As we are rounding up our
Negotiation Series, i hope you have been able to pick few things on what it takes to be a good negotiator (series
1:http://emmanuelgreat.blogspot.com.ng/2016/04/the-absolute-unbreakable-laws-of.html
series2:
https://emmanuelgreat.blogspot.com.ng/2016/0/the-absolute-unbreakable-laws-of.html),
Series 3:https://emmanuelgreat.blogspot.com.ng/2016/05/the-absolute-unbreakable-laws-of_12.html ....
in order to put a conclusion to our discussion let's look at the following laws...
The Law of Reversal:
Putting yourself in the situation of the other
person enables you to prepare and negotiate more effectively.
Before any negotiation that involves a good deal of
money or a large number of details, use the “lawyer’s method” of reverse preparation.
This is a great technique that dramatically sharpens your negotiating skills.
In law school, student lawyers are often given a
case to either prosecute or defend as an exercise. They are then taught to
prepare the other lawyer’s case before they begin preparing their own. They sit
down and examine all the information and evidence and they imagine that they
are on the other side.
They prepare that side thoroughly with the full
intention of winning. Only when they feel that they have identified all the
issues that the opposing lawyer will bring up, do they then begin to prepare
their side of the case. You should do the same. Before you negotiate, write
down everything that you think may be of concern to the person with whom you
are going to be meeting. Writing things down clarifies them and enables you to
see possibilities that you might otherwise have overlooked. When you have
identified the major concessions that you think the other party will want, you
can then think what you will offer in exchange. You can see where you are
strong and where you are weak. You can identify possible areas where agreement
or compromise is possible. This type of preparation by reversal is the hallmark
of the superior negotiator.
Think through, discuss and write out every concern
or demand that you feel the other party might have before you meet with him or her
and begin negotiating. Test these assumptions by asking the other party about
his or her concerns and requirements.
The Law of Power:
The person with the greater power, real or
imagined, will get the better deal in any negotiation.
Your ability to recognize both your power and the
power of the other person is critical to your success in negotiating. Often you
have more power than you know. Often the other party has less power than he
appears to have. You must be clear about both.
The first corollary of the Law of Power says:
No one will negotiate with you unless they feel you
have the power to help them or hurt them in some way.
You must have something the other person wants, or
you must be able to withhold something he wants for the other person to take you
seriously. You must be continually thinking about the situation from the
other’s point of view so that you can position yourself for the maximum benefit
to yourself.
The second corollary of this law says:
Power is a matter of perception; it is in the eye
of the beholder.
You can often create the perception of power, of
being able to help or hinder a person in some way, with boldness and
creativity.
Often when I am getting poor service on a flight or
at a hotel, I will take out my pen and a piece of paper and politely but coldly
ask the other person, “May I have your name please?”
This invariably draws them up short. They
hesitatingly offer their name while they mentally scramble to figure out who I
might be and why I might be asking. I then ask them for the correct spelling. I
carefully write the information down and put it away. From that moment on, the
service improves dramatically. Whoever it is cannot take a chance that I might
be a senior person in the company or someone who personally knows a senior
person.
There are different types of power that you can
develop and use, either individually or together, to influence and persuade the
other party in any negotiation. The more important the issue to be negotiated,
the more time you should take to consider how you can use one or more of these
elements of power to strengthen yourself and your position.
The first is the power of indifference. The
party who appears to be the most indifferent to whether or not the negotiation
succeeds often has power over the other party if that other person wants the negotiation
to succeed more than he does. As a rule, you should always appear slightly
detached and indifferent in a negotiation, as though you don’t really care one
way or the other.
The second form of power is that of authority.
When
you have an impressive title or you look as though you have the authority to make
decisions, this image alone often intimidates the other person and enables you
to get a better deal.
With regard to authority, a powerful image can
really help you.
Dress excellently, in every respect. Dress with
power, in strong, conservative colors, looking like the president of a major
corporation. When you look like a million dollars, the other party, especially
if he or she is not as well dressed, will often be intimidated into giving you a
better deal or will be much more responsive to your demands.
The third form of power is that of expertise
The power of expertise comes from your making it
clear that you are extremely well informed on the subject under negotiation. A
person who is perceived as an expert in any situation has power over those who
do not feel as knowledgeable. And the more research and preparation you have
done in advance, the more knowledgeable you sound.
