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Things to Never Say While Negotiating

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Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#31

Post by Mz »

dmoney wrote: post #29
Mz wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But what happens when the Magog come pouring across it? (Just wondering.) Edit: I don't know if people don't get the reference or think I am merely being flippant. I'm not. I don't like burning bridges either. But sometimes I find it is the only way to put an end to a problem situation where the more I try to be polite and all that, the more neurotic and demanding and blood-sucking they become. If someone here knows…

I don't get the reference. The search engines don't turn up anything relevant either.

Andromeda, the TV show. On some episode, on some planet, they build a bridge to the moon and I think somehow also to the future. When they open it, the Magog from the future come pouring out. The Magog are a race that eat humans and also lay their eggs in them and the eggs feed on the (still living) humans until they hatch out. Not exactly pleasant stuff.

Or at least that's what my mangled brain recalls from watching it a zillion years ago.

It was the first thing that came to mind in response to "never burn a bridge". I am disinclined to burn bridges myself. But I find sometimes that trying like hell to avoid burning the bridge just gets me into huge messes that have me wondering if so much politeness, manners, respectfulness and what not is really a good thing. It has helped me make my peace with incidents in my life where other people torched the bridge. At least it's been put to rest.

Edit: Link: http://andromeda.wikia.com/wiki/Abridging_the_Devils_Divide

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#32

Post by imcqueen »

marcinw wrote: post #24
imcqueen wrote: post #3

If I'm the seller I would prefer to throw out a number. That way you can simply pad the starting point, coming down in price is much easier than going up.

That's great until the person you're selling to immediately jumps on that. At this point, you are left wondering, "Gee, was my offer that good? Was it too low? I wonder what he was expecting to pay. Damn, I could have made 20% more had he made the first offer." Same goes the other way around. The trick is to have both people negotiating to leave feeling as if they won. In your case, you will leave feeling as if you l…

I understand what you're saying, but I don't think I'd feel like I lost. Getting the other person to agree to your terms is winning.

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#34

Post by Duff »

joelmichael wrote: post #4

I am guilty of the "Fuck you" one. The offered terms insulted me so much I no longer wanted to do business with the person. Had I taken this article's advice, I would have stayed calm and moved toward some highly unsatisfying "middle ground" purely to "close the deal". We are faced with innumerable opportunities in our lives, and we need to filter out the best ones; for most negotiations, a successful outcome is not…

It depends on the actual negotiating position. Sometimes you are negotiating with a second stringer who isn't empowered to do what needs to be done.

If the other party needs you and knows it, the "fuck you" or "walk away" tactic brings things to a head quickly.

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#35

Post by alecco »

joelmichael wrote: post #4

I am guilty of the "Fuck you" one. The offered terms insulted me so much I no longer wanted to do business with the person. Had I taken this article's advice, I would have stayed calm and moved toward some highly unsatisfying "middle ground" purely to "close the deal". We are faced with innumerable opportunities in our lives, and we need to filter out the best ones; for most negotiations, a successful outcome is not…

The trick with douchebags is to 2x the price (or 1/2 if buying) or some other multiplier and make it clear it's non-negotiable. You don't loose your cool, the idiot will feel bad, and they'll think about it twice next time. Sometimes they get desperate and crawl back and close for 2x/3x the price and with a much more profesional attitude. YMMV

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#36

Post by notirk »

chanri wrote: post #8

Is there any way to gain practice on negotiation? As an entrepreneur, are there any resources on the internet where you can "practice"? The only thing I can think of is playing poker or something at the casino...

Negotiations is a required class at my b-school. The material is soft. The lecture itself only lasts a short amount of the time. For the rest of the class, you just practice. Negotiate with another party (using a case study to determine your role.) The class ended after the results were tallied and the class discussed different approaches to the problem. It wasn't a tough class, but it was useful and enjoyable.

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#37

Post by JabavuAdams »

nostrademons wrote: post #21
chanri wrote: post #8

Is there any way to gain practice on negotiation? As an entrepreneur, are there any resources on the internet where you can "practice"? The only thing I can think of is playing poker or something at the casino...

Have kids or babysit? Kids are awesome negotiators, because they don't care about the other party at all, they just want to get the best deal for themselves possible. They also start from a position of weakness in most negotiations, which means they need to try some wonderfully creative strategies to get what they want. Actually, I wonder why most adults lose that ability as they get older. My guess is that sometime…

This. Having a toddler has given me a lot of practice in how to negotiate. Also, a negotiation book (The Secrets of Power Negotiation) helped me with the toddler.

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#38

Post by fizx »

semanticist wrote: post #15

Perfectly optimal financial value doesn't always equal perfectly optimal social value. For my current job my employer's first offer was exactly the amount I'd been looking for. So I said 'yes' and didn't negotiate at all. Maybe I could've talked them up, but I got what I was looking for and we closed the meeting in under 15 minutes with everyone happy. If someone offers you what you want, why waste time negotiating f…

> If someone offers you what you want, why waste time negotiating for more?

Because you can use the extra amount to provide additional security for your family, or runway for your next startup?

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#39

Post by mcantor »

moe wrote: post #25
enjo wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Bah.. never burn a bridge, simply don't cross it and find another way across.

Sometimes you get the best light from a burning bridge. - Don Henley

Man! You're like the MacGyver of bridge-related quotes. It's amazing.

Re: Things to Never Say While Negotiating

#40

Post by lionhearted »

joelmichael wrote: post #4

I am guilty of the "Fuck you" one. The offered terms insulted me so much I no longer wanted to do business with the person. Had I taken this article's advice, I would have stayed calm and moved toward some highly unsatisfying "middle ground" purely to "close the deal". We are faced with innumerable opportunities in our lives, and we need to filter out the best ones; for most negotiations, a successful outcome is not…

This is true, but much better to laugh than get angry. If you get crazy-bad terms, just laugh. "Hah, whoa, that's not what I was expecting..."

If their offer is absurd, treat it like it's absurd. The key is to not take it personally. Laugh. They'll either get more reasonable, or you can walk away without burning bridges.

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