Have you ever tried to negotiate with a 2 year old?
Were you surprised with their negotiation skills?
Well, my son is now almost 2 and half years old and has now learnt that he has a will - a very strong will at that. Typical of children his age, he is far more concerned with getting what he wants than with executing his mother or father's wishes.
It seems to me that as children we tend to be assertive rather than accommodating in our communication with others. We are only concerned with satisfying our own needs and desires rather than satisfying the needs and wants of others around us.
It is only as we mature that we learn the world does not in fact revolve around us and that we have to fit into our environment in a responsible and positive way. We learn that we can not only do as we wish but also have to consider the rights, feelings and desires of others.
This made me think about the 5 fundamental negotiation approaches and how you can deploy them to underpin the achievement of your negotiation goals.
1.Competitive negotiation
This is a mode of negotiation that is primarily assertive and focused on your own needs, desires and targets.
2.Accommodating negotiation
This is a way of negotiation that is primarily concerned only with the needs, desires and goals of your counterpart whilst ignoring your own needs. Sales training programmes often support this negotiation strategy as the most suitable strategy.
3.Compromising negotiation
Probably the best known of all negotiation strategies. This is a mode of negotiation where you meet your counterpart in the middle. You get some of your needs, wants and objectives met and you do the same for your counterpart.
4.Collaborative negotiation
This is a style of negotiation where you attempt to satisfy all of the needs, wants and goals of your counterparts and they do the same for you.
5.Avoiding negotiation
This is a style of interaction where you do not regard negotiation as the best way to reach your goals.
The critical factors which will determine which of the above approaches should be in your negotiations is to answer the following 3 questions:
a.What is the Importance of an ongoing relationship to you?
If the relationship is critical, then you will not be able to be only competitive, you will have to at least compromise with your counterpart. If you do not satisfy the needs of your counterparts, then it is unlikely that a meaningful relationship will develop.
b.How many options are available to you?
If you have many alternatives available, you can afford to be more competitive. On the other hand, if you have no alternatives, then you will be forced to be more accommodating.
c.How much time do you have available?
If you have time on your side, then you can afford to be more competitive. The less time you have, the more accommodating you will have to be.
As you can see, it is important to ask yourself these three questions before you start negotiating so that you can pick the approach most suited to the situation at hand rather than just pursuing a negotiation strategy based only on your preference.
It is also important to remember that you should be flexible in your approach. You may want to change your strategy as new information becomes available during your negotiations.