Comments on: The swamp of interests and positions http://mediatorshandbook.com/http:/mediatorshandbook.com/2009/6-resolving/interests Writing the 4th edition Mon, 21 Nov 2011 21:23:26 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: JB http://mediatorshandbook.com/http:/mediatorshandbook.com/2009/6-resolving/interests/comment-page-1#comment-9 JB Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:28:56 +0000 http://mediatorshandbook.com/?p=153#comment-9 Just finished grading my student's tests and "negotiation preparation memo"s. Interests! Argh! OK, I'm not a perfect teacher, and we only had 3 classes, which limits how much explanation and reinforcement I can do for the ideas they read in Getting to Yes. A lot of them just don't get "interests" at all. Some use it (correctly) in the more limited way lawyers do. And the onew who do understand it, don't dig down from the surface level "I want more money" to the WHYs that animate that desire. The notion of wanting "money" or "fairness" is so OBVIOUS that it chops off further explorations. mumble grumble. Need crisp, easily understood baseline concepts in this business. Jenny Just finished grading my student’s tests and “negotiation preparation memo”s. Interests! Argh! OK, I’m not a perfect teacher, and we only had 3 classes, which limits how much explanation and reinforcement I can do for the ideas they read in Getting to Yes.

A lot of them just don’t get “interests” at all. Some use it (correctly) in the more limited way lawyers do. And the onew who do understand it, don’t dig down from the surface level “I want more money” to the WHYs that animate that desire. The notion of wanting “money” or “fairness” is so OBVIOUS that it chops off further explorations.

mumble grumble. Need crisp, easily understood baseline concepts in this business.

Jenny

]]> By: Bill Withers http://mediatorshandbook.com/http:/mediatorshandbook.com/2009/6-resolving/interests/comment-page-1#comment-6 Bill Withers Wed, 26 Aug 2009 18:31:11 +0000 http://mediatorshandbook.com/?p=153#comment-6 Jenny: Your explanation of interests and positions is the clearest I have seen. My druthers would be to stick with these two "terms of art" so that the people learning with/from the Handbook can talk to other mediators. Even those of us who don't use that language know what it is. I tend toward a less elegant version of Jay's language. I ask for "What do you want?" and "Why do you care?". What I look for is "What does this difference threaten to prevent someone from being/becoming?" Could be too wifty, but it works for me. Jenny: Your explanation of interests and positions is the clearest I have seen. My druthers would be to stick with these two “terms of art” so that the people learning with/from the Handbook can talk to other mediators. Even those of us who don’t use that language know what it is. I tend toward a less elegant version of Jay’s language. I ask for “What do you want?” and “Why do you care?”. What I look for is “What does this difference threaten to prevent someone from being/becoming?” Could be too wifty, but it works for me.

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