Negotiations Envelop Us

Like it or not, you're negotiating every day

A good friend was recently confiding in me and lamenting his need to shop for a car. “I’m excited to get a new SUV, because our sedan has been nothing but trouble,” he acknowledged, “but I just can’t stand shopping at these dealerships. Even using the online car-buying services, you still have to NEGOTIATE with these guys. Everything, right down the floor mats!”

Every transaction into which we enter is a negotiation. Sometimes the nature of the negotiation is readily apparent – like haggling over a new car’s price – and in other instances the negotiation is more implicit, like when we go to the grocery store, see a gallon of milk marked $3.50, decide that offered price is reasonable and pay the cashier.

Negotiation is an essential part of our daily lives. Whether you’re buying or selling in a transaction, there is a negotiation process involved, even if not explicitly or obviously so. 

As a mediator, I study and think about negotiation every day and regularly guide people through the neg…