How to Negotiate Without Preconditions
- 1). Prepare thoroughly for the negotiation. A lack of preconditions means no formal rules have been set. Determine what your goals are in the negotiation. This could be a good deal for shareholders, peace, a pay rise or a favorable divorce settlement. Always know what you are after, what you are willing to concede and what your red lines are. Red lines are theoretical lines you will not cross, things you will not do or concede.
- 2). Choose your negotiation style carefully. Tactics and how you approach the negotiations are key to a successful outcome. Know your opponent and how they operate. Know their weaknesses. Choose a strategy that maximizes your chances of getting what you want (see Reference 2). Approaches include:
Accommodation
Advocacy
Avoidance
Collaboration
Competition
Compromise
Inventing mutual gain - 3). Let them speak first. If your original offer is better for them than their original offer you have lost out. So, always let the other side make the opening gambit as this way you will never concede too much too early on.
- 4). Keep your aces up your sleeve. Hold off any compromises as long as you can. Some may see an early compromise as a sign of good will, but others, will see it as a sign of inherent weakness. Furthermore, if you play all your top cards early in the negotiations you have nothing left to sway them with later on. You can do this because no preconditions have been set. Preconditions might have forced your hand to concede certain things earlier.
- 5). Know when to use the tactical break and when to abandon talks all together. Negotiations are not just about what you say but what you do not say. If the other party is building up a head of steam, find a polite way to delay negotiations further. Such a break may interupt their rhythm, lead them to question their tactics or make them overplay their hand, if they feel you are on the verge of conceding the negotiation.
- 6). Respect your opponent. Mutual trust and respect are positive aspects of any negotiation (see Reference 3). If the two parties are amicable, respect one another and trust the other to do as they say they will, it will ease negotiations. Conversely, as the Middle East peace process or lack thereof shows, when two sides do not respect or trust one another, concluding a negotiation becomes almost impossible.
