Skip to content
What are Negotiation Skills – Objectives – Preparation – Questions

What are Negotiation Skills – Objectives – Preparation – Questions

Conducting Negotiation

Negotiation is quit formal and effective and useful discussions between people who have different and multiple right goals or intentions, It is especially in business or politics, in which they are willing to try to reach an agreement.

What this means is that negotiation is a series of moves designed to help you achieve your goals – while taking into account the needs of other parties.

The Best Answer about Negotiation Skills – Objectives – Preparation – Questions:

“Negotiation”

Negotiation has basically two outcomes:

A win-win situation for both parties. Here both right achieve what, if not all, of what they want. The win-win result can lead to profitable, long – term relationships.

A profit – loss result. This is a situation where one party wins and the other loses. If used, it would be a “one-shot” negotiation, with the seller or negotiator not worrying about future sales.

Successful negotiations do not happen by accident or at the right time. They must be carefully planned. To this end, there are a number of steps that can be taken to assist in the process.

Target Orientation Negotiation

A Target orientation is the first impressive step on the right way to successful negotiation. Before you can go anywhere, you must know where you are going !! So you have to start this journey with the end in mind:

Objectives and objectives

  • Here you determine your actual needs. Ask yourself;
  • What exactly do I want from these negotiations?
  • What do I need to get to meet my needs?
  • What am I completely willing to give up to get what I want?
  • What are my time and economic requirements for this negotiation?

At this point you must determine what you do or do not accept as a final outcome:

Ideal result – aim high! This is what I would very much like to see negotiations with.

Realistic good result – It is usually unlikely that every time you will achieve your ideal result, so this is a right realistic expectation of what you will achieve. I’d really like to have ABC – but I’m happy to settle for XYZ.

Fall back Parameters – This is the minimum you will settle for. I accept no less than XYZ.

Unacceptable outcome – Negotiations have not produced reasonable results at this time.

With your negotiation goals and objectives well identified, you have a solid foundation to work from. You know your upper limit and, more importantly, your lower limits – and you MUST NOT be removed from it.

Preparation of Negotiation

Preparing for the negotiations is the most important aspect of the planning phase and can make the difference between success or failure.

You need to look at three issues in preparation:

  • Knowledge
  • expectation
  • Conflict

Knowledge – is, as they say, power! The more you know, the better you can negotiate. Knowledge is a power which can you must protect before you negotiate can be things like:

Detailed background information about the company you are negotiating with

  • How big are they?
  • Are they growing or falling?
  • What is their position within a wider industry?
  • Do they already have to do with your competitors?
  • What are their strengths?
  • What are their weaknesses?

Information will be good, if available, about who will negotiate on their behalf.

  • What positions do they have?
  • What are their personality types?
  • Do they have weaknesses?
  • Are they good or not good in their own organization? Why not?

General information about the industry in which you both work.

  • Current trends
  • Growth or decline of the industry
  • Newcomers in the field
  • Know your own parameters.
  • What are you willing to do without?
  • How far are you willing to drop your expectations?
  • What do you have that they may want as a consideration?
  • How much do you want to give away?
  • What are your strong points?
  • Where are your weaknesses?
  • What is the supporting framework for my position?

Know how you can make it work from the end.

If internal action on your part is required for the successful conclusion of the negotiations, are there systems in place or ready to take that action?

If internal right action on your part is very much required for the successful conclusion of the negotiations, are there systems in place or ready to take that action?

  • Where will the negotiations take place
  • What are the advantages/disadvantages of using your property?
  • What are the advantages/disadvantages of using their site?
  • Do you have to meet in neutral buildings?
  • Which facilities will be available?
  • Who will be part of your team

Are you going to negotiate alone or in a team?

1) Will these people cover a cross-section of your company so that problems can be addressed immediately?
2) Which management level will be represented?
3) What are the strengths and weaknesses of the individual team members?