The forth form of power you can develop is that of
empathy.
Human beings are predominantly emotional in
everything that they do and say. When they feel that the person they are
negotiating with empathizes with them and their situation, they are much more
likely to be flexible and accommodating in the negotiation
The popular image of the tough-talking negotiator
is largely fictitious. Every study of top negotiators shows that they are
highly empathetic, low keyed, solution-oriented and pleasant individuals to do
business with. Good negotiators are usually very nice people. They make it
clear from the beginning that they really care about finding a solution that
everyone can live with.
The fifth form of power you can use is that of
rewarding or punishing.
When the other party perceives that you have the
capacity to help them or hurt them, they are usually far more cooperative than if
they don’t feel you have this power.
In each case, your choice in negotiating is either
to be influenced by, or to have influence over, the other party. The more of these
elements of power that you can develop and use to your advantage in a
negotiation, the more persuasive and effective you will be.
Prior to your next major purchase, sale or
negotiation of any kind, review the different forms of power described here and
think about how you can use them to give yourself an advantage. Write out and
discuss your thinking with someone else to be sure that you are completely
prepared.
Practice the power of indifference in every
negotiation as a matter of course. When you appear unconcerned or uninterested
in the success of the negotiation, you will often unnerve the other party and induce
concessions from him before you have even taken a position or made an offer.
The Law of Desire:
The person who most wants the negotiation to
succeed has the least bargaining power.
The more you or he wants to make the purchase or
sale, the less power either of you has. Skilled negotiators develop the art of appearing
both polite but uninterested, as if they have many other options, all of which
are as attractive as the situation under discussion.
The first corollary of the Law of Desire says:
No matter how badly you want it, you should appear
neutral and detached.
The more important it is to you, the more important
it is for you to appear unemotional, unaffected and unreadable. Don’t smile or
appear interested in any way. An attitude of mild boredom is best.
The second corollary of the Law of Desire says:
The more you can make the other party want it, the
better deal you can get.
This of course, is the essence of successful
selling. Focus all your efforts on building value and pointing out the benefits
the other party will enjoy when he makes the purchase or sale. Desire is the critical
element.
Make a list of all the benefits of dealing with you
before you begin negotiating. Organize the list by priority, from the most persuasive
benefit through to the least persuasive. Mention these key benefits in the
course of the negotiation and be alert to his or her reaction.
Always be polite and friendly during the
negotiation. This makes it easier for you to change your mind, to make
concessions and to compromise without your ego getting in the way. It also
makes it easier for the other party to make concessions and agree at the appropriate
time.
The Law of Reciprocity:
People have a deep subconscious need to reciprocate
for anything that is done to or for them.
This Law of Reciprocity is one of the most powerful
of all determinants of human behavior. When someone does something nice for us,
we want to pay him back, to reciprocate. We want to be even.
Because of this, we seek an opportunity to do something
nice in return. This law is the basis of the law of contract, as well as the
glue that holds most human relationships together.
This Law of Reciprocity is most active in
negotiating when the issue of concessions comes up. Ideally, every concession
in a negotiation should be matched by a concession of some kind on the part of
the other person. The giving and getting of concessions is often the very
essence of a negotiation.
The first corollary of the law of reciprocity is:
The first party to make a concession is the party
who wants the deal the most.
You must therefore avoid being the first one to
make a concession, even a small concession. Instead, be friendly and interested,
but remain silent. The first person to make a concession will usually be the
person who makes additional concessions, even without reciprocal concessions.
Most purchasers or sellers are aware of this. They recognize that early
concessions are a sign of eagerness and are prepared to take advantage of it.
Be careful.
The second corollary of the Law of Reciprocity says:
Every concession you make in a negotiation should
be matched by an equal or greater concession by the other party.
If the other party asks for a concession, you may
give it, but never without asking for something else in return. If you don’t request
a reciprocal concession, the concession that you give will be considered to
have no value and will not help you as the negotiation proceeds.
If a person asks for a better price, suggest that
it might be possible but you will have to either decrease the quantity or
lengthen the delivery dates. Even if the concession is of no cost or value to you,
you must make it appear valuable and important to the other party or it will
not help you in the negotiation.
