What is Negotiation? Why is it important?

Negotiation is a soft skill that is not only used in the business setting, but in a variety of environments. According to Katie Shonk, the editor for the Negotiation Briefings newsletter, she believes that negotiation is broken down into seven different elements. These include interest, legitimacy, relationships, alternatives and BATNA, options, commitments, and communication. Each of these have plenty of significance when it comes to negotiation. Utilizing these elements will not only help you be a better negotiator, but build negotiation as a soft skill.

First, Shonk believes that interest is understanding what our basic wants and needs are and knowing that they will guide what we do and say. I think this is true because if we are negotiating without having some sort of underlying interest (like a higher salary), then why exactly would we negotiate? I also believe the business setting is not the only place that we negotiate. I’m sure that many of us can think of a time where we have negotiated with our parents or others to get something out of it such as, “If you let me stay at my friend’s house tonight, I will clean my room tomorrow”. Things like this are considered negotiation and from my own experience I can think of plenty of instances where I have done this.

For example, when I graduated from high school, I told my parents that I wanted a car for college and that I would save all of the money from my graduation party, scholarships, and my summer job to buy one. The only problem was that by the end of the summer, I did not have enough money to buy the car outright so I would have to take a loan out and make payments. But, I was only a young kid who just graduated from high school so I knew I did not have good enough credit to receive a loan from the bank with a good interest rate. I then had to go to my parents and negotiate with them and the agreement we came to was they would take out a loan for me as long as I worked and made the payments on time. Thus, in order to get the car I wanted, my parents and I had to make a deal in which I would give them money each month for the payments. Negotiation is critical because in order to be successful and fulfill your interests, you need to be able to effectively negotiate, whether it be salary or benefits to ensure that your wants and needs are met.

Citations:

The Importance of Negotiation in Business. (2017, September 05). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://www.pon.harvard.edu/daily/business-negotiations/the-importance-of-negotiation-in-business/