![[PHOTO] Light streaming through a key hole illuminating an old iron key.](../images/ph_findings.jpg)
Interviewer: Does walking away from negotiations mean that negotiations are a failure?
Norm W: Negotiations are a means to an end. Never enter negotiations without having determined the alternative to achieve the end should a deal not be possible.
Interviewer: What most common errors cause a person to lose their way getting the other individual to select what you want--for his own reasons?
Norm W: Being totally blinded by the righteousness of your position. If you lose sight of the deal from the other side's desires, you can't solve his problems or yours.
Interviewer: Price is said to be a breaking point for most failed negotiations.
Norm W: Yes it is, especially when there is no recognition that deals involve joint interests beside price… for example the negotiating process being personal, respectful and fair to both sides, the social aspects of the deal including goodwill and identifying shared expectations, etc.
Interviewer: Negotiators should look for common ground, right?
Norm W: Don't be blinded by the insistence on common ground … looking for it at all costs can derail negotiations. Different interests can often give each negotiator what they value most, at a minimum cost to the other.
Interviewer: How does one solve the dilemma of what are concluded to be incompatible positions?
Norman W: One needs to get below the surface and find or invent the compatible interests. A gain by one party isn't necessarily a loss by the person sitting across the table from you. Take charge from the start.