Some blinders we bring to a negotiation ourselves, but other blinders are brought to the table by the other party. One of the more interesting and unsettling forms of blinder is something I call a Shame Blinder. And it is both obvious and subtle at the same time. A good example of this comes from …
Arguably the most common blinder that we tend to wear in a negotiation is also a fundamental premise of mediation. It is the idea that there’s often a difference between what we negotiate for and what we actually want. We sometimes confuse our “positions” (what we negotiate for on the surface) and our “interests” (our …
The first type of blinder is the simple failure to fully review all of your options (and the options of the other party) in a negotiation. This is one of the most basic principles in mediation and negotiation – called a “BATNA”: Best Alternative to Negotiated Agreement. In short, it means what is your best …
If you’ve ever seen a picture of a race-horse, you’ve probably seen them wearing “blinders” or “blinkers” – those little plastic cups that are placed on the outside of each eye of the horse. The purpose is to reduce the horse’s tendency to be distracted and keep them focused on the task at hand by …
