Understand where you're going when you can't get to yes.
Many people enter negotiations under the self-limiting belief that they don’t have a BATNA. Others enter negotiation with a false sense of security. And even when negotiators have a well-formed BATNA, they’re often unsure how best to leverage it
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It’s something many negotiators agonize over. Sometimes they don’t even think they have one.
It’s your BATNA, or your “best alternative to a negotiated agreement.” In other words, it’s what you’re left with if a given negotiation doesn’t work out, your default state.
Your BATNA is critical, as it determines your leverage in life’s most important negotiations, such as a job offer or the sale or purchase of a house, and in everyday dealings in business. If you feel pretty good about your BATNA, you’re more likely to “stick to your guns” and not negotiate as hard. If you’re not thrilled about your default situation, you may be much more willing to concede certain terms in the negotiation to make it work.
Despite the importance of the BATNA, people often are at a loss as to how to define it, improve it, flaunt it, or perhaps hide it. Many people enter negotiations under the self-limiting belief that they don’t have a BATNA. Others enter negotiation with a false sense of security. And even when negotiators have a well-formed BATNA, they’re often unsure how best to leverage it.
Following the dos and don’ts below will position you to understand, sharpen, and leverage your BATNA to reach the best outcome in any negotiation.
[This article has been republished, with permission, from Kellogg Insight, the faculty research & ideas magazine of Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University]