Negotiation ONE Sheet
I. The Goal
Think through best/worst-case scenarios but only write down a specific goal that represents the best case.
Never be so sure of what you want that you wouldn’t take something BETTER
Set an optimistic but reasonable goal and define it clearly
II. Summary
Summarize and write out in just a couple of sentences the known facts that have led up to the negotiation.
"Why are you there? What do you want? What do they want?"
Summarize a situation in a way that counterpart will respond “That’s right.”
III. Labels/AA
Anticipate how your counterpart feels about these facts you’ve just summarized
Make a concise list of any accusations they might make
Turn each accusation into a list of no more than 5 labels and role-play it.
Examples
"It seems like is valuable to you/ you value "
"It seems like you don’t like __"
"It seems like __ makes it easier"
"It seems like you’re reluctant to __ "
IV. Calibrated ❓
Delve into underlying motivations (what is making them want what they want)
V. Non-cash Offers
Prepare a list of noncash items possessed by counterpart that would be valuable.
"What could they give that would almost get us to do it for free?"
Identify behind-the-table deal killers
"What are we trying to accomplish?"
"How is that worthwhile?"
"What’s the core issue here?"
"How does that affect things?"
"What’s the biggest challenge you face?"
"How does this fit into what the objective is?"
"How does this affect the rest of your team?"
"How on board are the people not on this call?"
"What do your colleagues see as their main challenges in this area?"
Unearth Deal Killers
"What are we up against here?"
"What is the biggest challenge you face?"
"How does making a deal with us affect things?"
"What happens if you do nothing?"
"What does doing nothing cost you?"
"How does making this deal resonate with what your company prides itself on?"
Follow-up labels
"It seems like __ is important"
"It seems you feel like my company is in a unique position to__"
"It seems like you are worried about __"