In the first part of this blog series, we discussed what negotiation is, the different types of negotiations, Harvard principles of negotiation and its processes. In this part, we mostly focus on the different negotiation skills and techniques you need to acquire in order to be excellent at it.
Negotiation Skills you must have:
Try to acquire these skills if you want to be a good negotiator:
Ability to work with others:
-Influential/ Dominant/ Integrity:
To begin, you must understand how your actions affect others. With your personality, you can make a favorable impression on some people but a bad impression on others. So be conscious of your personality.
Make an effort to be influential. This skill, when used correctly, has the potential to transform the entire negotiation. With this talent, you may simply convince others to endorse your point of view by pointing out the benefits of following your conditions.
Try to be a little bit dominant and show your consistency in addition to being influential.
Later try to be thoughtful and honest, you must adhere to strong moral and ethical ideals. This shows the other party that you are willing to work together to achieve a win-win outcome.
Rapport Building:
Make a connection with another person in which you both feel supported and understood. The primary conditions for establishing rapport are respect and attentive listening.
Communication:
-Talking/ Listening:
This skill will assist you in being clear about what you’re saying and expressing yourself in a compelling manner.
Most importantly, you must pay attention. You must reply by nodding and selective inquiry to show that you are paying attention. Finally, you might inquire as to whether you missed any things or if they covered everything. Alternatively, you could request a point review.
Fast decision development:
– Compromise/ Future Management/ Problem Solving/ Planning:
During a negotiation, be decisive.
Practice solving small problems in a short amount of time. Always attempt to come up with creative solutions to everyday difficulties. Then it will aid in the development of far better decision-making skills than before.
Adjust your expectations with each adjustment and find a balance with the other person. Always be aware of:
- What do they desire?
- What motivates them to do so?
- What exactly are you looking for?
And every negotiation needs preparation, as well as the development of the ability to evaluate all possible outcomes and the ability to perceive issues and solutions.
All of the previous abilities will assist you in making BATNA in negotiations, which is the making of the least acceptable offer as a substitute.
Emotional Intelligence:
A small amount of emotion can sabotage the entire negotiation process. So keep control and be aware of the other party’s feelings at all times.
Patience:
It is the most important skill to have in order to successfully use other skills. Negotiation is a time-consuming procedure. So be patient, take your time to make a decision, be ready to renegotiate if necessary, and be open to counteroffers.
Remember: To feel calm, try to act calm.
Adaptability:
Every negotiation is unique from the others. Every negotiation teaches you something. You take various choices to keep up with various negotiations. As a result, you should be able to adjust to any scenario without difficulty.
Negotiation Techniques:
- This may sound wired, but always remember: Negotiate only when it is absolutely necessary. Always prepare brief research to help you secure your position and strengthen your negotiating power.
- You should listen more than you speak. This also helps in the reduction of your own errors and hazards.
- Set your tone and attitude according to your surroundings because your negotiation style depends on it.
- Always strive to come up with a win-win situation. This will help in getting repeat business from the same party.
- Always do some background study on the party with whom you will be negotiating.
- Learn to enjoy the negotiation process and try to persuade others to do so as well.
- Present Multiple offers so the negotiation looks easy.
- Never negotiate with yourself. Never consider making a compromise simply because the other party is offering a significantly lower price.
- Never take the first offer that comes your way. Because behind every first offer, there is always a better one.
- Never make the first offer if you can avoid it.
- Never give gifts or discounts. If you give discounts the first time, the opposing party will demand more on the second deal.
- Never go overboard with your costs. Always mention the grand total. Alternatively, they can eliminate those tasks that they can easily do.
- Before making a final offer, ask yourself these three questions:
-
- What will it cost me?
- What does the other party think it’s worth?
- What do I ask in return?
- Never make a quick decision. If the other party appears to be hurrying the agreement, it’s possible that they’re trying to take advantage of you. So the remedy is, respectfully request them to slow down.
- In the name of honesty, never reveal your bottom line. It’d be a mistake.
- Know when to walk away keeping your timeline in mind.
Negotiation Examples:
- Hypothetical:
Let’s discuss a classic negotiation example, where 3 brothers argue over a pumpkin they all want. I call it the “Share The Pumpkin” story. Let’s call these three gentlemen A, B, and C. All of them want the pumpkin that has grown in their backyard for a particular reason.
Here, they’re all squabbling over a POSITION. They are yelling and arguing with one another and no one wants to make a concession.
Their parents arrive later and inquire about why they need the pumpkin so badly.
-A says, “I want to use it to make a pumpkin ghost and turn it into a Halloween lantern.”
-“I’ll bake pie”, says B.
-C replies, “The pumpkin looks fantastic, and I want to grow more of it.”
To sum it up:
A wants the shell,
B wants the meat, and
C wants the seeds.
All three of them want the same item but different parts of it. Each of them has a different purpose for the pumpkin. Hence, by sharing the pumpkin, they can reach a win-win scenario.
- Real-Life Example: The Lucasfilm acquisition of Walt Disney
Lucas, the founder of Lucasfilm, was preparing to retire and Walt Disney was interested in purchasing the company. Although at first, it appeared that it was all about position, but in truth, it was all about interest. Both Lucas and Walt Disney had a strong interest in the matter.
Lucas, as I previously mentioned, was preparing for his retirement. However, his side specifically requested that he remain the franchise’s (Star Wars) inventor and retain all creative and financial control. And because Lucas and his crew were working on Star Wars episodes seven, eight, and nine, he requested that their unfinished work be completed.
Walt Disney was perfectly fine with Lucas’ demand. They did the same thing with Marvel and Pixar’s previous acquisitions. All they wanted was ownership and access to Lucasfilm. They did, however, give Lucas the position of advisor on the innovation team. In addition, Walt Disney requested the screenplay for episode seven in order to conduct further negotiations.
The ultimate agreement took almost five months to reach. Later on, we all realized that Lucas and Walt Disney made the right decision. Both contributed to the success of Star Wars Episode 7, which smashed the box office, making about USD 2.066 billion. This is a classic example of a real-life win-win negotiation.
Conclusion:
Negotiation has the potential to bring out the best outcome in any given situation. However, it isn’t something you can acquire in a day. In order to succeed, you have to continue to practice and learn from your mistakes, as well as adopt creative actions; all of these things will aid in the development of this skill.
Always remember, In life, you don’t get what you want, you get what you negotiate for.
References:
- Negotiations Skills
- https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/top-10-negotiation-skills/
- https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/negotiation.html
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/adaptability-skills
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/process-of-negotiation
- https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/negotiation-skills
- https://www.negotiations.com/articles/negotiating-skills/
- Example
- https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/negotiation-skills-daily/famous-negotiators-feature-in-top-negotiations-of-2012/
- https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/batna/star-wars-stories-george-lucas-and-a-strong-batna-passed-over/
- Conclusion:
- https://www.managementstudyguide.com/negotiation.html
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