Our Approach

When people disagree, they often become stuck on different solutions. We think of this as two people standing on different mountains.

While they may argue, beneath each solution (the what) is an aim or a need (the why) further down the mountain.

But when we ask what really matters to each person—why they hold that position—they begin to descend the mountain.

At the foot of the mountains lies the common ground: the shared aims and values that make new solutions possible.

4 Skills of Win-Win

Skill 1: Distinguishing Solutions from Aims

Skill 2: Uncovering Aims (gracefully and sensitively)

What about that solution is important to you?

Skill 3: Finding Shared Aims

Can I live with the aims of the other? Do I have a willingness to stretch?

Skill 4: Finding New Solutions that meet those Shared Aims

Much more is possible in collaboration than in opposition