Anticipation – In addition to as many facts as possible, you must also anticipate what the other side is likely to do:

  • What are their goals?
  • What are their best ideal, realistic, relapse and unacceptable outcomes likely?
  • How will I determine what their needs are compared to what they want?
  • What are the problems as they see them?
  • How will they support their position?
  • What do they have that you could ask for in return?
  • To what extent can you push them easily over certain main issues?
  • What problems can they raise with you?
  • What can they ask you to give up?
  • How will they respond to certain problems?
  • Anticipating the above (and other) problems will help you enormously. If you have done your homework carefully and made your assumptions based on good background information and knowledge, do not be surprised and do not have to make hasty concessions to make up for unexpected problems.Conflict – You must also prepare for the conflict. As much as you would like without a negotiation – it is unrealistic not to anticipate and prepare for it.

Read also about: Prosperities Meaning

You should consider things like:
  1. What will be the most important conflict points?
  2. Which parts of our proposition are they likely to attack?
  3. What tactics will you use – are you deliberately causing conflicts to win a problem?
  4. How are you going to try to resolve a negative conflict?
  5. How do you respond to the other parties’ attempt to resolve a conflict?

A good tool for your preparation is a negotiation planning form. This allows you to focus on the most important issues and ensure that nothing is forgotten.

Negotiation styles:

There are different negotiation styles. Negotiating style is also a strategy. In some cases, the style reflects the attitude of the party and an experienced negotiator can guess the result based on such behavior of the party. Negotiating style is important and reflected in communication skills anywhere, more interpersonal behavior of negotiators, movement, language, speech tones, choices, eye contact, listening power, non-verbal gestures, and judgment. In general, there are three main negotiating styles. Below is a brief description:

Problem-solving style in Negotiation:

A problem-solving style for a dispute over access could be based on the assumption that although both parents want access to their children part of the time, in practice they don’t want access either. Based on this, a negotiated arrangement can be made that is advantageous for all parties (including the children).

The problem-solving style, therefore, begins with both negotiators trying to identify the underlying needs of their customers. This can best be achieved through interviews with the client, during which the lawyer investigates with the client how he wants to settle the dispute from a social, economic, ethical and psychological point of view. Focusing on the actual (rather than the supposed) needs of customers leads to solutions that are often more complex and yet more satisfactory in terms of social justice than those that a court could order or that could lead to competitive negotiations.

The four basic tactics that Fisher and Ury describe as essential to the troubleshooting negotiation process are:

1. Separate the people from the problem; In other words, separate the interpersonal relationship between the negotiators and their clients from the benefits of the problem or conflict

2. Focus on interests, not on positions; that is, take the interests of the customers into account so that the motives, goals, and values   of the party are well understood by both parties

3. Generate a variety of options; for example, brainstorming to develop new ideas to meet the needs of the parties

4. Insist that the outcome of the negotiations be based on an objective standard, that is, assess the proposed results on the basis of an easily-determined standard basis based on objective criteria.

Communication skills in Negotiation

As a negotiator, you must have an excellent knowledge of the business environment in which you operate. These and other business skills are essential for the successful outcome of your negotiation.

However, there is one of the most relevant and important skills that you must possess is effective communication.

Communication experts estimate that only 10% of communication is in spoken word, 30% in sound (tone, pitch, etc.) and 60% in body language.

Listening skills in Negotiation

Listening is the most important of the communication methods because it enables us, if done correctly, to fully understand what is being said to us. And if we fully understand, there is little room for conflict due to misunderstanding !!

Listening takes place on 5 different levels:

Ignore. We ignore someone who speaks to us without any trouble listening.

Pretend. We pretend to listen, but in reality, we are very busy and only give attention to “half an ear” – making the right uh-huh and OK sounds in the right places.

Selective. We only have those things in the conversation that we want to hear. (schoolchildren and spouses are particularly good at this !!. and are often heard with the question when did you say that?

Attentive. Here we do the right things; we lean forward, keep eye contact, nod our heads in understanding, etc. and generally exhibit a positive listening attitude.

