3 D Negotiation Powerful Tools to Change the Game in Your Most Important Deals

by David A. Lax

When discussing being stuck in a "win-win vs. win-lose" debate, most negotiation books focus on face-to-face tactics. Yet, table tactics are only the "first dimension" of David A. Lax and James K. Sebenius' pathbreaking 3-D Negotiation (TM) approach, developed from their decades of doing deals and analyzing great dealmakers. Moves in their "second dimension"—deal design—systematically unlock economic and noneconomic value by creatively structuring agreements. But what sets the 3-D approach apart is its "third dimension": setup. Before showing up at a bargaining session, 3-D Negotiators ensure that the right parties have been approached, in the right sequence, to address the right interests, under the right expectations, and facing the right consequences of walking away if there is no deal. This new arsenal of moves away from the table often has the greatest impact on the negotiated outcome. Packed with practical steps and cases, 3-D Negotiation demonstrates how superior setup moves plus insightful deal designs can enable you to reach remarkable agreements at the table, unattainable by standard tactics.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction, Psychology, Communication, Management, Leadership, Self Help

Paperback

First published August 1, 2006

Reviews

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not an expert in the field of negotiations, but this seems to me like a very good complement to Secrets of Power Negotiating: Inside Secrets from a Master Negotiator. What that one is focused on tactics used in negotiating, this one focuses on the whole negotiation situation and argues there is a lot more that can be realized if you pay attention to how you set up the negotiation, choose the right participants in the right order, and specifically look for ways to design a deal that takes advantage of everyone's interests to deliver more value. As always with these things, real life examples are critical, and this book has a good amount of both positive and negative ones. The writing is clear and straightforward, and there's a helpful chapter summary at the end of each chapter, which might have been better collected at one end of the book for better reference.

My only complaint is that the authors use the term "claim value" all over the place and yet it's never defined and not completely clear what it means, so it must be some kind of basic industry jargon I'm not familiar with... apparently it means staking a claim to a certain amount of the deal for your side, but to me the words of the term seem to mean "claiming that you are providing value to the other side", so it wasn't totally clear.

In negotiation, I tend to work very hard on the setup to arrange the best possible alternative to negotiating, so I can always walk away. My problem is that I usually end up making the alternative attractive enough that I just walk away, skip the negotiation altogether, and go with the alternative. Maybe I can find a better way in between.

[Micah Fesler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great perspective on negotiations. Lax and Sebenius move away from traditional hard nose negotiating strategies to walk the reader through all of the areas to consider when preparing and executing a negotiation. Fantastic perspective. Worth the read!

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 3 out of 5]

Standard negotiation advice (don't just think about the people at the table, think about the other people in their organizations and beyond, look for their true interests behind the specifics being discussed, etc.). It's a little too formal in style as well for my tastes, too.

[Mark Webster · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best book on negotiation by the best negotiators in the world. Warning: It's a bit tough to read and you really have to pay close attention to every part. But the content is gold!

[Chris]

an inauspicious beginning to my grad school goodreads arc

[Meli · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although this is a business book, I read it for my political science International Negotiations class for grad school. It is a refreshing change from traditional Harvard-style negotiation, though of course Lax and Sebenius maintain basic elements of their Harvard roots. I will most likely re-visit 3-D Negotiation in the future and I generally appreciate what they do here despite not employing much negotiation in my current professional position.

It would be nice to have some women-authored negotiation books. When I read books like this by men from masculinist disciplines, I always get the sense that something is slanted, or off, or upside down, or missing. Women's historical exclusion from these domains is evident in their low representation and limited publishing.

[Jannik · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrible, boring, bad. If you want to read about negotiation tactics, read ‘getting to yes’ as it’s older and this book copies nearly everything out of it, down to the examples given. It’s also badly structured and always gives a preview of a concept that ‘will be introduced in a later chapter’. Just don’t read this book, I couldn’t even finish it

[Dean · Rating 2 out of 5]

David Lax puts a different spin on the negotiatinon process and how to move way past win-win. By examining the negotiation process from many angles and understanding the ZOPA (Zone Of Possible Agreement) and the No-Deal Options, makes deals become great deals!!

[Gary · Rating 2 out of 5]

You will find a few good nuggets of in this book but too much jargon and and too much trying to make negotiations into a fixed formula. Also very dry.

[Baris Ozyurt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Power of No-Deal Options-and Your Understanding of Them

For many people, the poker game over perceptions of no-deal options-and the implied ZOPA as a line segment or "Battle Line"-represents the essence of negotiation, the whole point of sitting down at the table in the first place. In later chapters, we will challenge this conception as a general view of negotiation; there are better mental models to adopt before you sit down at the table. In this chapter, though, we wanted to give you a better feel for some of the critical functions of no-deal options as part of the negotiation's setup.

