Respond to hardball negotiation tactics

WHEN you’re in a tough negotiation, people often try to play hardball. Here’s how to respond to three common tactics your counterparts might use:

— The Ultimatum. Ignore any ultimatum. Many are not deal breakers — they’re just people trying to assert control. You can also try re-framing it as a non-ultimatum: ‘I can understand, given where we are today, this would be very difficult for you to do.’

— New Conditions. If people keep adding new conditions when you think a deal has been struck, explain that you will work to resolve legitimate concerns but you’re unwilling to negotiate other issues at this late stage. If adjustments are needed, ask what concessions they’re willing to make in exchange.

— Deferred Decision-Making. Before getting too deep into deal terms, decide upfront on the timeline for a decision, who the key decision-makers are and what might speed up or slow down the process.

(Adapted from ‘How to See Through These 3 Hardball Negotiation Tactics,’ by Deepak Malhotra)

Recover from rejection

Rejection is a universal (and universally disliked) experience, but it’s one that we each experience differently. Sometimes, getting rejected hurts more than we expect, especially if our immediate response is to become self-critical. What makes one person more resilient than another in the face of rejection? It often comes down to mindset. People with ‘fixed’ mindsets chronically judge themselves and tend to see their outcomes as evidence of who they are and what they’re capable of. For example, getting a bad grade on a test leads them to think they’re not smart. But people with ‘growth’ mindsets see outcomes as evidence of what they could improve upon in the future and what challenges they can overcome. The next time you’re faced with rejection, consider the extenuating circumstances and think about what you can learn from the situation to quickly move on to a better place.

(Adapted from ‘To Recover Faster From Rejection, Shift Your Mindset,’ by Nicole Torres)

Bounce back after a failed negotiation

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, a negotiation doesn’t go your way. Perhaps a customer pushed for a steeper discount than you wanted to offer, or a potential client went with a competitor’s bid. In the face of disappointment, how do you make sure your reputation isn’t damaged? First, don’t panic. More often than not, there will be opportunities in the future to retry your case. And even though you didn’t ‘win’ on the terms you came to the table with, there may be some unexplored upside that you haven’t yet considered. Great negotiators find value and benefits in unexpected places. The important next step is to be transparent with your employees and managers about why this round didn’t go your way. They’ll appreciate your honesty and help you spot missteps so you’ll be more prepared the next time around.

(Adapted from ‘How to Bounce Back From a Failed Negotiation,’ by Carolyn O’Hara)

Attract top talent

The fight for new talent is intense across all industries. To connect with the best and brightest, you need to redesign your recruiting strategies to meet people where they are. Don’t rely on the same old social media platforms — venture out. Find platforms that are connected to the industry you’re recruiting for, and then look for people who are using them to have smart, relevant conversations. If you’re impressed by someone’s questions, answers or posts, you may have identified a potentially valuable employee. And don’t forget to tap your current employees. They can tell you where they connect with like-minded individuals, and help you to launch networks, events and training programmes that are organised to meet your company’s specific needs.

(Adapted from ‘Recruiting Strategies for a Tight Talent Market,’ by Erica Dhawan)

Cut people off

When meeting participants veer off topic, critical agenda items suffer. But even when leaders or peers intervene, it’s often too late, and the typical approach (‘This is really interesting, but can I suggest we get back to the topic at hand?’) leaves everyone feeling awkward. Thankfully, there is a simple solution to this predicament: the word ‘jellyfish.’ Jellyfish are, of course, those funny-looking creatures that have drifted along on ocean currents for millions of years. Use the word to prevent drifting in meetings by introducing the jellyfish rule: If any attendee feels the conversation is heading off course or delving into an inappropriate level of detail, they simply say ‘jellyfish’. It’s a safe, effective, accessible catchall for ‘Why don’t you take this offline — the rest of us would like our meeting back.’

(Adapted from ‘The Right Way to Cut People Off in Meetings,’ by Bob Frisch and Cary Greene)

Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, June 27th, 2016