Not tough enough

I knew that I was not being tough enough in the negotiation, and I think it came from who I was partnered with. Usually I have no problem acting and role playing, but for some reason, when I was partnered with this guy, I couldn't do it. I think I let his attitude towards the game effect me to the point where my own performance suffered. I didn't weave any interesting stories.. it was simply an exchange of :"If I give you this, I want this". I feel that I really missed out on the benefits of the game because of this.

I think I scored reasonably compared to the rest of the class, perhaps on the lower side, but still respectable. I had met my partner once before on the first day of class, and knew that his attitude towards these kind of exercises was less than enthusiastic.. therefore my preconceived notions about him did effect my performance in that I felt that if I tried to role play and use tactics such as persuasion by personal stories, etc, that the actions would not be reciprocated and I would feel foolish for trying to engage.

My performance, or lack thereof, does reflect in to my regular life. I am easily influenced by other people's lack of enthusiasm, and it can lead me to be less enthusiastic about tasks. I also have a fear of looking foolish or acting the fool in front of people. This is more of a self confidence issue, one that I am taking steps to improve. My lack of performance disappointed me. I would think that at a graduate level, I would stop being influenced by my classmates' attitudes. However, I was, and as a result, I believe that I missed out on a valuable exercise.