The Path of Negotiation 谈判之路
Two groups. Two problems. Two cultures. Yet in both situations people were engaged in a single, familiar process called “negotiation”—an instantly recognizable human activity that helps people achieve goals and resolve problems. In both cases described above, as we shall see later, the process ended in a successful agreement. Exactly how and why negotiation achieves such results is the subject of this book. People negotiate in generally similar ways in virtually every culture in the world and have done so since time began. An Arusha elder sitting in the New York conference room where Jovanovich and Smith met might not have understood the words being said, but he would have recognized the purpose and value of Jovanovich’s gift to Smith. The Arusha negotiation involved a dispute rather than a deal. But, as we shall see, it concluded with an exchange of gifts. Gifts are part of a universal language of human relationships. And negotiations are fundamentally about the reciprocity norms underlying such relationships. Negotiations proceed through a form of prudently cooperative communication. And negotiations commonly follow a recognizable four-step path: preparation, information exchange, explicit bargaining, and commitment. In the world of sophisticated big-city business deals, lawyers and investment advisers gather in their conference rooms and run through their carefully scripted openings. They discuss the issues, then usually ask for more and offer less than they expect to settle for in the end. In Tanzania, the Arusha people establish their agenda, list their demands, and “talk to the mountain,” making exaggerated offers and counteroffers. They, too, are staking out the boundaries of possible agreement and watching for signals from the other side about what may or may not be acceptable. From here, people get down to the business of making concessions and establishing commitments. Negotiation is, in short, a kind of universal dance with four stages or steps. And it works best when both parties are experienced dancers.
两群人，两个不同的问题，两种不同的文化。然而，这两群人都对面着相似过程，而我们将其称之为“谈判” --- 一个识别度极高，能够帮助他人实现目标，并且解决问题的人类活动。在上述的两个例子中，正如我们预期的那样，这两个争端，最终成功地达成了协议。这本书的目的在于阐述谈判为什么能够达到这样的结果，而又是如何达到这样的结果。总体而言，从人类诞生之初，几乎每种文化的谈判方式都相似。假设，那位阿鲁巴的长者坐在约万诺维奇和史密斯的谈判桌上，他或许听不懂他们说的话，但是他一定明白约万诺维奇送给史密斯礼物的含义。阿鲁巴的那个谈判是为了解决争端而非达成协议。但是，正如我们所预期的那样，最后都在礼物交换中达成了协议。礼物是促进人类关系语言的一种。而谈判，从本质上而言，就是关于促进关系的互惠原则。谈判通过一系列谨慎的合作交流进行。而谈判，通常有4个大众所知、易识别的步骤：准备阶段，信息交换阶段，直白的讨价还价以及做出承诺的阶段。在这个世界上，在大城市发生的大宗商业交易中，律师和投资顾问会聚集在会议室，根据精心准备的开场白认真开场。他们会讨论问题，并且最终，通过比自己预期付出还要少的方式，获得更多。在坦桑尼亚，阿鲁巴人会设置议程，列出他们的需求，然后“和山对话”，提出夸张的要价和还价。而与此同时，他们也会提出达成可能协议的边界，并且从对方给出的信号中，找出对方能够或者不能够接受的点。而找到点后，人们开始妥协让步，达成合作协议。谈判，简而言之，是拥有四个阶段或者步骤的普通舞蹈。当双方都是有经验的舞者时，效果最好。
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