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be spent, in preparing for the process. It is more of a staged event.
Positions tend to be clear. Negotiators serve in an official capacity, and
may even be professionals hired just for that purpose.

It will become clear while studying this material that not all conflicts are
resolvable through collaborative negotiated approaches. There are times
when the parties will take an adversarial approach and a different
negotiation style will be necessary. However, most negotiations take place
between people that are interested in sustained and long-lasting

relationships. The approach of this material is primarily directed toward
those informal and formal negotiations between parties that view
cooperation as more desirable than power plays. The premise underlying
collaborative negotiation is that each individual is interested in improving
the "working" relationship.

Casual Negotiation

Most of the disagreement and conflict we have with others is not planned.
It just happens as an ordinary occurrence. And it often happens when we

least expect it. It is the nature of the human condition, as was pointed out
earlier. Our goals come into conflict with those of someone else. We go
into a meeting with someone with no expectations of disagreement. All of
a sudden we are at an impasse in our discussion. Who is right? It usually
doesn't matter. What does matter is how the issue is resolved. The
question is: How do we prepare for these generally unplanned encounters
so that we more effectively meet our needs without becoming adversarial?

The answer isn't easy because relationships aren't easy. Good relationships
take a lot of work and time. It is difficult to prepare for an unplanned or
unexpected conflict or problem. The best preparation is an ongoing effort
to maintain a positive relationship with everyone with whom you have

potential for conflict. Clearly, that is an unreasonable approach, because
no one can anticipate every possibility for conflict.

Given the reality of multiple relationships, the most feasible way of
preparing for an informal negotiation is to maintain the posture of a
problem-solver. This approach will be discussed in detail as another skill

David Kolzow 170