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*A Book Review*

Start With No

By Jim Camp

by Michael C. Gray

July 2, 2004

According to Jim Camp, the prevailing "win-win" negotiation model is a recipe for disaster. The purchasing agents of multinational corporations have been trained in PICOS (Program for the Improvement and Cost Optimization of Suppliers), so they will exploit any display of willingness to compromise on price by a vendor.

The problem for most "provider" companies is their representatives are anxious to make a sale, regardless of whether the terms are profitable to the company. The first trait that a good negotiator must develop is to eliminate neediness. The company may want the sale, but should never need the sale. (Any time you have to make an agreement is a signal to walk away now and try again later.)

Another issue is that negotiators are overly concerned about making an agreement for getting the approval or friendship of the adversary. Business relationships should be based on mutual respect, which means the negotiator must have the courage to walk away from a bad deal.

In order to effectively negotiate, you must understand the value and requirements of your proposal to your adversary. In order to determine these things, you must enter your adversary's world. You must understand and present your proposal relating to your adversary's "pain." In order to do this, you should do some research to learn as much about your adversary as possible before your initial meeting. Then, before trying to "pitch" your proposal, you should ask non-directive questions (usually starting with who, what, when, where and how) and listen to get as much information as possible.

Entering your adversary's world requires a "blank slate." You want to be receptive to your adversary's opinions, attitudes, and information and eliminate your own biased preconceived expectations.

The investment required for a negotiation includes money, time, energy and emotion. A weak negotiating attitude is, "We have invested so much time, energy and desire into making this deal, we have to come to an agreement."

Reading Start With No won't make you an expert negotiator, but will give you valuable insights to get you on the road to future negotiation success.

Buy it on Amazon: Start with NO...The Negotiating Tools that the Pros Don't Want You to Know.

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