THE PROS AND CONS OF THE #NUCLEAR DEAL reached between #Iran and the #Six Super Powers today will be analysed for days and months but for everyone interested in the #Art of Negotiation, the deal clearly drives home the virtues of  thinking “win-win”  in sharp contrast to the “heads I win, tails  you lose”  attitude that is the hallmark of most negotiations.

PARTIES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE NEGOTIATING  TABLE  in the #Iranian Nuclear Deal did of course  resort to every trick available – bullying, brinksmanship, obduracy – what worked in the end however was the calm realisation on both sides that everyone had a lot to lose by walking away  but a lot to gain if they thought “win-win”.

THE #IRANIAN NUCLEAR DEAL STILL REMAINS FRAGILE  (Obama went on record to say that it was based “not on trust but on verification”) but those who steadfastly remained at the negotiating table must be complimented for their pragmatism, for recognising their individual limitations and for staying on course despite provocations from various quarters.  We must also not lose sight of the important fact that on the home front, Iranian negotiators have had to confront as well as tide over  the deep rooted “suspicion of the West”  prevalent amongst a pretty large section of the ruling elite and the local population just as the negotiators of the Super Powers have had to face the intense “demonisation of Islam” and doubts about “the ability of Iranians to keep their promises” prevalent in no small measure in their respective countries.  #Sanctions against Iran may well have continued indefinitely.  It speaks for the maturity of both sides who realised in the end that it would be futile to maintain their original irreconcilable positions.  A leap of faith has surely occurred here.

IN NEGOTIATIONS NORMALLY,  ALL of us love to “score points”, “prove the other side wrong” and conclude discussions in the fervent hope that “we gained” and “the other side lost”.  We don’t immediately realise that the so called “dominance” we yearn to exercise over the “other side” destroys what little goodwill that remains and that by such conduct we only leave open a chance for the “other side” to “get even” when an opportunity surfaces.  Mercifully, after 24 months of  talks, the participants in the #Iran Nuclear Deal have finally managed to avoid such pitfalls and both sides now clearly know and understand the consequences of reneging on each other’s undertakings.

WE MAY PERHAPS BE TOO CLOSE TO HISTORY  to judge the true merits of the #Iranian Nuclear Deal but there is little doubt that the true #Art of Negotiation reached historic heights today and probably there is no greater example in world history yet where “thinking win-win” has arguably made the world more safer for us despite the rumblings in Israel, Saudi Arabia and Qatar over the said deal.

BEFORE THE BREAKTHROUGH IN IRAN,  thinking “win-win”  reached another great milestone and that was in Cuba where decades of prejudice and animosity have now opened rich and positive avenues for economic growth both for U.S and Cuba.

AS WITH NATIONS, SO WITH INDIVIDUALS.  We do need to think “win-win”  in our relationships be it at home or at the workplace.  Only then can we look forward to better tomorrows.