OPTIONS
Search for creative options that satisfy relevant interests

by Andrew Clarkson and Douglas Stone

Working Assumption: It is in the interest of each party in a negotiation to try to invent options for mutual gain.

1. The Problem: Outcomes are not as good for both sides as they might be. Too often we feel like the proverbial sisters who quarreled over an orange. After they finally agreed to divide the orange in half, the first sister took her half, ate the fruit, and threw away the peel, while the other threw away the fruit and used the peel from her half in baking a cake.

2. "Either/or" thinking is seductive and destructive. It is tempting to assume that our interests and theirs are totally opposed, particularly when we are feeling angry or when we don't trust the other side. The problem is that this assumption destroys the logic of trying to understand their interests and then invent options for joint gain. If we believe that more for them is less for us, then it makes no sense to consider how we might squeeze more out of the orange. Ultimately, this assumption disempowers us since it leads us to leave half an orange on the table unused -- we don't get things that would cost them nothing and they don't get things that would cost us nothing.

3. Inventing can seem dangerous. Whether inventing with people from our side or their side, our creative juices are often constrained by reasonable fears. With people from our side, we may fear critics who might judge any new idea harshly and make us appear foolish. With people from the other side, we may fear that by inventing new options we will disclose information that may jeopardize our bargaining position.

4. Consider the following guidelines:

a) Assume that the pie is expandable. In any negotiation, it is prudent to operate on the assumption that the pie is not fixed. It is in the interests of each side to be splitting a larger pie. Figuring out how to expand the pie is a shared problem.

b) Use our understanding of the relevant interests to guide our inventing. Focus our inventing on ways to satisfy interests, not positions. Remember that it is in our interest to help create an option that will meet the other side's legitimate interests since if their concerns are not addressed by our ideas, at least in part, then they will have no reason to support them.

c) Separate the process of inventing from the process of deciding. Both while preparing and negotiating, arrange for inventing sessions where no commitments or criticisms are allowed. It may help here to have a facilitator with the explicit duty of stopping commitment or criticism moves when and if they occur. To underscore the purpose of these sessions, consider using a separate room for these sessions -- an "inventing room." Seek to develop a wide range of possible ideas. Encourage ideas which might normally be considered a bit crazy since they can stimulate other ideas that might work but have not yet been thought of. Set aside some time later after your inventing sessions to then evaluate the wide range of ideas that have been devised, selecting some for further development.

d) Use the Circle Chart. A useful tool for inventing is the Circle Chart. The Circle Chart is particularly helpful in both stimulating and organizing group inventing sessions.