The Signal · Workshop 06 · Practice
Get to a Fair Outcome
Five steps. About 25 minutes. Up to 7 stars. The constellation you're building is called First Trade.
The Signal · Workshop 06 · Practice
Five steps. About 25 minutes. Up to 7 stars. The constellation you're building is called First Trade.
A real negotiation isn't winner-take-all. It's two people figuring out the trade where both leave with something they actually wanted.
The trick is to separate what someone wants (their position) from why they want it (their interest). A sibling who wants the last cookie might actually want to feel they got something fair after a long day. The cookie is the position; the fairness is the interest. Once you know the interest, there are usually more ways to satisfy it than just "give me the cookie."
When both people focus on interests instead of positions, deals open up that nobody saw before. The cookie can be split. One person can have the cookie this time and the other gets first pick of dessert tomorrow. Or you bake more cookies together.
By the end of this workshop you'll have planned one real negotiation using interests instead of positions.
That's the warm-up. When you've actually read it — not skimmed — tap below.
Pick all that fit.
Click an idea, then its meaning.
Pick something you want to negotiate (chores, screen time, a sibling deal, a project trade). Write your position, your real interest, what you think THEIR interest is, and a possible trade.
Stuck? Try: negotiating chores with a sibling. Position: I want to do less dishes. Interest: I have a project due and need study time. Their interest: they hate vacuuming because of the noise. Trade: I take vacuuming for two weeks; they take dishes during my project crunch.
One sentence.