Negotiating

Listening is arguably the best tool in your shed when it comes to negotiations. But what if you dared to take it to the next level? Some advice from Ed Brodow’s book Negotiation Boot Camp suggests we check our egos at the door and strategically clam up.

While questions almost always work to your advantage, watch your phrasing. Pay attention to the first word you use to launch your question.

It’s likely that you’ve bargained with, say, a market vendor about the cost of an item. Eventually, you agreed to a price. “You’re probably thinking you successfully negotiated, but you didn’t. Instead, you haggled,” writes Darren A. Smith of Forbes. “As a leader, you must be able to both haggle and negotiate—and know when one approach is needed over the other.”

By deferring to others, the shrewd tactician can extract maximum concessions without having to make rash decisions or succumb to pressure.