How do you balance creativity and feasibility in negotiation?

1 Identify your goals and constraints

Before you enter a negotiation, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve and what you are willing to give up. This will help you define your best alternative to a negotiated agreement (BATNA) and your reservation point (the lowest or highest acceptable offer). You also need to understand the goals and constraints of the other party, as well as the context and norms of the negotiation. This will help you anticipate their BATNA, reservation point, and possible reactions.

2 Generate multiple options

Once you have established your goals and constraints, you can start brainstorming possible options that can meet your interests and those of the other party. The more options you have, the more likely you are to find a creative and feasible solution. To generate multiple options, you can use techniques such as expanding the pie (creating more value for both sides), logrolling (trading off issues of different importance), bridging (finding a new option that satisfies a common interest), or cutting the costs (reducing the negative consequences of an agreement).

3 Evaluate and prioritize options

After you have generated multiple options, you need to evaluate and prioritize them according to their feasibility and creativity. Feasibility means that the option is realistic, affordable, and implementable. Creativity means that the option is novel, original, and beneficial. You can use criteria such as cost, risk, time, quality, impact, and satisfaction to rank your options. You can also use tools such as decision matrices, pros and cons lists, or scoring systems to compare your options.

4 Communicate and negotiate effectively

Once you have selected your preferred options, you need to communicate and negotiate them effectively with the other party. You can use strategies such as framing (presenting your options in a positive and persuasive way), anchoring (making the first offer or setting a reference point), concession making (giving up something in exchange for something else), or contingency contracting (making an agreement conditional on a future event) to influence the outcome. You also need to listen actively, ask open-ended questions, and show empathy and respect to the other party.

5 Test and refine your agreement

After you have reached a tentative agreement, you need to test and refine it to ensure that it is creative and feasible. You can do this by asking yourself and the other party questions such as: Is this agreement consistent with our goals and constraints? Does this agreement create value for both sides? Is this agreement realistic and implementable? How will we monitor and enforce this agreement? What are the potential challenges or risks of this agreement? How can we overcome them? You can also seek feedback from others or consult experts to validate your agreement.

6 Celebrate and learn from your negotiation

Finally, you need to celebrate and learn from your negotiation. You can celebrate by expressing appreciation and gratitude to the other party, acknowledging their contributions and efforts, and reinforcing the positive aspects of the relationship. You can learn by reflecting on your performance and outcomes, identifying your strengths and weaknesses, and seeking feedback and suggestions for improvement. You can also document and share your best practices and lessons learned with others. This will help you improve your creativity and feasibility in future negotiations.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?