We are all a negotiators. Every day we are negotiating whether it is over what to eat for dinner, what movie to see, or the price for a car, house, or a credit card. Learning to Negotiate can be daunting and intimidating but, there are no magic negotiation skills. Anybody can learn how, it just takes a little negotiation tactics practice.

 In my previous blog I talked about how to negotiate a job offer, now I’m going to delve a little deeper in to you as a negotiator. What is your personal style, how do you get what you want.

Every negation is a personal experience. You may have heard that the best way to gain favor in the eyes of another is to emulate their behavior. It is human nature to like those who are like us. Since we cannot separate ourselves from the situation when negotiating, winning the approval from those we negotiate with is a crucial step to becoming a better negotiator.

Peter Urs Bender’s created a Guide to Strengths and Weaknesses of Personality Types We can use this to identify how to tailor your approach to the individual.

 Who do you want to negotiate with? Where do they fit? Have a look at the clip from the apprentice below.

Where would you place Sir Alan Sugar in the Personality types table?

I would place him as a Driver. The Driver is a goal oriented, successful, go-getter who is not afraid of taking risks. They are blunt about what they want and respect others that are the same. A Driver is a natural decision maker and their air of confidence is very persuasive. The Driver often steam rolls over others, without even knowing, in their effort to get things done and produce results!

So, how do we negotiate with a Driver? thenegotiationboard.com reccomends that you…

· Present succinct, specific, and structured information

· Expect to answer many “what” questions

· Be professional and focused

· Discuss projected results

· State facts, not opinions

· Focus on the “Big Picture”

· Give alternative options

Sir Alan may be to the extreme of the Driver type but as long as you know what to expect you can’t be caught off guard. Always think about who you are negotiating with. Also have a go at identifying yourself in the table.

 I placed myself as Expressive, Where do you fit?

Please share your experiences of these personality types, how did you deal with them?

To have a look at how to negotiate with the other personality types in the table click here