Getting to Yes

Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In

by Roger Fisher, William Ury, Bruce Patton

4.5(10,580 ratings)

9 min read

Brief overview

This book offers a proven, flexible four-step method for making tough negotiations easier, whether at home, at work, or on a global stage. You’ll explore how to separate personal feelings from core issues, focus on mutual interests, and craft solutions that benefit everyone. By reading this, expect to learn concrete strategies for dealing with stubborn opponents and achieving better outcomes without sacrificing relationships.

Why Effective Negotiation Matters

Negotiation is part of everyday life—whether you’re buying a car or deciding where to go on vacation. Yet many of us leap into negotiations with only instincts and frustration to guide us. Far too often, heated emotions and positional stand-offs keep us stuck.

Researchers Roger Fisher, William Ury, and Bruce Patton understand these pitfalls. Their approach, called principled negotiation, helps ensure that what you walk away with is both beneficial and preserves your relationships.

From personal disputes to international diplomacy, principled negotiation helps you focus on shared goals and creative problem-solving. This opening chapter sets the stage by explaining why relying on pure willpower or outmaneuvering the other side often ends in frustration.

The Trouble with Traditional Bargaining

Old-school negotiation often feels like a tug-of-war. Each side stakes out a position and defends it, hoping to wear the other down. Think of haggling over a car price or jockeying for a raise. This approach can yield short-term wins but can also destroy trust.

When you’re locked into positions—like “I won’t pay more than $300!”—you risk overlooking creative choices. You also risk hurting the quality of the relationship if you relentlessly push for victory at the other person’s expense.

Digging in to rigid stances often distances you from the real issues that matter—to you and the other side.

Get ready to break free from zero-sum thinking. Instead of fighting over the pie, you’ll learn how to broaden the pie or create new pies altogether. Understanding the downsides of old-school haggling is the first step toward better outcomes.

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What is Getting to Yes about?

“Getting to Yes” provides a structured approach to navigating disputes while keeping relationships intact. Drawing on decades of negotiations research, it guides readers in separating human emotions from critical issues, identifying shared interests, and crafting workable solutions for everyone involved.

Rather than pushing for winner-takes-all outcomes, this book outlines practical frameworks for resolving conflicts in a clear, fair manner. Readers discover why principled negotiation matters and how it can reshape professional and personal interactions for the better.

Review of Getting to Yes

This book stands out for its measured method that encourages collaboration over clashing. By teaching readers how to pinpoint deep-seated concerns and separate them from personalities, it lays out steps that can ease everything from contract discussions to daily disagreements. By focusing on interests and facts, the authors show how to keep misunderstandings at bay.

The writing style is concise, making complex ideas feel accessible, and the emphasis on the BATNA method ensures negotiators never feel stuck. Whether you’re a manager, a freelancer, or simply someone who wants calmer talks at home, these lessons translate well into real life. Overall, “Getting to Yes” is a sound recommendation for anyone who wants fair, lasting results through constructive communication.

Who should read Getting to Yes?

Managers and team leaders who regularly handle workplace negotiations
Sales professionals aiming for balanced, mutually beneficial deals
Entrepreneurs who want to strengthen business partnerships
Professionals in mediation or law seeking a principle-based negotiation approach
Everyday readers looking for better ways to resolve personal conflicts

About the author

Roger Fisher, William Ury, and Bruce Patton are the authors of "Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In". Roger Fisher is a renowned expert in negotiation, serving as the Williston Professor of Law and Director of the Harvard Negotiation Project at Harvard Law School. William Ury is a distinguished anthropologist and negotiation expert, educated at Yale and Harvard. Bruce Patton, the Deputy Director of the Harvard Negotiation Project, joined as a co-author in the second edition. Together, they have developed a universally applicable method for negotiating personal and professional disputes, emphasizing principled negotiation techniques that focus on interests, not positions, and objective criteria.