Tim Castle is a sales coach, professional development coach, and the best-selling author of a book called, “The Art of Negotiation,” He works with students and companies on all things sales, business development, and negotiation. He firmly believes that success hinges on “believing it’s possible.”
Tim spent 10 years negotiating for a living. During that time, he saw many people approach a negotiation with a single approach. They’d come in like a bulldozer and utilize anger and intimidation. They sought to influence via force.
But the people who were the real pros thought about their reputation. And when you think about your reputation, everything you do is influenced by building relationships.
Negotiate to build trust
When you network, regardless of the outcome of any deal, you want to put yourself in the best position to get new business to come to you. Even if you don’t reach an agreement, anyone you negotiate with can still refer people to you. And people do business with people they know, like, and trust.
You can be an astute negotiator and have the best network. People know that you’ll negotiate well. If you have a reputation as a shark, people will move business out of your path. If they don’t enjoy the process of negotiating with you, they are less likely to negotiate with you in the future.
Tim firmly believes that when you’re looking to create something collaboratively, you’re more likely to succeed than negotiating a “My way or the highway” deal.
Why negotiators must embrace a “possibility” mindset
Tim also believes that a large part of a negotiator’s success comes from their mindset. If you only look at the information presented to you, you’re doing yourself a disservice. The best negotiators see things through the eyes of abundance. You need to be confident. You need to make the first offer to allow yourself to anchor the price and set the tone. But you have to stay silent when you need to be. You can guide the whole negotiation with the right mindset.
You need to be calm, relaxed, and open. Imagine you have a box and could make any wish and get anything you want out of life. You already have that box. It’s your state of consciousness. You can have anything you want if you approach situations with the right beliefs, actions, and thinking. When we place limitations on ourselves, we restrict our negotiations.
Your state influences the negotiation. Your mindset plays a part in every outcome. Sometimes, you have to believe it’s possible so others believe. You have to share a vision in a way that helps your counterparty see the future state.
How do you cede the vision? How do you influence your counterparty to help them realize that your product or solution is their solution? Tim shares the framework he uses in episode #395 of the Negotiations Ninja podcast. Don’t miss it!