Ten Commandments for a Negotiator

Manik

Negotiation

• Negotiation is a necessary element in life and career.

• We do negotiation at our home, office and every corner of life.

• The best teacher of a businessman is his customer.

Ten Commandments

1. You should love & cherish your profession

• In order to negotiate well, one must love it.• A good negotiator enjoys the negotiation process

in the first place, is thoroughly involved in, and strongly identifies with the issues at stake.

• Professionalism must me there; Professionalism as an intellectual and emotional involvement and commitment to the profession itself.

• True negotiators are enthusiastic about negotiation.

2. Be Courage

• A good negotiator must command respect.• Respect cannot be conferred by rank or

functions; it is due to character.• In German terms, there are two different

qualifications: Entschlussahig, it means ‘Capable to make decisions.’ And Entshlussfreuding, it means ‘enjoys making decisions.’

• Enjoying decision making is a quality that’s rarely found.

3. The Eagle’s Eye Must be Yours.

• Good judgment, quick assessment of the situation is necessary in negotiation process.

• Without it, courage remains blind. • For a negotiator, quick assessment of the

situation is what a targeting device is to a guided missile.

• Speed of assessment is vital because time is the eternal enemy of the negotiator.

• Warning: Quick assessment does not always mean a quick answer. The answer, once the assessment is quickly made.

4. There are no Problems, only Opportunities.

• ‘Problems often hypnotize the negotiator, just as the cold eyes of the snake immobilize the little rabbit.’ – President of Trans World Airlines.

• Where there is no situations, no problems that do not offer opportunities.

• By viewing a problem as an opportunity, you often discover new, sometimes surprising proposals.

5. Be Honest under all Circumstances.

• Negotiation is a Fight, but not a fight alone.• It is a fight with a specific character.• The good negotiator is not simply a fighter

for victory, but a fighter who seeks to win the mind, the sympathy, and the cooperation of his or her opposite number.

• Strong feelings that the negotiators are Partners rather than Opponent.

• A good negotiator must also develop an understanding of needs of the negotiating partner.

6. Love your Opponent even if you receive something Less in Return.

• Negotiators are in contradictory situation: • Each wants the problem resolved in a self-

interested way, this separates them.• On the other hand, each of them has to resolve

the same problem, and this unites them.• Negotiators are like two workers carrying the

same burden: whether they like it or not, they are part of the same “chain gang.”

• The better negotiator respect the other side and bad negotiator is rude to the other side.

7. Put yourself in the shoes of your opponent, but do not remain there too long.

• Negotiation involves personal contact, communication and interaction.

• You can not reach an agreement without knowing as “where the shoe hurts.”

• Knowing it is one thing. Reacting to it is another thing.

• Danger: Having put oneself in the shoes of the other fellow can lead on which those were marching.

• The right attitude in such situation is to find answers that alleviate the burden of the other party while also providing satisfaction for yourself.

8. Convert your Opponent into your Partner.

Every negotiator needs help, and the person who is in the best position to give this the opponent.

Indispensable element in any negotiation: TRUST

9. Do not Act before you find out what your Partner’s Aims are.

• The first stage of negotiations has to be to find out, to the greatest extent possible, what the partner really wants to achieve, once you know it, start the bargaining.

10. Your Partner is at least as Intelligent as you are; but you must have more will.

• The good negotiator never underestimates the intellectual capacity of nay opponent.

• Rather, a good negotiator closely observes every move of a partner, giving very serious attention to each action.

• A good negotiator will realize that negotiation is not a contest of intelligence but a contest of WILL.

Conclusion: Negotiator’s PERSONALITY is a Crucial negotiating TOOL.

Manikmanik_gias55@yahoo.com