Rehearse

Every major negotiation I have undertaken I have always rehearsed. It is a key to confidence. It is a key to uncovering likely and less likely potential problems and difficulties.

How do you rehearse? Write down your approach. Write down your key statements. Write down your response. What I do is to sit in my office and practise out loud. I will prepare visual material - OHP slides, PowerPoint or a simple flip-chart presentation. I will have every key point substantiated or affirmed with facts, figures, pie charts and statistics. I look at all that material with sceptical eyes to see how my approach could be countered or sunk! I make changes.

Try it! Tell yourself what you are going to say, how you will say it, where and in what order. Rehearse how your opposite number might do the same. Try to imagine all the possible responses and develop your counter moves.

Average negotiators will spend approximately the same time as good ones on the preparation phase. Effective negotiators, however, not only get the information but spend quality time rehearsing various applications of those facts until they are sure that they have the right approach.

I was working for a European client putting together a negotiation in London. We spent hours preparing, over the phone and by fax. We produced slides, OHPs and printed proposal documents. We checked every one and talked through potential weak spots. We were thoroughly prepared, but he was still willing to come to London hours early. We sat in the Grosvenor Hotel in Park Lane and rehearsed our individual roles again and again until we were both sure that we had it right. The outcome was superb, but it was no accident. It was down to hours of planned preparation, followed by hours of planned rehearsal.