How to Improve Your Negotiation Skills

Key takeaways

Negotiation skills help individuals and businesses resolve conflicts and persuade others to see different viewpoints. Explore key facts:

• Negotiation is an essential skill to build stronger relationships and reach mutually beneficial conclusions.

• To focus on negotiation training, be prepared, set goals, use good judgment, and be flexible.

• You can improve your negotiation skills by training, asking for feedback, and pursuing professional development opportunities. 

Learn how to negotiate effectively and watch as your relationships shift and benefits trickle down throughout your life. Afterward, consider enrolling in the Leading People and Teams Specialization, offered by the University of Michigan. In as little as one month, you’ll have the opportunity to learn how to manage talent to improve employee performance, development, and retention. Upon completion, add this shareable credential to your resume or LinkedIn profile.

What is a negotiation skill? 

Negotiation is a complex discussion where two or more parties try to resolve an issue in a manner everyone finds acceptable. Each side has an opportunity to present its case and try to persuade the other to see its viewpoint. You'll always have some form of give and take, with compromise typically requiring one side to walk away more successfully while the other has to make more concessions.

It’s an essential skill for individuals, teams, and organizations. Negotiation offers a valuable tool to resolve conflict, advance careers, and create value.

Why is negotiation important?

Negotiation is important because it creates a path for you to resolve conflicts, build strong relationships, and achieve mutually beneficial outcomes in different aspects of your life. Whether you're securing a better deal, advancing your career, or settling a personal disagreement, negotiation can help you find common ground and acceptable solutions for everyone involved in a situation. It can also strengthen other valuable skills, such as communication and planning, as you advocate for your needs and foster trust with others.

What are the qualities of an effective negotiator?

Effective negotiators communicate clearly, listen and comprehend what others say, and use critical thinking skills. Other essential qualities include:

• Adaptability

• Persuasiveness

• Excellent research abilities

• Personable

• Creativity

• Conscientiousness

• Perform efficiently under pressure

• Articulate

• Willing to compromise

• Positive attitude and outlook

• Good conversational skills

How improving your negotiation skills benefits you 

Negotiation is a life skill, not just an ability among top-tier business executives and hostage crisis professionals. Negotiation often takes place even in quiet moments. For example, couples may negotiate where to go on vacation, or families may negotiate how they approach movie night.

Working on your negotiation skills offers multiple benefits. Examples include:

• Boosting and building self-confidence

• Ensuring you get the best possible deals and maximum value

• Helping resolve conflicts, issues, and problems

• Building respect and a positive reputation

• Moving forward in your career path

• Strengthening relationships

Skills to focus on in negotiation training

Whether you’re improving your negotiation skills for your professional or personal life, various negotiation skills can help you move forward. Working on your confidence and communication skills is a good place to start. Entering a negotiation with just the right amount of confidence helps prevent you from getting taken advantage of without making you seem off-putting to the other side of the negotiation table.

Be prepared

Without preparation, you essentially undertake negotiation blindly. You need a clear understanding of the situation, what's at stake, and the various ways that negotiations can play out. As you prepare, ask yourself a few questions to help guide the process:

• What are your boundaries?

• What do you want to accomplish?

• How much will you compromise?

• Are the concessions you ask the other side to make reasonable and fair?

• How might the other person or party respond?

• What are the best and worst possible outcomes?

Know your goal

What will you ask for in the negotiation process? Understanding this is an essential first step. Additionally, you must build your case by including compelling supporting details to persuade the other person or party why they should meet your requests. Approach negotiations with a clear understanding of what you're willing to lose. For example, if you want a higher salary, would you be willing to sacrifice a different benefit, like vacation time?

Additionally, be determined to ask for more. For example, if you're negotiating with your employer about increasing your productivity or work hours, ask for a higher salary or increased vacation time.

Read more: How to Negotiate Your Salary: 10 Tips to Earn More 

Practice

You know that old saying, “Practice makes perfect.” It stands true in various situations, including negotiations. Unless you're a professional negotiator, you may not have frequent opportunities to flex your negotiating skills. A few tactics to consider include the following:

• Use your resources to gain supporting research to back up your side and practice your pitch to fine-tune the details.

• Role-play the other side to help you understand the points the opposition may raise.

• Make consistent eye contact when role-playing with another person and hold their gaze to appear confident and committed.

• Research the latest negotiation tactics using sources like books, podcasts, and courses to keep your skills fresh.

Build rapport

Negotiations call for a careful and balanced approach from both parties. Building rapport with the other person or party you negotiate with can help break the ice while encouraging a collaborative spirit. It can also help increase the odds of reaching a successful agreement. Ways to build rapport include:

• If time allows, engage in a little small talk or at least a personal introduction.

• Communicate clearly to ensure the other party is clear about your position and what you're asking for. Remain calm and keep your body language relaxed but professional.

• Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Neutral questions (not “yes” or “no” questions that lead the other party to answer) can encourage information-packed responses that can be useful throughout the process.

• Practice active listening and acknowledge concerns or complicated feelings. Not only does this help build your relationship, but it also allows you to gain valuable insights from the other side.

Be flexible

Negotiations are fluid and may require you to be flexible and accepting of other solutions and additional compromises. Listen to what the other side offers and consider if their offer aligns with your objectives and ultimate goals.

Use good judgment, but be prepared to walk away

Negotiations aren’t personal. They do, however, require that you enter the conversation with sound judgment to determine if your counterpart’s solutions work within the framework of your goals and objectives.

It's also essential to establish firm boundaries and be prepared to walk away from the negotiation table if the offer does not suit your goals. Doing so makes a powerful statement of confidence and integrity. In lieu of dismissing the negotiation altogether, the other side could reconsider its position. In either case, you want to exit the negotiation knowing you stood firmly within your boundaries.

How to improve negotiation skills

Good negotiators can think on their feet, use critical thinking, and listen actively to anticipate other people’s needs and actions. They also need to be able to make small changes seem like a big deal, so they lower the chances of making as many changes to their offers.

Train

Professional development courses like Introduction to Negotiation: A Strategic Playbook for Becoming a Principled and Persuasive Negotiator, offered by Yale, and Successful Negotiation: Essential Strategies and Skills, offered by the University of Michigan, both on Coursera, can help you hone your skills. In-person or online courses can also help you effectively learn the concepts and theories of negotiation to apply to your own interactions.

Put negotiation skills into practice

Understanding the theory and fundamentals of negotiation can only get you so far. Practicing helps in embedding these skills in your intuition. Try out your new skills with family and friends. The more you use negotiation tactics, the more comfortable you'll feel during a real negotiation scenario.

Ask for feedback

After practicing with friends and family, colleagues, instructors, or other learners, ask them to critique your performance. Getting feedback can be challenging, but it’s an effective method for identifying your strengths and weaknesses to reinforce areas in need of additional work. Understanding what you’ve done well and where you’ve experienced setbacks can help you become a more effective negotiator with time. It can also increase your confidence for future negotiations.

Explore professional growth resources

Subscribe to our Career Chat newsletter on LinkedIn for the opportunity to network with other professionals and gain new skills. Then, explore free, digital resources:

• Watch on YouTube: Drive Win-Win Results with 9 Essential Negotiation Skills

• Take a quiz: Career Test: What Career is Right for Me Quiz?

• Learn from experts: Meet the Engineer Strengthening His Leadership Skills

Whether you want to develop a new skill, get comfortable with an in-demand technology, or advance your abilities, keep growing with a Coursera Plus subscription. You’ll get access to over 10,000 flexible courses. 

Build job-ready skills with Coursera Plus

Start 7-day free trial

• 
• 
• 
• 

Start 7-day free trial