Two Dollar Game - Round 1

In the first round of the two dollar game I was supposed to get $1.60 out of the negotiation, my partner Camille $1.30. We ended up with a deal of 1$ each. I tried to argue for the fact that she owed me money but it was not that easy and she countered every of my arguments immediately. We both tried to come up with arguments why we needed the money more urgently. She proposed to split, I rejected the idea whereon she blackmailed me saying that she would denounce me at the police. With that threat I ended up giving in and we each took 1$. Analysing this first round, I think one of my mistakes was that I came up with too many different arguments as I desperately tried to get as close to the $1.60 as possible.

Lessons learnt from round 1

• Always try to find a compromise: No compromise is worse than a negotiation that is not satisfying. A common mistake is to leave the money on the table. 
• Only if you both leave the negotiation satisfied then it’s a good deal: If you or your partner feel bad after a negotiation then it was a bad negotiation for you. Because if ever you will negotiate again, the partner will be much tougher and more competitive and the partner will not believe what you say. 
• The targets evolve during the negotiation: You might see that the figure you had in mind will not be feasible. An anchor needs to be defined before negotiation. It’s not about playing it nice but about playing it wise.