HOWEVER

In general, we still do not fully understand what the other person is saying. Human beings are essentially self-centered beings – we adjust our universe so that it revolves around us. What we think and what we have to say is very important to us and we focus the majority of our energy on this.

The average person can speak at a speed of 125 words per minute. The brain can think 4 times faster than speaking.

So in the time that I have said all this to you, you have had time not only to hear what I have said but also to wonder if traffic will be bad on the way home, to decide what you are going to eat and remind yourself to bring the book back to the library !! But if someone asked you what I just said, you would probably say Oh she said something about the brain that was 4 times bigger than the average person’s mouth.!

Are we just listening carefully? Or, while the other person is talking, are we already thinking about our reaction and are our busy thoughts silently working out what we are going to say?

There are few people who use the 5th level of listening:

5. Empathetic

So what is empathetic listening exactly?
Try to understand first, then to be understood

Steven Covey

The seven habits of highly effective people

This sounds simple enough – but it requires a profound change in the way we think because we usually do the opposite, try to make other people understand without making much effort to understand them.

When we talk about empathic listening, we mean listening with the full intention of really understanding the other person and his point of view. When we listen with empathy, we place ourselves in the place of the other, we:

Move to main the focus of conversation to them, show main genuine interest and care, respect their position.

Empathic listening is very powerful. Instead of projecting our own thoughts, feelings, motives, interpretations, and assumptions, we instead treat the reality in someone else’s mind and heart.

Question Techniques in Negotiation

If we really try to understand another person, we must also ask questions. To do this effectively is also an art form – it is the difference between a conversation and an interrogation.

There are a number of different types of questions that we can use to obtain information. Some of these are:

Open Questions in Negotiation:

Open relevant questions are usually used at the beginning of a conversation to obtain the right maximum information. It is a broad question that encourages a person to speak freely:

What do you think ….

Why do you feel …
Tell me about …..
What else can you tell me about …

Open questions usually start with: what, why, which, where, how, etc.

Clarifying Questions in Negotiation:

An enlightening question is a question that you ask;
make sure you understand what has been said
cap what you think the conversation was about

make sure you talk about the same thing.

Example:

So what you say is …

If I understand correctly, then if I …

Important Questions in Negotiation:

These are questions that you can intentionally use to steer the conversation in the direction that you want. If you are looking for a certain result – a leading question can help you achieve this, namely:

So we agree that we …

Don’t you think this would be … “

If I do xxx, do you want …?

Closed questions:
A closed question is one that only requires a yes/no or short sharp answer and usually starts with doing, can, is, being. These are usually used at the end of a conversation to summarize and reach a final agreement, ie;

Is this what you wanted?
Do we agree with that …
Can you tell me…

Non-verbal language

Non-verbal language – These are the subconscious signals that we send with our spoken communication and that can take many forms:

When communicating with other people, we encode our message with a whole series of signals that either supports our words – or – show our insincerity (we don’t mean what we say). These signals can (in general) be seen as some of the following:

  • Eye contact
  • Gestures
  • Facial expression etc.

Eye contact is an important part of communication. It indicates that a person listens to you, is interested, cares about what you have to say and is a good sign of a positive listening attitude. Someone who won’t meet your eyes makes you feel uncomfortable and makes you feel like you can’t trust them.

Gestures are also a way to express what you really think and feel. A person who is honest about his conversation that what he says/does will use open gestures – arms spread, palms up. People who feel uncomfortable or defensive can be seen crossing arms and leaning back, touching their nose or mouth, loosening a collar, sliding sideways in their chair, etc. Shaking the papers on a desk at a time and looking at watches are signs that person patience can be almost empty.

Individual gestures can be misread. A person who crosses his arms is not necessarily defensive, he can just be cold. We must therefore during conversation look for “clusters” of gestures, ie crossed arms, no eye contact, lean back – before we decide whether the person is defensive or has something to hide!

