Negotiation Information

The Art of Negotiation in 535 words


I want to get better at negotiation, but where to start?  UK Amazon currently has 2332 books on negotiation.  Google indexed nearly 4 million relevant (yeah right) pages.  All I need is a simple, straightforward model that I can put to use now. 

Phased by the glut of information, I went within and remembered the wise teachings from a senior manager in my early working life.  So, come closer, listen up, because he was very wise indeed?

He said "Do you know your LIMits?"

"My what? said I cautiously, wondering if he was asking about my drinking capacity, driving speed or something equally off the wall.

Being worldlier than I, he noticed my confusion and helped me out.

"Lyndsay, if you want to be successful in life, you need to know your LIMits.  Let me explain.  What would you Like to have?  What do you Intend to have?  What Must you have?  What are your LIMit's?"

Slowly it dawned on me that he was talking the strange management language of mnemonics.

He wrote down the word for me like this.

L
I
M
I
T
S

And next to the letters he wrote

L - like to have: your number 1, top of the pile, best outcome
I - intend to have: your realistic, shoot for the stars but reach the moon outcome
M - must have: your bottom line.  Deal is off if this is not met.

(The I,T and S are irrelevant, just convenient additions to prevent asking what your LIM are!)

Testing the Theory

And so ended his lesson.  Off I scampered like the eager young graduate I was, itching to put this into practice.  Thinking about a possible secondment opportunity I wrote the following:

Like - 10% bonus, new laptop, mentoring with new senior manager
Intend - 5% bonus, attendance at special course, return to new job after secondment
Must - same pay, relocation expenses paid, credit in my appraisal

The final deal I struck landed somewhere between Like and Intend, with a few perks I had not even considered, so I felt it was a success.

Why Negotiation Works

There are a couple of reasons why simple models are useful but often forgotten. 

The LIMits negotiation model encourages flexible thinking in that there are 3 potential good outcomes.  Compare this with the most common alternative - success or failure - and you can see there is only 1 measly good outcome.  You don't have to be a gambling pro to work out which approach is best!  The secret of the LIMits model is if you don't meet all the criteria for success, then the opposite is not failure, just a different outcome. 

The other benefit of using the LIMits negotiation model is it forces you to prepare, gaining you vital spare capacity when you are in the thick of the negotiation.  You will be clear about your position and better able to get that across. 
 
Information overload

As I demonstrated, simple models are forgotten because we seek out newer, shinier ideas in books, the internet or from other sources.  Reduce information overload by re-using what you already know or recycling an old idea into one that works today.  Old knowledge is not always redundant.

So, negotiate that new job, better deal or contract.  All you need is to know your LIMits.

 

Lyndsay Swinton is an experienced team leader, people manager and business coach. Her website is www.mftrou.com - 'Management for the rest of us'. Subscribe to her free no-nonsense Management Tips newsletter at mftrou.com today.


MORE RESOURCES:

BorderFire Report

Ready for the Great Negotiation? You better be
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He has a great negotiation ahead of him to unite the country. As a negotiation coach working with hundreds of million of dollars in negotiations every day ...


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... Vice President of Operations Scott Lakari Monday and they agreed to set another meeting between the negotiation committees for the union and company. ...


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For many, it means deep cuts into holiday budgets for things like gifts, travel and special meals out -- but also extra helpings of guilt, negotiation and ...


Moneycontrol.com

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“In future incidents, the terrorists know they can succeed by negotiation.” The 1999 negotiation response may have also inspired subsequent terrorism ...


Seatradeasia-online

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Have you ever won over a potential client with a perfect presentation but lost them at the negotiation table? Rick Freedman describes what can go wrong and ...


New York Times

Assemblyman slams Yankee Stadium deal
Lower Hudson Journal news, NY - Nov 30, 2008
"This negotiation was taking place at a time when the Yankees were dramatically raising ticket prices, while the state and the city were giving essentially ...
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City demanded free suite, food from Yankees, e-mails reveal New York Daily News
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Montealegre refutes political negotiation in Nicaragua
Tico Times, Costa Rica - 19 hours ago
By Tim Rogers Managua mayoral hopeful Eduardo Montealegre stood his ground yesterday, saying his opposition contingent – Vamos Con Eduardo, the “We're Going ...


Board, union agree on contract
Monadnock Ledger Transcript, NH - 4 hours ago
By JOSH BOND PETERBOROUGH -- The ConVal Education Association has agreed to suspend its work to contract job action after a seven-hour negotiation meeting ...

Negotiation - Google News

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