Jim Camp, founder of the Camp Negotiation Institute, offers some sage advice based on more than twenty years of coaching negotiations both large and small. “2012 is going to be a stressful year for all of us,” says Camp, noting the long political campaigns and the challenged U.S. economy. “Since we all will engage in every kind of negotiation every day, there are ways to ensure they come out to your advantage.”
1. Start with no. Resist the urge to compromise. Instead, invite the other person to say "no" to your proposal. (Hint: Don't tell them what it is -- at least not yet.) The invitation to say no will earn you respect and remove all the tension from the discussion.
2. Dwell not. Don't dwell on what you want or you'll blow your advantage. Throughout the discussion, focus instead on controlling your actions and behaviors in the moment.
3. Do your homework. Learn everything you can before you begin. This way, you avoid surprises, whether you're dealing with the boss, a car dealer, or your own teenager.
4. Identify obstacles. Before the meeting, identify everything you can think of that might come up during the negotiation; your baggage and their baggage. If you don't, you could walk into a minefield.
5. Expose the elephant. Bring your problem, their problem, and anything else standing in the way of your agreement out into the open. Doing so clears the air, eliminates surprises, and gives you an edge.
6. Be like Lt. Columbo. Let the other party feel superior to you. This is the "Lt. Columbo Effect." Don't dress to impress, name drop, use fancy language, lecture, or get on a grandstand. The more smug and confident they feel, the easier it is to get what you want.
7. Shift into neutral. Neutral emotions, that is. Check all emotions at the door and let go of any expectations, excitement, fear, anger, and neediness. An emotional blank slate keeps you balanced and alert.
8. Build your mission and purpose around them. Every negotiation, whether it's a phone call or a formal business meeting, needs a mission and purpose. Your mission and purpose is to help the other person see how your three or four top features will benefit them and help them achieve their goals.
9. Get them talking. The person talking most loses the advantage. Ask great questions that begin with what, why, how, when, and where. Learn about his or her needs, requirements, hopes, fears, plans, position, and objectives so you can position yourself as the solution.
10. Solve their problem. Help them see that giving you the deal you've proposed is to their advantage. Spend all of your time getting information about their world, the challenges they anticipate, and the problems they see -- and then present yourself as the solution.
Nightingale Conant has just published Camp’s “The Power of No: Negotiation Secrets the Pros Don’t Want You to Know”, a CD audio book. For information about the Institute, visit [url=http://www.campnegotiationinstitute.com]http://www.campnegotiationinstitute.com[/url].
Jim Camp is CEO of The Jim Camp Group and the author of two best selling books on negotiation. His website is startwithno.com