Tone and Pitch in Negotiation

The tone and pitch of a person’s voice can also be indications of what they think and feel.

Tone can be filled with enthusiasm, arrogance, nagging, demand, pleading, etc. And can, despite the spoken words, tell what a person’s state of mind is and how receptive they are to what is going on.

Pitch is about just as main significant – the higher the right pitch, the more emotion is involved. This can be positive or negative.

Speech rate in Negotiation

Speech speed is an excellent indicator of a good person’s current feelings at that time – the faster the speed, the more good emotion is involved. This can again indicate enthusiasm or anger and we must look for the clusters of signs. A person speaks naturally fast, but if the high speed of speech is accompanied by a high tone, aggressive body language such as sweeping arm movements – your person is most likely upset !!

Physical Appearance / Presentation

The way you physically present yourself can also say a lot without a word being spoken. Experts tell us that we have three (3) seconds to make a first impression – the following 3 minutes are then used to consolidate the impression made. After that it is written in stone and very difficult to change. So when communicating to impress, it is important to look at:
  • cleanliness
  • Her
  • Clothes
  • Trust
  • Smile
  • Attitude

Although it may be grossly unfair to the individuals involved, a man who wears overalls will not be “viewed” in the same way as a fully uniformed pilot.

What should your actual personal prepared presentation tell the people about you? It should tell them that you are confident, that you care about yourself and that you are in control !!

Surroundings: The environment in which the conversation takes place can also be a form of ‘non-verbal’ communication. The level of your interest in the person you meet can sometimes be measured;

Space: Where does the actual meeting take place; in a general public place, social or personal.

Meeting environment: Are other people present? Do they need witnesses or are they trying to intimidate … or may they want you to meet their staff or friends. You can determine which of these applies by reading the other gestures and signals that are sent.

Time: Is the other person on time or have they made you wait unnecessarily long, Did they apologize for the delay or have you just been left to sit and do wait.

Seats.

Where are you invited to sit; on a chair in front of the desk, next to the interviewer, in the lounge of the office … etc.

These are just a few of the many “environmentally friendly” ways in which we can send messages and display a “listening attitude.”

Listening attitudes are extremely important in the communication process. A positive listening attitude helps you to get a full understanding of the issues at hand and helps you reach your goal. A negative listening attitude, on the other hand, can create all kinds of obstacles, lead to confusion and in some cases hostility.

Communication Barriers in Negotiation

Sometimes new situations arise that stand in the main way of effective two-way communication and prevent us from reaching an understanding. These are called communication barriers and come in all kinds of forms.

How are conflicts created? They often occur when we stand in the way of emotions or when we misunderstand someone. We then obviously adopt a “negative listening attitude” and establish the barriers that stop the communication process.

In order for the communication to flow freely, these barriers must be recognized and removed or overcome.

Some of the most common barriers we use are:
  • Do not pay attention
  • Don’t look at a person
  • Interrupting
  • Make starting points
  • Draw conclusions
  • Tone of voice
  • Generation gap.
  • Lack of trust
  • Sarcasm
  • roughness
  • Past history
  • Cultural differences.
  • Physical barriers:
  • Noise
  • Eyes sight
  • Fatigue
  • Tension

Again we come back to listening attitudes. Positive or negative, what do you give the results you want?

The Negotiation

You have defined your objectives and goals. You have now also prepared your negotiations so that you know as much as possible about the other side and you have anticipated their response to a range of issues – so – now it is time to move on to the actual negotiation process!

Negotiating Principles

There are certain moral rules every time and actions that you must follow according to rules during your negotiation. Here is a summary of the points that you should keep in mind.

Negotiating is negotiating a mutual agreement.

