I am going to blow some minds on the issue of negotiation

Posted on: April 3, 2025 at 08:51:52 CT

Here we go. When you are in negotiation for something, most successful negotiators don't tell everything the are willing or unwilling to do. At times, you will even overplay your hand a bit in an attempt to create something known as leverage. Leverage is a plus. When the other side feels you have more leverage, and they are unsure of exactly what you are willing or unwilling to do, they tend to respond in terms you find more favorable.

For example, if a groups is going on strike, they can say a couple of things. One is "we are willing to suffer the consequence and stay on the picket line for as long as it takes." Or, they could say, "This strike is a hardship, and most of our membership can likely only last a few weeks before they would need to consider offers to go back." One of these statements creates leverage. The other, while it may be true, does not. Good negotiators would know which is the best message to drive the best result for their side. And that is the goal of a negotiation.

This is apparently a mind blowing revelation to several of you here.

Edited by 4TigersinMichigan at 08:53:10 on 04/03/25