Why Compromise Is Dead as a Negotiation Strategy

Compromise means meeting somewhere between two positions or solutions. The best possible solution is rarely found there. This is why more and more people are searching for a better problem-solving strategy.

What makes compromise a poor twenty-first century problem-solving strategy? Today’s challenges are far more complex than they have ever been because today’s world is far more interconnected than it has ever been. The best obtainable outcome using compromise is that all parties walk away from the negotiating table feeling equally ripped off. This makes compromise a poor strategy for creating sustainable solutions.

Coercion is the only other problem-solving strategy most people are familiar with. The problem with coercion is that it produces even less sustainable solutions than compromise.

Since coercion and compromise cannot create the solutions we need, is there another negotiation strategy that can? Indeed there is. Synergy is a problem-solving strategy that combines the wisdom behind everyone’s positions to create a complete picture of the problem. Combining multiple perspectives reveals solutions that no one person or group can see on their own. The magic of synergy is that it opens doors that are far richer and mutually honorable than compromise, let alone coercion.

Synergy begins with humility. This humility recognizes that the big picture cannot be seen accurately be any one person or group. Synergy requires two more ingredients in addition to humility:

1. Clarifying Core Intentions: This requires inquiring about what people want from the solutions they have proposed. When you understand the most important thing someone is seeking from the solution they are proposing you have identified their core intention.

2. Integrating Core Intentions: Combining everyone’s core intentions reveals a more picture than any one group can see by themselves. This is the only picture from which sustainable solutions can grow. This is how synergy serves the common good far better than coercion or compromise.

Our society is at a problem-solving turning point. Will we keep depending on compromise and coercion to generate solutions simply because we are accustomed to them, or will we instead choose to match the strategy we use with the needs we have by turning to synergy instead? Coercion and compromise are out of step with the needs we have. Synergy is the only one of the three problem-solving strategies we can use to negotiate truly sustainable solutions. The time has come to make synergy our first-choice strategy for solving problems and negotiating solutions.

Even though most of us are more familiar with coercion and compromise, synergy is a very learnable negotiation and solution-creation skill. Start mastering the art of synergy today.

Want to find out more about synergy mastery secrets? Get started with Dr. David Gruder’s free Boundaries Intelligence e-course Check out his 5-award-winning integrity book, “The New IQ,” too.