Bad habits of good negotiators

Are your negotiation tactics flying in the face of what actually works at the bargaining table? According to Adam Grant, Wharton professor and negotiation skills expert, many Fortune 500 executives who excel at preparing, analysing options, and establishing a strong position are getting it wrong. In a LinkedIn article he argues that negotiations start with the exchange of information, but many people view this process like a poker game. Why should I tip my hand before I’ve seen yours? 

He suggests that there is a wealth of evidence that most people are matchers: they follow the norm of reciprocity, responding in kind to how we treat them. This means that the best way to earn trust is to show trust. If we want to receive information, we need to lead by sharing information.If we want to receive information, we need to lead by sharing information.

That said, it’s risky to give away information that could make you vulnerable. The good news is that there are two easy ways to avoid this trap. The first is a technique called selective information-sharing, and it involves revealing a piece of information that’s small or impossible to use against you. In one experiment, Stanford and Kellogg students negotiated over email. When they only exchanged their names and email addresses, they reached deals less than 40% of the time. When they shared information that was irrelevant to the negotiation, schmoozing about their hobbies or hometowns, 59% reached agreement. When you open up about something personal, you send a signal that you’re trustworthy, and your counterparts will be motivated to reciprocate, matching your disclosure with one of their own.

The second is called rank-ordering, and it involves listing the issues on the table, and sharing the relative importance of them. In a job offer negotiation, for example, you might say that salary is most important to you, followed by location, and then vacation time and signing bonus. Research shows that rank-ordering is a powerful way to help your counterparts understand your interests without giving away too much information. You can then ask them to share their priorities, and look for opportunities for mutually beneficial tradeoffs: both sides win on the issues that are most important to them.

Once you’ve exchanged information, someone needs to make an offer. On average, is it better to make the first offer or let your counterpart open? Adam's recommendations around the concept of price Anchoring provide valuable insights for every negotiator.

For the full article and a more detailed discussion of how to use Selective Sharing, Rank Ordering and Anchoring visit this link.

For more on effective negotiation strategies, see Adam's new book Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success, a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller. Follow Adam on Twitter @AdamMGrant

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