Get Everything you Want with these Negotiating Tips from a Successful Business.

Doesn't it seem sometimes as though life is a constant struggle to get what you want? Your company has been operating in the red for 6 months, but your vendors want to raise their rates. Your wife has been pining for a new dining room set, but you've had your eye on a new four-wheeler and there's not budget for both. You want your kids to finish their homework, yet they're begging for another hour of Playstation2.

End your struggles with 3 simple words: learn to negotiate. No matter what the issue, help is here! Reclaim your happiness: follow these guidelines:

1. Ask the right questions. The right questions can help you control the negotiating process. Questions which go unasked or unanswered limit your options to what is already known. Planning your questions should be part of your homework. ("So tell me again Honey: exactly how much did you spend on clothing last month?") Do not answer your own questions.

2. It is okay to disclose certain information. Information should be offered on a "need to know" basis with both sides making equal concessions. Usually a brief pause in conversation from the other side is an ideal time to make a startling revelation. ("Okay, if you really must know... I'm having a mid-life crisis.")

3. Listen more often than you speak. The entire negotiation process centers around this skill. Careful listening avoids misunderstanding. Also remember to listen for what is not said, whether by your mother-in-law or your landlord.

4. Keep your cool. Negotiating can sometimes be perceived as threatening, and the individuals involved can become very emotional (like teenagers, trying to bargain for another hour past curfew.) Don't lose control. Ask questions and provide answers in a calm, respectful manner- no matter how piercing the other party's shrieks become.

5. Have an open mind. The purpose of negotiating is to work out alternatives. All possibilities should be evaluated. Rejecting ideas before they're discussed is not only counterproductive-- it could provoke stonewalling from the other party. (Try, "How about Chinese tonight, Italian tomorrow?")

6. Showing a little emotion can be a good thing. Revealing in a non-accusatory manner how you feel, whether it's frustration or anger, shares something with the other side. He or she may be experiencing the same emotions, and it helps to clear the air. (Instead of "Why can't you ever do the dinner dishes?!" try "It's just that I'm really tired of that chore. Actually, you seem to be burned out on laundry duty—how about if we switch next week?")

7. Get your game-face on. If you're negotiating as a team, be sure each member participates. Have a game plan so each knows his assignment and no one speaks out of turn. (Kids, remember that new puppy you've always wanted? With a little strategy, you could be cuddling your new pet by tomorrow night!)

8. Make negotiation a requirement in your workplace, and everyone wins. Use negotiation rather than confrontation to settle disputes at the workplace. Personalities, ego needs, and power struggles shouldn't take precedence over real issues. (Nowadays, our office kitchen boasts both a coffee and a cappuccino machine.)

Now that you have acquired some basic negotiating tactics, it's time to move on to closing the deal. Continue to the RK Auto Group Negotiate Your Way to Happiness Series: Part 2.