  • Both parties must feel that they have won
  • Both parties achieve what they consider important.
  • Negotiations must take place between peers.
  • Possibility of making appropriate decisions by both parties.
  • Titles can differ if possible – but authority must be equal.
  • Establishes mutual respect.
  • Common respect for the rules of the game
  • Be yourself, discuss – don’t argue.
  • Do not attempt a one-upmanship
  • Avoid domination.
  • Put your cards on the table.
  • Do not act as if you have negotiating power that you do not have.
  • Explain what you can or cannot do.
  • Be patient.
  • Hasty decisions are rarely good.
  • Be prepared to take time, not in a hurry. A successful result will be worth the time.
  • Delay is better than a bad decision.
  • See the matter from the other side – without emotion.
  • Use empathy.
  • Don’t get emotionally involved – it helps you assess the position
  • To communicate.

Be open, reveal your motives and self-interest. Punching through the bushes wastes time that can be better used for other things

  • Put it on the line and let the other side do the same.
  • Don’t be dark – get to the point.
  • Avoid confrontation.
  • Do not put yourself in a position from which you cannot withdraw.
  • Don’t row – it makes negotiations impossible.
  • Avoid showdowns.
  • Stay steadfast – but calm.
  • If you disagree, do so from the point of view of the “Devil’s Advocate”.
  • Give concessions bit by bit.
  • Never admit everything – or – nothing.
  • Give it slice by slice
  • But get return concessions – if you do it … I’ll do it …
  • Know when to leave well enough.
Rarely an ideal solution, so don’t strive for:
What’s out of your reach
What is too expensive
Something that takes more time than you can afford.
State business strategies if necessary, but no objectives.
  • Objectives, personal motivation and needs must be kept secret.
  • Do not jeopardize your ultimate goal.
  • Set the highest and lowest negotiation objectives.
  • Do not sit below the lowest point.
  • Loss instead of getting a worthless deal.
  • Never relax your guard.
  • Endurance; characteristic of a good negotiator.
  • Maternity techniques are used to see if you are going to crack
  • Wait for your time in duels!
  • Always repeat your case – and theirs.

Before the actual negotiation goes through a role play, it is about the how, what and when issues of negotiation

  • Do this from your perspective and then play the scenario from the perspective of the other side
  • This could eliminate unpleasant surprises and unexpected problems.
  • Do not underestimate other people.
  • Pretend you don’t know – deceive.
  • Respect confidence when negotiating.
  • The essence of negotiation is mutual trust.
  • Negotiate positively.
  • Try to say goodbye on both sides without regret.
  • According to point 1: both parties must feel that they have won.

The 4 commandments of negotiation

In all your negotiations you must pay particular attention to these 4 activities:

Goal High – You can always trade down at that time, never up – so start with your highest real expectations.

Get the total shopping list from the other guests before you start negotiating – It is not only time consuming to find out what the other party wants bit by bit, but it can also cost you more than necessary. Negotiating each subject individually requires “giving and taking” for each. If you get to know all the requirements from the other side, you can view them all together and negotiate accordingly. Getting the full shopping list is helped by good questioning techniques: ie; We can meet you about this. The only thing in your thinking is that in order to get the best possible concession, you may have to obviously match what you called the total package yourself

Always keep the whole package in mind – As discussed above, negotiating “items” is not recommended. You must always take the big picture into account. This way you keep always better to control what could otherwise become a labyrinth of problems and you also keep control over the number of concessions that may have to be made.

Keep looking for variables – don’t compromise unless you have to. Be creative and comfortable in suggesting ideas and alternatives. Look for inventive ways to clear the “handlers” you will meet. These are people who can have some influence on decisions, but not the ultimate decision-making power.

The do’s and don’ts of concessions – Concessions are not in themselves positive movements. They can become obstacles to a solution. However, always remember the basic rule of negotiation – you must give something to get something. Make sure you have the total shopping list before you start making concessions.

