physical or economic power, the more you benefit by negotiating on the merits. To the extent that they have muscle and you have principle, the larger a role you can establish for principle the better off you are.
Having a good BATNA can help you negotiate on the merits. You can convert such resources as you have into effective negotiating power by developing and improving your BATNA. Apply knowledge, time, money, people, connections, and wits into devising the best solution for you independent of the other side's assent. The more easily and happily you can walk away from a negotiation, the greater your capacity to affect its outcome.
If pushing back does not work, what does? How can you prevent the cycle of action and reaction? Do not push back. When they assert their positions, do not reject them. When they attack your ideas, don't defend them. When they attack you, don't counterattack. Break the vicious cycle by refusing to react. Instead of pushing back, sidestep their attack and deflect it against the problem. As in the Oriental martial arts of judo and jujitsu, avoid pitting your strength against theirs directly; instead, use your skill to step aside and turn their strength to your ends. Rather than resisting their force, channel it into exploring interests, inventing options for mutual gain, and searching for independent standards.
I must not be making myself clear. Of course it would be nice if Paul and I got some money. Of course we could try and stay here in the apartment until you got us evicted. But that’s not the point, Mrs. Jones.
More important to us than making a few dollars here or there is the feeling of being treated fairly. No one likes to feel cheated. And if we made this a matter of who’s got the power and refused to move, we'd have to go to court, waste a lot of time and money, and end up with a big headache. You would too. Who wants that?
No, Mrs. Jones, we want to handle this problem fairly on the basis of some independent standard, rather than who can do what to whom.
Negotiation Jujitsu Term Timeline in Getting to Yes
