Art of Negotiation
Chapter 14. Rule No 4
Successful people ask better questions,
and as a result,
they get better answers. — Tony Robbins
When we examine thousands of negotiations,
from the simple to the complex,
we find that it often revolves around four key issues.
Sometimes, in negotiations,
more issues can arise,
but as a rule,
the number is usually only four.
Your task is to think through
and identify four potential problems
for both you and your partner
and what you can do to effectively deal with them.
Each individual has a crucial,
most important problem,
followed by three smaller problems,
just as important
but not as important as the other crucial issue.
For example,
when you buy a home,
your first concern will be the house itself
– its design,
attractiveness and condition.
Then you’ll be interested in pricing,
financials and terms,
what’s included in the deal,
related post-move-in,
and other details.
Another example is when you buy a new car,
your main issue is usually the model,
color and size.
But since you can buy that car at many different dealers,
the subject of negotiation will be the price,
the discount when selling the used car for a new car,
the parts, and/or the payment terms.
Once you’ve decided to buy a particular car,
your main issue will likely be its total cost.
You will then negotiate a discount on the sale of the current vehicle,
spare parts,
interest rates,
and payment terms.
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Secrets in negotiation
In a negotiation,
each side has the most important issue.
If both sides’ core concerns are the same,
negotiating or coming to a mutual agreement will be difficult.
For example, since 1947 in the Middle East
there have been many negotiations taking place
between Israelis and Palestinians.
The main issue for both sides is the territory
and existence of the state of Israel.
Israel’s number one problem is the continuation of the state’s existence.
The primary problem for Palestinians
is the abolition of the state of Israel.
Therefore,
while the above issues are still the key positions of both sides,
even if they continue to negotiate for decades,
they cannot reach any viable solution.
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Your core problem
Law number 4 is a tool of great spiritual significance in negotiation.
It gives you clarity.
By identifying your own
and the other party’s key issues,
you can gain a mutually beneficial understanding,
in which both sides get the most important thing
they want from the negotiation.
After that, the two sides can negotiate
and make concessions on less important issues.
The last thing about Rule 4 is that,
it seems,
the key issue for both sides is what will be agreed upon
at the last minute.
The 80/20 rule is very effective in negotiation.
The final 20% of a negotiation is usually spent dealing with 80%
of the most important issues being discussed.
Agree on non-controversial issues
In the previous section,
I told you about the office lease negotiation,
which involved a lengthy agreement with 52 items of change.
What I discovered
when negotiating this type of deal was
in the following highly effective technique or tactic:
Go through the entire agreement,
from start to finish,
then discuss every term,
condition and matter of difference of opinion or desire.
You will find that both you
and the other party will agree
to about 80% of the terms
and conditions in the contract regardless of their scope.
When there is a term or condition
that causes disagreement,
please agree to ignore it
and move on to the next section.
Once you’ve read the agreement,
go through it one more time,
from beginning to end,
and move on to undo any outstanding issues.
In this second review,
you will find compromises,
compromises,
and exchanges to resolve the remaining issues.
However, there will still be problems
that must be left unresolved.
If necessary,
you can review the agreement a third,
or fourth, time.
At a certain point,
you will encounter the “last fourth problem.”
You will come to a stage where four problems remain,
one of which is critical
and three smaller problems to be solved.
This is when you are ready to engage in serious negotiations.
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Terms of employment
When you apply for a new position,
negotiating salary
and benefits can greatly affect your income,
happiness,
and job satisfaction in the years to come.
Most people think that their main concern is
to negotiate the highest possible salary in the first place.
But many companies have limits on how much
they can pay for a certain job.
Often, the employer will not be able to meet your salary expectations.
In this case, you have to “shift”.
Negotiate additional benefits such as:
company car rights,
better health care plans,
more time off than required by law,
more flexible working hours,
and other important details.
One of the best strategies is to agree to a salary offer
when the employer is inflexible
and agree to what you need to do
or do to get a raise.
It is important that you convince your employer
to agree to a review of the contract within 90 days;
If you meet certain criteria,
you will get a raise.
This is a good negotiation strategy
and should be used
when you’re about to take on any new job.
We see our customers as invited guests to a party,
and we are the hosts.
It’s our job to make the customer experience a little bit better. — Jeff Bezos(Founder Amazon)