Never accept the first offer

Give yourself room to make concessions. Start with your highest expectations – what you would like to achieve. You can then, if necessary, make your way to what you intend to get and what you should get.
  • Make sure they make the first concession on important issues.
  • Save as long as possible. Do not advertise your willingness to make concessions.
  • Start small, but involve flexibility.
  • Attach your concessions to it; If we do this … do you do that …?
  • Make the best deal from your concession. Milk it. What nice people are we!
  • Trade your concessions – don’t donate. Make sure they know the value.
  • Know the costs of your concessions.
  • Track concession score – too much and too fast?
  • You CAN take them back and renegotiate if necessary. Withdraw if it is no longer adequate
  • Say no “. You don’t have to agree to all the concessions they are looking for.
  • Never tell them afterward that they have admitted too much! Remember that there is always the next time.
  • The role of time.
Time is;
The standard of progress
The ally of the less pressurized side.
A means to spend and keep wisely.
Due to time constraints, you can lower your goals and make concessions.
Take the time to prepare – or you are already donating a concession.
Time reflected in an unhurried, cool relaxed way = command!

Hurry if you think you are more competent and in a win / lose situation.

Deadlines
Have your deadlines been imposed yourself? There are objective deadlines such as legal dates, rental agreement expiration dates, etc.
  • Deadlines are very useful tools in the sense that they improve the right concentration and force decisions. They avoid playing the game and bluffing.
  • Diaries also help problems and give a sense of order.
  • Deadlines must always be taken seriously.
  • Opponents have deadlines – try to discover them, ie: “I have to put together a proposal for that – when can I have it on you?”
  • Don’t make yours known.
  • Duration.

When to negotiate and for how long

  • Get complete joint agreement – but when it suits you.
  • The other side slows down or crashes? The counter-tactic is probably an ultimatum!
  • Play with time – tactically. Only increase the pressure for short periods, with long-time intervals.
  • Who MUST be present during the negotiations? The more people involved, the longer the process will take.
  • Time affects the aspiration levels – the longer it takes, the harder it becomes.
Impasses
Deadlocks are an ever-present threat that paralyzes, delays and causes total reconsiderations. They usually occur because of people – hope, attitude, fears, interests and inhibitions are all intertwined.
The negotiator is dampened by the fear of an impasse; intimidate them to say “yes” too early. Deadlock can be “stage-managed” – an appearance only to win a concession. It can also be unintended – you just stumble into it.

Until it is resolved – there is no movement from both parties.

To prevent deadlocks in Negotiation:

  • Relax and worry less about them. (you can’t win them all!)
  • If you worry, it will become visible and they will massage you to admit a point.
  • You will not prevent an impasse by admitting in search of goodwill or crawling in search of friendship.
  • Be ready. Be confident when you do that.
  • When dealing with threats – consider their likelihood of doing it.
  • Do not use provocative behavior
  • Do not go public beforehand
  • Don’t be too long in your opening position
  • Avoid their strengths.
  • Make positive proposals.
  • Use variables creatively. Pack. Consider changes
  • Give signals that you are willing to go further.
  • Agree to disagree and move on
  • Take a break
  • Discuss informally elsewhere
  • Replace team members if the chemistry is bad.
  • Call in a mediator. Take the role yourself.
  • Do nothing – be patient.

Qualities of a Good Negotiator

  • Patience.
  • Ability to think on feet and stay cool
  • Open and flexible
  • Inventiveness and creativity
  • Perseverance
  • Ambitious
  • Confident
  • Listener
  • mindful
  • Know how power can be perceived and used.
  • Self-control
  • Analytical mind
  • Persuasive
  • Courteous, handsome and tactful
  • Reasonable, rational and realistic
  • Follow through.
Before you leave the negotiating location, make sure that what you understand is that the agreement is indeed what the other party thinks it is !!

In the course of the negotiations someone will be (or should have!) Have to be delegated to take notes. A summary should be made at the end of the negotiations, clarifying each point. This is very important because this is the information that will ultimately end in the written agreement or contract between the parties.

Activities During Implementation

Another aspect that needs to be considered both during and after the negotiations is how the agreement is implemented and who is responsible for its implementation. Issues to be viewed may include:
Key people are involved.
Training and user manual required.

Time frames and deadlines can be met.

 

Thanks for reading about negotiation

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *