Successful Negotiations. Sell yourself

2024 Author: Harry Day | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 15:43

The market terminology “sell yourself” doesn’t sound cynical at all. I would say realistic, since any negotiations (as opposed to get-togethers and bachelorette parties) have as their goal a certain result. Contract. Very often commercial

If you are a contractor, you sell your services; if you are a manufacturer, you sell goods. When you apply for a job, you are selling your time to the employer. What all negotiations have in common is sales. Even more general, each time the negotiator "sells" himself. It is he who represents the organization in the case of selling goods or services and himself when selling his own services or time.

Based on the foregoing, one must understand how important it is for any successful "negotiator" to represent himself, not just something, but something significant and competent. And this, of course, refers us to the issue of self-assessment in full. More on this later. In the meantime, a little theory.

Businessmen all over the world understand the importance of winning in negotiations, and therefore, psychologists have invented several different techniques of manipulation in negotiations with an opponent, force pressure, techniques of moral suppression. This knowledge is also important for politicians, managers, and so on. How can all these "tough" techniques relate to kind and sincere people who are not eager for political power?

After all, the basic principles (there are more of them, I will designate some) of negotiations under pressure (as it is called) is a psychological confrontation to resolve the question "who is on top?" It is about suppressing the will or authority of one of the participants in these negotiations. It is desirable that this be the will of your opponent, not yours.

In the psychology of hard bargaining, the following main levers of influence are described:

1. The presence of hidden compromising material on the opponent. (Dirty games, almost blackmail).

2. Misinformation, bluff. For example, some ancient generals showed their superiority to the besieged fortresses by making many fires at night, ten times their true combat strength.

A persuasive speech is more influential than a well-reasoned speech, but not persuasive. Paradox or sadness, decide for yourself, however, this is a fact.

3. The presence of a significant authority for the opponent on your side

Even children, when negotiations reach an emotional deadlock, can be heard remarks: - And who is my brother you know? In some business communities, the same thing happens all the time.

The same can be said about international negotiations.

4. Resource superiority

Showing the enemy a powerful resource lever is also an element of power pressure. Expensive cars, telephones, suits, offices, watches and jewelry are again a primitive but effective lever of forceful pressure on an unprepared opponent during negotiations.

5. Professional competence

If you have a certain expert on the subject of the negotiations on your side, then his very presence is an effective lever for the implementation of soft force pressure on opponents.

Especially when it comes to commercial transactions and price gambling situations. Often during negotiations, one can hear arguments in favor of the position of one of the parties, which is substantiated by an expert (or "independent" examination).

In the case when negotiations mainly concern the price of a product or service, or the value of you as a specialist, your professional competence should become the main (and, probably, thank God, the only) lever of pressure. And this is also power. The power of the "expert" is what it calls. And thus, we still cannot get far from the eternal confrontation. Unless the game will be fair, without blackmail and bluffing.

You need to sell yourself. And if you are now mentally objecting to me that this is not so, and you do not use leverage (pressure), I ask you to remember how carefully you dressed and did your makeup before "important" negotiations. Didn't you put on any jewelry that meant anything? And no accessories like watches and handbags?

This is called resource pressure. Whether you know about the manipulation in this case or not does not matter. Intuitively, you try to impress and … … gain power. (That's what it's called.)

I consider the position of the authority of the Expert to be more reliable. After all, what will you do if, for whatever reason, you leave your mental weight enhancers at home? All that remains is to use what cannot be taken away from you. Your Expertise. Craftsmanship.

By the way, your counterpart in negotiations is not at all obliged to know about all your talents and advantages. He will be able to see this resource superiority with his eyes, and even then, if an observant comrade gets caught. And you will have to talk about your competence personally. Fearfully? Or ashamed? To praise yourself as something…. Inconvenient…. is not it? No not like this!

The person sitting across from you needs your product or service. Or you yourself as an employee. After all, he is not obliged to buy a pig in a poke?

You can imagine yourself like no one else. You know yourself. Or not? You are definitely the one who needs this "employer" … or not?

Your self-confidence, as well as your doubts in yourself, the "negotiator" will catch on the fly. Therefore, when preparing for negotiations, it is not enough to have information about your expertise, you need to KNOW it. So to know, so that this knowledge can be transmitted to other people by various non-verbal signals.

You can, of course, "learn" these signals, however, it is impossible to maintain constant control over yourself, there is a chance that you "pierce" and throw out your real feelings, trembling like a hare's tail. Then you can blame the "not working" techniques.

Techniques do not work well without an inner core, it is true. The truth of life. Therefore, you definitely need to know your Unique Selling Proposition (that is, to know what is your uniqueness and expertise), and in addition, to know the needs of the person with whom you are negotiating.

By the way, this is a good technique that will help people with adequate self-esteem to win negotiations, and people who have lost them, to think about the adequacy of their self-esteem.

So. In any future negotiations, I suggest that you track who is conducting them. If you think they "go by themselves", try to find out exactly who is asking the questions and who is answering them. And remember who usually asks questions to a guilty schoolchild, screwed up an employee, or a spree partner.

The second part. Take the initiative. Ask questions. By the way, it is your direct responsibility to identify the customer's needs.