Overview

A man died and left to his three sons seventeen camels. He left to his first son 1/2 of the camels, to his second son, 1/3 of the camels, and to his third son, 1/9 of the camels. Arguing persisted because they could not agree on the numbers (i.e. is 1/2 eight or nine?). Finally, a wise old woman who lived next door said, "I don't know the answer, but I have a camel of my own that I would be willing to give to you." There were now eighteen camels. The first son took his 1/2 which was nine. The second son took his 1/3 which was six. The last son took his 1/9 which was two. Nine, six, and two equal seventeen. That left the eighteenth which they returned to the wise old woman. She knew about win/win negotiations-that everyone wins if you expand the conversation to mutually beneficial relationships!

The session deals with the skills needed for win/win negotiations, as well as the skills needed for the more difficult bargainers and an in depth role play designed to help make practical use of the skills.

Objectives

The combined sessions of Negotiating Skills have the following objectives:

• Being able to distinguish what are personality problems and what are task problems of the negotiations.
• Learning to discover the reasons why people are so stubborn during negotiations.
• Using the creative process to brainstorm options that are mutually beneficial to both sides.
• Referring to third party standards to settle any last disagreements.
• What to do as a final strategy if the negotiations are falling apart.
• Dealing with angry or emotionally upset negotiators.
• Practicing with peers in a simulated, but based on real life, negotiation in order to become proficient with the skills.