The Hindu Business Line : Wish-want-walk

Michael C. Donaldson’s Fearless Negotiating’ (www.tatamcgrawhill.com) is about 3Ws to make agreements that work: The wish-want-walk method. It works “from the bedroom to the boardroom and all around the world,” the author assures.

And, to those who are afraid of negotiations, the author explains FEAR as “false evidence appearing real.” We all build up ideas in our head that just don’t match with objective reality, he laments. “I call these ideas false evidence. They seem real, but they aren’t.” There are a whole lot of things that fall into this category when it comes to negotiating, finds Donaldson. “Believing that the other person has all the power, or believing that bad things will happen if you put your own desires on the table, or believing that your world will come to an end if you walk away from a negotiation are all pieces of false evidence.”

Instead, begin by setting down your wish, your goal, the dream result, before you start any negotiation, advises Donaldson. The next W – want - is where you think the negotiation will end up according to external marketplace forces. And the final W – walk - he explains as “the point at which you will walk away from a deal because it is simply not worth it. It is the point at which you lose money or lose pride or lose status or feel as though you lost and therefore won’t do the deal.” Your first offer should always be at or slightly above your wish, he instructs. “If you start anywhere below your wish, you have given up a piece of your dream before you get started. There they are - your hopes - dashed on the rocks of timidity before they were articulated.”

As the negotiation moves from your wish position to your walk position, the concessions become smaller and tougher to make, describes Donaldson. And more graphically, he likens the 3Ws to internal traffic signals wired into your brain for any particular negotiation. For instance, “Your walk-away point is like a red stoplight in your head.” Of value, tempting enough that you would not like to walk away from.

D. Murali

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