When you hold up a mirror and look into it, what do you see? Do you see a good negotiator? How could you tell if you were looking at one? This is one of those timeless questions that we are always asking ourselves: am I a good negotiator? Well good news, I’ve got the 5 questions that you need to answer in order to resolve this issue once and for all!
The #1 Characteristic Of A Good Negotiator
Before we dive in and try to ask the questions that need to be asked, let’s start off with an answer. The question that we’ll be answering, of course, is what is the most important skill that a negotiator needs to have?
Lots of people will come up with a wide variety of answers to this question, but in my mind there is really only one answer that rings true: you’ve got to be a good networker. What this means is that you’ve got to be able to get in contact with the people on your team who’s views you’ll be bringing to the table. If you know what they want, then you’ll be an effective negotiator.
The 5 Questions Every Negotiator Needs To Answer
Ok, you’ve waited long enough. Here are the five questions that you need to ask yourself in order to find out if you are a good negotiator:
- Plays Well With Others: Do you have the ability to put issues aside and sit down to work with the other side of the table and search for ideas that will allow both of you to reach an agreement?
- Just Like Mr. Spock: Do you believe that others would say that you have a logical way of thinking? If you don’t, then there is no way that the other side of the table is going to be able to understand how to create a solution that will appeal to you.
- Detail Orientated: Do you take the time to prepare for a negotiation and worry about all of the little details?
- Plays With Fire: Can you deal with the disagreement and the confrontation that is a part of every successful negotiation?
- Shades of Gray: Can you live with lack of detail during much of the negotiation? Ambiguity is a key part of a negotiation: things don’t become clear until the end of the discussions.
What All Of This Means For You
We all want to get better at this skill that we call negotiating. In order to become better, we need to first realize where we need to develop our skills.
These five questions should serve as a great starting point to help you determine where you need some work. Make sure that you answer them honestly — you won’t know where you need to focus your study and training until you have these answers.
Do you think that it is necessary to have a good relationship with EVERYONE on your team in order to be an effective negotiator?
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What We’ll Be Talking About Next Time
In order to be a world-class sales negotiator, you have to master literally 100’s of different skills from learning how to mange your negotiating power, how to prepare for a negotiation, etc. On top of all that, there are five areas that most sales negotiators overlook and yet, they may be the most important negotiating skills that you need to be working on…