Journal Assignment

Getting into this course, I knew participation was essential to passing the course. As students began to participate, I realized I just had to get out of my shell. During the course of the lectures, I found out I had more than enough experience to share with the class.

The first role play on active listening was the breaking point for me. Not listening to my partner made me realize it is actually frustrating and discouraging not to be given attention. On the other hand, listening established a bond and trust to share more information with me.

When I finally got into the preliminaries of negotiating, I realized we hardly ‘‘walk the talk''. I went with the mind set of cooperative bargaining but then realized if you are not careful, you can let your emotions overrule the basis of mutual interest.

Fortunately, I was given a preparation worksheet which I used as my guide for the negotiation. Brainstorming on my interests and that of my other party prepared me towards cooperative bargaining. I prioritized my interests; made sure they were measurable and based on reliable information given to me. I established a bargaining range which included my target, initial and resistance point. I also had to know my BATNA. Luckily for me, I did that for the other party too so I was indeed prepared for anything.

Getting to the bargaining table, I observed my opponent just had an eye on the price so I engaged in active listening in order to transform an unwilling participant into a collaborative problem solver. I refused to give in emotionally but separated the people from the problem so they don't get too defensive and end up with no result. Negotiating with tricksters enlightened me on different approaches you take in negotiating and the result you can expect.

In conclusion, my best negotiating style is the collaborative approach. It's a win-win for both parties and relationship still intact.

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