A lot of good things in life come after negotiation (or after a strike, if I’d be a proper Frenchman perhaps? 🇫🇷🤷🏻♂️), not on a silver platter .
And this applies also to life in business even more, and for everyone, not just in Sales:
- negotiate a raise
- negotiate a promotion
- negotiate the right to work from home
- negotiate a holiday
- negotiate an extended deadline
- etc..
So learning the basics of negotiation can benefit anyone.
And while it takes a lifetime of learning to become an expert at it, you can apply the Pareto principle - knowing the 20% that will yield 80% of the result.
Things like:
- Putting yourself in the other one's shoes (see #CareerPlaybook 011)
- Anchoring: the higher you start, the higher you'll end
- Leverage: knowing (even increasing where possible) and using your leverage (the value you have) is critical.
- Creativity: being proactive in creating a deal structure that will be a win-win.
- BATNA (Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement): have a Plan B when entering negotiations.
Learning the basics
There are tons of resources to help you learn just what you need, to get more of what you want.
Two book recommendations, that are very accessible for anyone:
"Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It"
https://www.amazon.com/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended-ebook/dp/B014DUR7L2/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0
by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz
"Getting to Yes: Negotiating an agreement without giving in"
https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Yes-Negotiating-agreement-without-ebook/dp/B008YUNDJS/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0
by Roger Fisher and William Ury
Regarding anchoring (the principles around price setting and its effects), the book "[Priceless]
(https://www.amazon.com/Priceless-Myth-Fair-Value-Advantage-ebook/dp/B003DRO5OY/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0)"
by William Poundstone is eye-opening.
If you do not want to invest the time in reading a whole book, Harvard's Law School's "Top 10 Negotiation Skills You Must Learn to Succeed" post and their "Negotiation Skills Daily" blog series is a good resource.
Learning to read one's body language and face expressions is also a valuable skill in negotiation. We'll address this in a future post.
It will pay many times over
As per #CareerPlaybook 001: Always Be Learning, having a specific project in mind is the best way to learn a new skill.
What are you longing for at the moment in your workplace?
Make that your goal and learn to negotiate with it in mind.
It will be a useful skill throughout your life, in a lot of different situations, even if you just know the basics of it. You will be able to get more of what you want.