In This Issue:

• Practical Business TeleClass Series
• Article (Part 5 of 5):
  10 Finesse Tips for Negotiating In Tough Situations
• About Us
• Subscribe/Unsubscribe Info

• Practical Negotiations™ TeleClasses + Basic Negotiations:
  +Laying the Foundation
  + Upward Selling and Negotiations: 36 Success Tactics to Use with Your Manager
  + Negotiating the 8 Steps To Team Success
  + 10 Actions To Take Before Negotiating or Signing Any Supplier Agreement
  + Negotiating Rough Waters: Using Finesse to Handle Difficult People or Challenging Situations

This month we complete our five-part series on practical business negotiations and cost savings by offering you ten tips to consider the next time you find yourself negotiating in tough situations.

10 finesse tips to use in 2003:

(1) Face the Emotion
(2) Understand the Emotion
(3) Uncover Underlying or Hidden Agendas
(4) Determine Negotiable and Non-Negotiable Boundaries
(5) Break Down Charged Behavior Into Concrete Issues
(6) Clarify Mutual Expectations and 'Hot Buttons'
(7) Identify Patterns and/or Historical Issues
(8) Determine Whether Communication Style Gaps Exist
(9) Understand Corporate Political Alliances
(10) Recognize and Bridge Cultural Differences

Tip #1: Face the Emotion

All too often people avoid dealing with unpleasant emotions in a business setting, however, skirting underlying emotional issues can prevent your negotiations from moving forward. One of the challenges you face in approaching an emotionally charged situation is remaining focused on one or two areas without dredging up emotional baggage that doesn't apply to the current situation.

Tip #2: Understand the Emotion

Emotional outbursts can immediately put us on the defensive if we don't take the time to listen between the lines. Understanding a person's emotional response is to step back and listen to what the person is *really* saying to you. You may be reluctant to address an issue cloaked in emotion, however, to not do so could eventually breed resentment on your part or result in a damaged relationship down the road.

Tip #3: Uncover Underlying or Hidden Agendas

There are a myriad of reasons why people don't share information. They may feel the need to protect themselves, to position themselves for political reasons, or to even test the relationship waters. Your objective is to understand your counterpart's true motives and what they need to accomplish during the negotiations. Understanding the other party's primary needs and wants will often times surface hidden agendas. The process can feel as if you're putting together a tabletop puzzle that can't be completed in one sitting. Hidden agendas might slow the pace of negotiations, but to not surface and resolve them is to risk a win-lose outcome or lead you into a false sense of a win-win relationship.

Tip #4: Determine Negotiable and Non-Negotiable Boundaries

Negotiable boundaries are personal and professional areas which we either formally or intuitively understand about ourselves and others. Negotiable boundaries represent a "playing field" where you and your counterpart might find yourselves compromising on negotiating points. Even hidden agendas can be negotiable, however, you'll need to break key points into common denominators before mutual agreement can take place. Non-negotiable boundaries are often value driven and difficult, if not impossible, to negotiate a compromise. Determining non-negotiable boundaries require that you listen to nuances of words and language during the conversation, e.g., pauses and intonation as well as observable body language. To not respect a boundary area considered off-limits is to chance triggering a charged response or forcing an issue to go "underground".

Tip #5: Break Down Charged Behavior Into Concrete Issues

Charged behavior is an emotional response often traced to a combination of messaging and delivery, e.g., what we say and how we say it. You'll want to break apart the charged behavior into bite-sized pieces that allow you and your counterpart to discuss them in a non-threatening way. If possible, try to facilitate an emotionally charged situation early on in your negotiations. Get buy-in from the other party as to issues that may need to be resolved before attempting to move forward with your negotiations. Creating an environment where decisions are mutually discussed and agreed upon by participants will level the playing field and help to dissipate charged or aggressive energy.

Tip #6: Clarify Mutual Expectations and "Hot Buttons"

Define mutual expectations at the beginning of your negotiations. Whether the relationship is new or an already established one, verbalizing expectations, e.g., what you expect from another person and what they expect of you, can mean the difference between two-way communication or miscommunication. During this time you'll also want to validate "hot buttons", e.g., actions or behaviors that can trigger a charged emotional response. Asking questions such as "How would you prefer that I advise you of missed deadlines?" may generate a response that tells you more about what the other person expects of you in respect to deadlines and advance notification.

Tip #7: Identify Patterns and/or Historical Issues

People, places, and situations have a way of coming back to us as haunting reminders or as opportunities. Perhaps, you have a "checkered" past with your counterpart or you have a history with this type of situation, e.g., aggressive tactics make you feel defensive and less in control. It's important to check-in with your emotions lest you bring unresolved feelings into the negotiations and wind up creating a situation that never moves beyond the emotive state. Consider having a separate meeting with the individual(s) prior to your negotiations meeting. Use this meeting to deal directly with any past issues or unresolved conflict in a non-blaming, factual manner. Although you're not able to undo the past you can choose to address lingering hurts that could get in the way of achieving a win-win outcome.

Tip #8: Determine Whether Communication Style Gaps Exist

The fact that we process information in different ways can often times result in miscommunication. Gaps between people with different communication styles can cause us to respond in less than desirable ways when attempting to be heard by others. Aligning your communication preference with your counterpart's style can build rapport in a way that allows for a better two-way flow of information. For example, suppose your communication style is direct, e.g., you prefer a succinct delivery of information with few words and minimal body language. Your counterpart prefers brainstorming ideas and creative solutions before narrowing his choices. Not accounting for these differences, and choosing not to modify your crisp style, could result in a strained relationship where unmet needs go "underground" and become future hidden agendas.

Tip #9: Understand Corporate Political Alliances

Prior to your negotiations meeting you will want to become aware of any politically motivated agendas. Based on your initial research you may decide to call a "bridge-building" meeting prior to negotiations or instead choose to use the information purely as background knowledge. Identifying links or alliances across the organization (don't forget "political baggage" where loyalties still exist although an individual is no longer with the organization), requires that you understand your company's formal and informal culture, as well as how the culture rewards politically motivated behavior. Many business professionals don't appreciate the differences between "water cooler" office politics and savvy political dynamics and, therefore, avoid participating in anything that smacks of office politics. Although both environments require understanding of how to "read" people and situations, the savvy business professional learns how to leverage corporate politics in order to create alliances that fuel win-win results.

Tip #10: Recognize and Bridge Cultural Differences

Recognizing that differences exist allow us to approach them in a healthy manner instead of expecting everyone to think and act the way we do. The biggest challenge for many people when negotiating with individuals who come from different backgrounds than our own is a lack of patience or unwillingness to learn new ways of communicating. Building trust and credibility with people from different cultures may require that you both alter the pace of your negotiations as well as your definition of a win-win outcome. Establishing the relationship may take on greater importance than the negotiating points themselves.

Conclusion

Forging partnerships and building relationships will help develop your prowess as a negotiator. A savvy understanding of human dynamics before, during, and after negotiations will ultimately ensure your long term success.

To read past articles visit our web site at:

http://www.RisktakingForSuccess.com/newsletter/archive/index.htm