| The most irksome, nasty, peevish, and stingy | | | | offered. Still, he negotiated with HIMSELF the terms |
| negotiator in creation resides between your two ears. | | | | he wanted most. He wanted a Yamaha at a slightly |
| It's you, and of course, it's me, too. | | | | higher price than a Suzuki, and when he found that |
| We are our own worst enemies in a negotiation | | | | deal, exactly, he grabbed it. He had already |
| because we fall into five traps: | | | | established their relative values, but more significantly, |
| (1) We remain in our own heads instead of seeing | | | | he had determined their respective values to him. |
| the world from our counterpart's viewpoint. As I | | | | Some retail prices, i.e. "sale" prices, are great and |
| demonstrate in the "Best Practices in Negotiation" | | | | being prepared to snatch them when they come |
| class I teach at U.C. Berkeley extension and | | | | along is what smart negotiators do. |
| elsewhere, ferreting out the other party's options | | | | (3) We're impatient. Instead of starting with the |
| and opinions pays off, nicely. | | | | presumption that "No deal is better than a bad one," |
| (2) We fail to set goals before entering a negotiation. | | | | we endorse the concept that "Some deal is better |
| Fred had his eye on a new grand piano, and after | | | | than none." Be willing to walk away, and establish |
| doing his research he boiled his choices down to two: | | | | what your walk-away price is, in advance. |
| a Suzuki and a Yamaha. He called and visited lots of | | | | (4) We dislike negotiating, believing it is "beneath us." |
| Yamaha dealers but they were hesitant to discount | | | | That is a prescription for failure, because in many |
| the model he wanted. The Suzuki, reportedly a fine | | | | cultures negotiating is promoted and perfectly normal, |
| instrument as well, wasn't in the same class, but Fred | | | | and in some it appears insulting to NOT be willing to |
| was willing to settle for it, mostly because it priced | | | | bargain, at least a little. |
| out twenty percent less than its rival. Still not | | | | (5) We endow other people's prices as fair, objective |
| convinced he wanted the Suzuki, Fred happened | | | | and scientifically derived. Pricing is more of an art than |
| upon a one-day sale of Yamaha's at Costco, and | | | | a science and most pricing errs on the side of |
| noting the price was discounted by about two | | | | packing in too much profit, instead of too little. So, |
| thousand dollars from what he had seen at dealers, | | | | there's "water" in most prices and our job as smart |
| instantly, he bought the model he wanted. | | | | negotiators is to flush it out. |
| What does this have to do with negotiation? Fred | | | | Would you like to learn the Best Practices in |
| got them to throw in free delivery and set-up, but | | | | Negotiation? Contact the author. |
| apart from that, he simply accepted the price as | | | | |