No-deal options can indeed be powerful, at every stage of the negotiating process. At the outset, an analysis of no-deal options can provide an important guide to the potential role for negotiation in the first place and what the ZOPA might look like. Improving your no-deal options, or worsening those of the other side, can greatly influence the outcome of the negotiation. And, as we will later see, once a deal is struck, each side's incentive to comply is heavily influenced by the continuing balance between "yes" and "no."

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Listened on audiobook* Maybe it was the fact that I listened to this on audiobook, narrator's voice or my familiarity with much of the material with previous books (or all of the above) I just didn't get into this book as much as I would like.

Last quarter of this book bumped this up to 3 stars for me. More in depth real world examples in the last chapter were super helpful to hear the application. Otherwise it just felt dry, academic, too technical to me and again this is probably a better book but after reading so many other negotiation books this past year....this just didn't move the needle much for me.

[Jason Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lax and Sebenius argue that most books and courses on negotiation focus on only one dimension: tactics at the table. Further, they suggest that to be a savvy negotiator that two more dimensions should be considered: setup and deal design.

They spend the book discussing not only how to setup and design great deals, but they do not neglect the tactical art of deal-making, as well.

Peppered with relevant anecdotal evidence throughout, this is a helpful and interesting read. It doesn't hurt that it was required for my EMBA class, too. :-)

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid reference for negotiation tactics with several novel ideas. Unfortunately the book reads like a corporate training manual. I would have liked to have more examples and less exposition. I personally would use it as a reference, but don't think I'd read through all the way again. I think I would recommend it to someone who has already read several excellent books on negotiation but who still wants more depth.

[Alex H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful to my personal/professional growth - forced me to reconsider what I could have done better during a ~6-month stint with an independent sponsor firm. I only wish I had read this book a year earlier, as I would have been much better prepared to creatively anticipate and work around unstated and non-financial needs of the sellers I sat across the deal table from.

[Jameyanne Fuller · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit long, but I’m glad I read through to the end because I understand the concepts better after reading the whole book than I did after just the first three chapters we were assigned. The examples were really helpful, the writing was easy to follow, and the topic was interesting. If you’re interested in negotiations, I recommend reading this as a follow-up to Getting to Yes.

[William Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

High on anecdotes, 3-D Negotiation is an impactful and insightful book. If you are regularly involved in making deals you probably employ many tactics and strategies described. This book is not about the "hard sell" or manipulating people, its about building better mutually beneficial and mutually attractive offers.

[Helfren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using deal-negotiations are all about the third dimensional game play. Instead of using one dimensional with win-lose negotiation, a good deal maker can use playbook and uses culture of playing the game in order to gain with win-win or win-lose outcome. How that's a good negotiator can thrive? This book is so interesting probably in my lifetime of reading book.

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can describe this book as solid. It provides actionable advice with a structure to it which makes it easy to follow. However, its text-book like language lucks any inspiration and makes the book boring to read.

[Christopher Benassi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most practical negotiation book I've read. Knocked a star for how difficult it is to read

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but not great.
Some helpful insights.
I'd recommend Never Split The Difference

[David Lozano · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best.

[Meg C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting take on traditional negotiation framework. Somewhat dry but a solid read to enhance your negotiation foundation.

[Jonathan Collins · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible. Should be included in "List of books considered the worst". Took me forever to get through it and read 2 other books in between.

[Amy Eisenstein]

Read chapters 1-9 for a course

[James Schisler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fascinating framework here. Rings true to me that the majority of any agreement is not decided at the table but long before by structural factors that you can accept, alter, or plan around.

[Piet Vandaele · Rating 4 out of 5]

a pretty complete book on negotiations,
with lots of practical examples.

[Anna Zychowicz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Z wszystkich książek o negocjacjach ta jest największym masłem maślanym.

[Darya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice book and covers all standard aspects of negotiation: being prepared, having a plan, having a strategy and tactics to execute.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Smart ways to reframe negotiation

If you have read a few books on negotiation, you will find much in this book familiar. If you’re serious about the subject, however, reading it will amply reward your curiosity. Many of its negotiating techniques and approaches are familiar because the authors, David A. Lax and James K. Sebenius, reviewed and tested the existing literature on the subject. They put the best current suggestions into a larger conceptual frame that can help negotiators make better deals. This book is approachable for beginners and useful for experienced negotiators, so getAbstract recommends it to both types of readers, even if it isn’t perfect. In some parts of the book, the authors highlight negotiating issues that parties must face without giving practical guidance on how to handle them. On the whole, though, this is a useful, methodical and realistic treatment of negotiation.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

When it comes to a business book delivering value, I can't say enough about 3D negotiations. I have learned so much and already put it into practice.

It is well organized, lays out clear learning points, and awesome examples.

For those wanting to go beyond negotiations tactics, this book is it!