Are you a successful negotiator
If you’re going to be a successful business owner, you have to be able to negotiate effectively. Like perfecting any other business skill, you have to do two things: 1) Educate yourself on the discipline; and 2) practice.
Experts will tell you that negotiating is a process of communication between two or more parties to reach an agreement on future behavior. Sounds like a normal day with customers and vendors, doesn’t it?
Let’s look at the two operative words in that definition — process and communication.
Process: A negotiation is like running a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a process that takes time and usually involves many steps. Understanding this will help you set yourself up to be more patient, which is important because impatience by one party is the other party’s best negotiating leverage.
Communication: There are verbal and non-verbal ways to communicate in a negotiation. Punctuality, appearance, organization and attention to detail are all communication elements. Plus, you communicate in absentia with the quality of the documents you produce. Never underestimate the heightened awareness of every aspect of a negotiation and make sure that all contact with the other party contributes to your negotiating objectives.
Now let’s look at three critical negotiation questions to ask yourself.
1. What do I want?
If you don’t know exactly what you want, how will you know when to stand firm and when to give something away? And if the other party senses you’re not focused, they will either disengage or view you as weak prey and take advantage. Either way, you lose.
2. Why should the other party negotiate with me?
If the negotiating genie grants you one wish, ask for what motivates the other party. Try to determine that information as soon as possible; you can get everything else in due time.
3. What are my options?
The best way to win a negotiation is if you don’t have to do the deal. If you can walk away from a deal that isn’t moving in your favor, you have an advantage. Your “Plan B” doesn’t have to be perfect — just an alternative. And don’t be surprised if you discover that your second choice was the best one all along. Nothing is more powerful in a negotiation than being in a position to walk away.
Finally, whatever you do, don’t fall in love with any deal unless you want to make the other party’s day. Love is for lovers — this is business.
Write this on a rock... In business, everything is negotiable. The question is, are you a capable negotiator?
Jim Blasingame is creator and host of the Small Business Advocate Show.
Copyright 2010, author retains ownership. All Rights Reserved.