The third corollary of the Law of Reciprocity says:
Small concessions on small issues enable you to ask
for large concessions on large issues.
One of the very best negotiating strategies is to
be willing to give in order to get. When you make every effort to appear reasonable
by conceding on issues that are unimportant to you, you put yourself in
excellent field position to request an equal or greater concession later.
Use the reciprocity principle to your advantage.
Before negotiating, make a list of the things the other party might want and decide
upon what concessions you are willing to give to get what you want. This
preparation in advance strengthens your negotiating ability considerably.
The Walk Away Law:
You never know the final price and terms until you
get up and walk away.
You may negotiate back and forth, haggling over the
various details of the deal for a long time, but you never really know the best
deal you can get until you make it clear that you are prepared to walk out of
the negotiation completely.
The first corollary of the “walk away” law says:
The power is on the side of the person who can walk
away without flinching.
When you do walk out, always be pleasant, low-keyed
and polite. Thank the other person for his time and consideration. Leave the door
open so that you can enter back into the negotiation with no loss of face.
The second corollary of this law says:
Walking out of a negotiation is just another way of
negotiating.
Some of the very best negotiators, both nationally
and internationally, are extremely adept at getting up and walking out. They will leave the room, the building, the city,
and even the country if necessary, to strengthen their positions and increase
their perceived power in a negotiation.
A common tactic, when teams are negotiating, is for
one or more of the key players on one team to get up angrily, storm out of the room
and vow never to come back. However, they will leave behind someone who will
then seek for some way to make peace with his partners and bring them back into
the discussion. The remaining party will be friendly and accommodating, as if
he is really on the side of the other people. This tactic is very common in
labor-management negotiations.
Be prepared to get up and walk out of a negotiation
before you go in. Make sure everybody knows about this and when to do it. At the
appropriate moment, you all stand up and head for the door. This will often
completely confuse and disorient the other party or parties.
Be prepared to cut off a negotiation the very
minute you get an unacceptable offer or condition. Close up your briefcase,
thank the other person for their time and head for the door. The better you get
at this, the better will be the deals you will get.
The Law of Finality:
No negotiation is ever final.
It often happens that once a negotiation is
complete, one or both parties thinks of something or becomes aware of an issue
that has not been satisfactorily resolved. Maybe circumstances change between the
signing of the agreement and its implementation. In any case, one of the
parties is not happy with the result of the negotiation.
One party feels that he has “lost.” This is not
acceptable if the two parties are anticipating negotiating and entering into
further deals in the future.
The first corollary of the Law of Finality says:
If you are not happy with the existing agreement,
ask to reopen the negotiation.
Most people are reasonable. Most people want you to
be happy with the terms agreed upon in a negotiation, especially if the terms
are carried out over a long period of time. If you find that you are not happy
with a particular term or condition, don’t be reluctant to go back to the other
person and ask for something different.
Think of reasons why it would be beneficial to the
other person to make these changes. Don’t be afraid to point out that you are
not happy with this situation and you would like to change the agreement so
that it is more fair and equitable to you
.
The second corollary of the Law of Finality says:
Use zero based thinking on a regular basis by
asking yourself, “If I could negotiate this arrangement over again, would I
agree to the same terms?”
Be willing to examine your previous decisions objectively.
Be prepared to ask yourself, “If I had not made this agreement, knowing what I
now know, would I enter into it?” This ability to engage in zero-based
thinking, to get your ego out of the way and to look honestly and realistically
at your ongoing situation, is the mark of the superior negotiator.
Review your current situation and especially those
ongoing arrangements with which you are dissatisfied in any way. Think about how
you could reopen the negotiation and what sort of terms and conditions would be
more satisfactory to you.
Whenever you experience stress or unhappiness with
the existing agreement, or whenever you feel that the other party is dissatisfied,
take the initiative to revisit the agreement and find a way to make it more
satisfying for both parties. Think long term.
Summary
Negotiating is a normal and natural part of life.
You owe it to yourself to become very skilled at it. As in anything else, the
key to excellence is for you to practice at every opportunity. Make it a game.
Ask for what you really want. Ask for better
prices, better terms, better conditions, better interest rates, and better
everything. Realize that you can save yourself the equivalent of months and
even years of hard work, by learning how to become an excellent negotiator on
your own behalf. And you can if you think you can. You can if you just ask
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