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Communication

Effective communication involves understanding your audience, being clear and concise, practicing active listening, and aligning verbal and non-verbal cues to convey your message confidently.

Negotiation 

 

Two people shaking hands with one another in agreement

 

‘People enter into negotiations because they think that they can use some form of influence to be better off with the intention of reaching an agreement instead of engaging in a public fight.’

(Hanson, S. et al. 2022) 

Indeed, the best outcome of a negotiation is that a mutually beneficial agreement is reached. But the author, Owen (2021,p.206), in their book, The Leadership Skills Handbook, states that negotiations ‘are often misrepresented as battles where one side wins and the other side loses. In practice, effective negotiations are based on two fundamental principles: 1) win/win; 2) focus on interests, not on positions.’ 

So, to avoid that fight, you should collaborate (Owen, 2021) and find that amicable solution. You want to avoid persuading someone to do something that is against their interests. Instead, use your communication, collaborative and active listening skills to understand the interests and point of view of others by asking effective questions. Try to adopt ‘open’ body language to avoid looking hostile. Pick out the key issues and try to resolve your differences but remain calm, firm and strong.  

You will need to have flexibility in your requirements to reach an amenable decision which is agreeable to both sides. If you stick rigidly to your position, both sides will become entrenched, time will be wasted, and no one will be a winner. You may therefore have to agree to small concessions to reach agreement. To successfully persuade another to consider your point of view you will need a well-structured and reasoned argument.

You will already have developed negotiation skills from an early age through trying to reach agreements with friends or family. You might have negotiated on what you want for dinner or where you are going on holiday. You may have negotiated your working hours or your salary. It might be that you have negotiated the price of a house you have purchased or a cost of an item from a shop or market. 

At university there are several situations where you may need to use negotiation skills: 

  • Debating in class. 
  • Group work. 
  • Moots (mock trials) for legal students. 
  • Case studies. 
  • Role plays. 
  • Problem solving. 

There are ways in which you can develop your negotiation skills: 

Building your skills in this area will be helpful if you are asked any questions on negotiation during future interviews. Questions might include: 

  • Can you tell me about a time when you needed to negotiate? 
  • What kind of negotiator are you? 
  • Describe a situation where you had to persuade others to agree with your ideas.