Negotiation tip of the month: Train like your opponent.
Does your negotiating partner have some specialized skill or knowledge? Where did they learn it? We have the Internet. You can probably pick up a quick version too.
Get ahead of them by understanding what they’re looking for. (Page from the delightful “I’d Really Like to Eat a Child” by Sylviane Donnio)
For example: you’re buying a used car. You’ll look at used car values, and you might look up tips on dealing with car salesmen. Take one step further and look up tips FOR car salesmen on how to sell to customers. Search for “successful car salesman training.” Listen to an episode of a car sales podcast. You’ll be able to identify the techniques they’re using, and make them work for you.
Or suppose you’re interviewing for a job. Imagine being on the other side of the desk, as the interviewer. Interviewing people is a skill. Websites like my favorite Ask a Manager contain a treasure trove of advice for employers — and that advice will help you understand what their worries are, what questions they might ask you, and what types of responses they’re looking for.
This is how I got into law school! I got a voicemail from the Harvard Law admissions office saying they’d like to talk to me. I hadn’t received a decision yet and it was nearly April. Before calling back, I frantically Googled, and found some tips for admissions officers: When it’s late in the admissions process, you want to maximize your yield, i.e., the percentage of students you admit who actually enroll. Consider speaking with the last few students to assess the likelihood they will enroll.
When I talked to the admissions officer, he said, “Why Harvard Law?” And in addition to the usual valuable programs of study, blah blah blah, I said: “And if I got in, I would definitely go to Harvard. My next choice is in New York, but my husband and I own our home in Boston, he likes his job here, and we really don’t want to move.” That got his attention. “Oh, you’re married? And you own your home?” We chatted about mortgage rates. He was satisfied. I got in.
So, put yourself in your negotiating partner’s shoes, and try to learn what they know!
Kid report: I asked my kid if he had any negotiation problems that I should write about in this newsletter. He said, “Yeah, my problem is my mom. She set my morning start time for video games to 8 a.m., and sometimes I wake up way earlier than that, and I’m losing so much valuable screen time!” Then he said, “Just kidding. Actually, 8 is good because I’m not tempted to get up early and play. I need the sleep. And I still get plenty of screen time. In fact, thank you.”
And that, my friends, is interest-based negotiation. When you do it right, your negotiating partner thanks you for finding a solution that works for them.
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Train like your opponent
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Hello Newsletter Friends!
Negotiation tip of the month: Train like your opponent.
Does your negotiating partner have some specialized skill or knowledge? Where did they learn it? We have the Internet. You can probably pick up a quick version too.
For example: you’re buying a used car. You’ll look at used car values, and you might look up tips on dealing with car salesmen. Take one step further and look up tips FOR car salesmen on how to sell to customers. Search for “successful car salesman training.” Listen to an episode of a car sales podcast. You’ll be able to identify the techniques they’re using, and make them work for you.
Or suppose you’re interviewing for a job. Imagine being on the other side of the desk, as the interviewer. Interviewing people is a skill. Websites like my favorite Ask a Manager contain a treasure trove of advice for employers — and that advice will help you understand what their worries are, what questions they might ask you, and what types of responses they’re looking for.
This is how I got into law school! I got a voicemail from the Harvard Law admissions office saying they’d like to talk to me. I hadn’t received a decision yet and it was nearly April. Before calling back, I frantically Googled, and found some tips for admissions officers: When it’s late in the admissions process, you want to maximize your yield, i.e., the percentage of students you admit who actually enroll. Consider speaking with the last few students to assess the likelihood they will enroll.
When I talked to the admissions officer, he said, “Why Harvard Law?” And in addition to the usual valuable programs of study, blah blah blah, I said: “And if I got in, I would definitely go to Harvard. My next choice is in New York, but my husband and I own our home in Boston, he likes his job here, and we really don’t want to move.” That got his attention. “Oh, you’re married? And you own your home?” We chatted about mortgage rates. He was satisfied. I got in.
So, put yourself in your negotiating partner’s shoes, and try to learn what they know!
Kid report: I asked my kid if he had any negotiation problems that I should write about in this newsletter. He said, “Yeah, my problem is my mom. She set my morning start time for video games to 8 a.m., and sometimes I wake up way earlier than that, and I’m losing so much valuable screen time!” Then he said, “Just kidding. Actually, 8 is good because I’m not tempted to get up early and play. I need the sleep. And I still get plenty of screen time. In fact, thank you.”
And that, my friends, is interest-based negotiation. When you do it right, your negotiating partner thanks you for finding a solution that works for them.
Until next month!
Pia