The finest #leaders know that true #negotiation requires all parties to walk away slightly #unhappy. #QuoteADay #Day63 #edchat #edu
Experience, and any number of books (both fiction and non-fiction), show us that negotiation is all about compromise. And, as we know from compromising, a true compromise always leaves everyone wishing for a little more.
This "not quite happiness" is a tenet of negotiation that works, because it proves that nobody gets exactly what they wanted. Which, not surprisingly, is exactly like life itself.
Leaders who believe it is their way or the highway miss out on the true benefit of negotiation. The development of trust, of truly showing that we care enough about others to lose out on some of what we had hoped for, is an important characteristic of the proactive leader. This "others before self" mentality supports the leader as a service member, and one who takes concerns to heart.
At the same time, a negotiation can't always be about doing whatever everybody else wants. A leader has to use his or her experience to dictate those items that can't be negotiated around. These "non-negotiable" pieces are necessary as they highlight the vision of a given leader and also show that true leaders can bend, but they don't break.
Negotiation is an art form, and like any fine piece of design, many parts go into the masterpiece. But, like a painter will always require a paintbrush, true negotiation always requires a bit of remorse for what you "didn't get." And guess what? That's just the way it is.
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