Negotiation is something which is part and parcel of our life. The very seeds of negotiation were sown long time back when we were small kids as we had to negotiate with our parents for that "Exquisite" toy. As we grew up, we had to negotiate with our friends, trying our best to sell our ideas to them. "Family" made us to realize what negotiation is all about as often we had to get into the toughest "Negotiation Bouts" with our own Children. A "Job" ultimately rendered us with the powers to negotiate. In fact, if we reminisce back, we all have been "Negotiators" through out our lives. But how far have we been successful in each of these endeavours? The Art of Negotiation is all about making the other person to "think" our "thoughts" and act accordingly. Successful negotiation is about understanding the persona of the other person, in the shortest possible time, and making the right moves to win his/her trust.
The Japanese are said to be the toughest negotiators. The techniques adopted by them seem to be simple but very effective. A typical Japanese negotiation starts with what they call as the "Nemawashi", which in business parlance means to lay the foundation unobtrusively in advance. It is a lengthy process where in the Japanese get to know everything about their customers and then intricately weave the negotiation process to win their trust. It is easier to interact with individuals who have earned our trust, be it customers or colleagues. Building a bond of trust, understanding, respect and friendship forms the basis for any long standing relationship and paves the way for successful negotiations in the future.
When Geoffrey Archer, the world renowned author, was imprisoned for perjury he thought his life had come to a stand still. The jail authorities were not even willing to part with a piece of paper. For a prolific writer like him, pen and paper were the panacea to a sound mental and physical health. Without these vital ingredients, his life started deteriorating. But Archer made it a point to have a conversation with the authorities' everyday. Slowly but steadily he was able to win their acceptance which worked in his favour later on. The much acclaimed "Prison Diary" is the end result of those fruitful negotiations which Archer had with the jail authorities. Negotiation is all about listening, conversing and discussing.
Always stay committed to your decisions, but flexible in your approach.
Every successful negotiation starts with building stronger ties. It is all about treating the other person as special so that when the time to negotiate comes, they will be too ensnared to turn down our request.
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