Preparation for the Rescue

I acknowledge that I may not be a great speaker or influencer. However, I’ve come to understand the power of preparation in overcoming personal challenges to some extent, regardless of the situation. Concepts such as Aspiration, Resistance Point, and BATNA serve as valuable negotiation frameworks. I see them as essential elements of preparation, helping me discern my preferences and common interests, thereby fostering mutual respect. They also guide me in knowing when to break barriers during negotiations.

Share information and encourage reciprocity

Building trust is core to success and I genuinely share information and get to know the other part well. I would also encourage the other party to reciprocate the same. Sharing makes it easier to build trust and also set the expectations from the get-go. It also helps reduce the other side’s uneasiness, because the other party knows that both sides will be vulnerable.

Using Silence As A Tool

I’ve uncovered Silence to be a technique that I can utilize when needed to ground the negotiation on the most important thing that I need to get out of a negotiation. It helps me avoid rambling and allows the opponent to pay attention to my needs and start reacting to it. I have also come to a realization of how my silence impacts assertiveness. I’ve touted silence as a means to just shy away from tough conversations or even to make a point when I disagree with the ongoing conversation and make myself alienated.

Meet Ahead To Reduce Within‐group Interpersonal Complexity

Working with a group that contains diverse perspectives is always a challenge, especially when the group has to get together with a particular set of viewpoints to stay united and then challenge the opponent group. One key revelation for me was how meeting face to face as a mini-group ahead of time and also how establishing some ground rules helps with the actual group negotiation with ease.

Meta Negotiation

Starting the negotiation by discussing a plan for the negotiation session helps create shared expectations of the process. It also helps set the stage by sharing priorities and how to approach them methodically. Of late, I’ve also been using this at work not just for negotiation scenarios but also in general to any conversation in a meeting so that people felt comfortable with the usage of time in zoom meetings and also understand why the meeting is called and how their inputs are key to create success during the meeting or in whatever the course of the activities related to the meeting was.

Start to Interpret demands as opportunities

I usually assume that the other party that I am negotiating with is going to go tough on me but I always plan to use poking-questions as a mechanism to Start to Interpret demands as opportunities. I plan to not be silent and accept but rather confront difficult demands and see what I can learn from the other side’s insistence on this issue. Ultimately I want to figure out how I can use the information to create and capture the value and create a win-win situation.