How to Turn Bad Negotiations Around

Negotiations are discussions that go a lot of ways; upwards, downwards or even sideways. There are several factors that come into play during every negotiation and it is important to analyse every one of them. Still, there is no hard and fast rule that says you’ll always succeed, but enrolling for negotiation training courses gives you a huge advantage. There is no one who is perfect and moreover, no person who can claim that they have triumphed at everything they’ve done in life. Even the best negotiators have failed at times, but what is important is that they have the ability to save something from the sinking ship. Better still, some can even rescue the entire vessel.

Here are a few ways in which things can be turned around.

Change your approach

When things seem to hit a dead end, don’t keep pushing the issue. Take a pause and reconsider you stance. Analyze the other person’s point of view. Make a list of common things that exist and the ones that you have prioritized to achieve out of the negotiation. Then go back and make an alternative offer. Use a different approach to put forward your proposition but after careful considerations of the surroundings. With the right analysis you can sail through the barriers that might have been threatening to derail the whole process.

Apologize where necessary

Yes, despite what you might have heard, saying that you’re sorry if you made a mistake doesn’t hurt. A lot of negotiations fail when one party makes a strong claim that the others can see through. This can hamper efforts a lot and even lead to failure of significant deals. It is important to know when things are about to go off track. This is the best moment to save the negotiation because once everything has already been spilled, it is almost impossible to clean the mess. Make sure you are authoritative when you apologize and that the other party is able to trust you once again to fulfill your promises.

Bring in a mediator

A neutral third party can sometime do a lot of good to both sides. Someone that both sides trust can be beneficial in bringing negotiations that are failing, back on track. Having a figure that is trusted or respected on both sides means that there is common ground and there can still be efforts made towards achieving the objectives that the discussion was initiated with.

Tweak your demands and expectations

There are times when you are at the weaker end of a bargain. You are trying to sell a space for instance, but no one shows up except for one person, that too after a long time. This is not a situation where you can quote your highest price especially when you want the deal to get done. However, this by no means is an indication that you compromise on the basic costs. You might cut profits to some extent but make sure that all your costs are still being covered and that there is a certain profit margin in the trade.

A bad negotiation can in most cases be turned around using effective techniques, but it all comes down to how creatively they are implemented.