PART I

Core Concepts

What Is Really Going on Behind the Scenes

Introduction

Negotiations will always involve a certain amount of smoke and mirrors. People bluff. Things can happen quickly. You need to think on your feet. They use a tactic. You counter it. You respond with your own tactic to move in a different direction. And so it goes. And yes, you need to be really good at recognizing, using, and countering all those tactics and strategies.

But, there is something else that you must know. You must also learn to read what is going on under the surface. You need to get behind the smoke and mirrors and get a picture of what is going on behind the scenes. The Core Concepts that will give you that picture are the Settlement Range and the Negotiation Cycle.