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Negotiate Your Way To Wealth And Personal Success ...
More Negotiating ...
- If the other party prepared the agenda for discussions, look carefully for items deliberately left out. If you want omitted points included, insist that they be added, and if the order of discussion puts you at a disadvantage, ask that the order be changed. Better yet, volunteer to write the agenda. If you arrange it as suggested earlier it gives you a big advantage. But since most people don’t think the agenda is important, you can win an initial victory unopposed.
- Earlier I recommended you hold the meetings in the other party’s office, but there is one important danger with this. If there are three members of the other party, their secretary can call two out on false pretext. Once outside, they can discuss their next move in private. But you can’t talk with your colleagues because their third person is still with you. If that happens, politely ask the third person to give you a few moments alone to discuss the matter.
- When you’re asked a question, ask the other party to clarify it. The way they elaborate may reveal any traps which were hidden in the question. And their elaboration may give you a guide to their overall negotiating techniques.
- Avoid elaborating yourself.
- Earlier, I suggested having one person on your team act aggressively and another conciliatory, but I didn’t say what to do if the technique was used on you. If it is, recognise it for what it is - just an act. You know the aggressor’s threats are not as serious as he pretends. So don’t worry about them - even if you give the appearance of being worried. One way to stop the agressor in his tracks is to threaten to leave. That means the conciliator must take over and introduce a little compromise. Similarly, don’t be fooled by the conciliator’s friendliness. It is also an act - designed to lull you into false security. So don’t make any concessions to the conciliator just because he’s a “nice bloke”.
- If you look like heading into a deadlock, say: “they way we are going, we may not be able to reach an agreement”. People don’t like deadlocks. They are too final. So this type of comment can often soften them into making more concessions.
- If you can’t see how you can solve your side of the problem, ask the other party to suggest a solution which may be acceptable to you. They are just as anxious as you to reach an agreeable conclusion. If you ask courteously how you might be able to solve your problem they might come up with your answers.
- If you look like you may win, try to express the agreement in a way that saves face for the other party.
- When leaving the other party’s office, don’t say anything until well clear of the building. You may be overheard, even in elevators of city buildings. So don’t make any comment which could reveal your feelings.
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